Structural Degradation Landscaping Review For NET-ZERO 2050: Dr. Bill Hedges

Lecture Synopsis:
The Henry Royce Institute, working in collaboration with Frazer-Nash Consultancy, was funded by the EPSRC to undertake a review of the key degradation issues in structural materials that are used to drive the UK towards the goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

The primary objective of the review was to identify opportunities to create investment drivers for research and development that the UK should undertake to ensure the transition occurs in a safe, timely and efficient manner. Topics that are common to several industries or which could slow or prevent the transition will be highlighted.
The study focused on five key industries that play a pivotal role in the transition which are:
1. Wind power generation (onshore and offshore).
2. Transportation (Air, Road, Rail and Sea).
3. Nuclear fission (not fusion).
4. Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS).
5. Hydrogen production and usage.

This talk will summarise the results of the study and discuss the conclusions that were made. Topics that were common to several industries or which could slow or prevent the transition will be highlighted.

Speaker Biography:
Bill is an independent corrosion consultant and the current President of the Institute of Corrosion (ICorr). He has a B.Sc. in chemistry and a Ph.D. in electrochemistry (lithium batteries) from the University of Southampton, UK and spent time as a researcher in the Bioengineering department at Oxford University, UK.

Bill has 34 years’ experience in corrosion science, integrity management and engineering and has spent the last 30 years in the oil & gas industry working for Exxon and BP. He was with BP for 24 years and left in 2020 to form his own consultancy business. His final role was as the Chief Engineer for Materials and Integrity Management. He has spent half of his career working in central engineering functions and half in operational locations in many countries worldwide with specific assignments in London, Houston, Trinidad and Alaska. These assignments have given him practical experience of integrity issues in onshore, offshore, deep-water, tropical, desert and arctic environments.

Bill is a Chartered Engineer (CEng.), Chartered Chemist (CChem) and a Fellow of both the Institute of Corrosion (FICorr) and the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC). He has held director roles with the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) Foundation and the NACE Europe board. He has published 38 papers and in 2009 was awarded the NACE Fellow honour (FNACE).

About the Institute:
The Mining Institute is the Royal Chartered membership organisation for science and technology in the North. Founded in 1852 by some of the most important contemporary Northern scientists and engineers, our members still actively contribute to academia, industry and public life across the region.

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