CORROSION COST AND PREVENTIVE STRATEGIES IN THE UNITED STATES

This report describes the annual total cost of metallic corrosion in the United States and preventive strategies for optimum corrosion management. In 1998, an amendment for a Cost of Corrosion study was included in the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) and was approved by Congress. In the period from 1999 to 2001, CC Technologies conducted the research in a cooperative agreement with the Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and NACE International (The Corrosion Society). The total direct cost of corrosion is estimated at $276 billion per year, which is 3.1% of the 1998 U.S. gross domestic product (GDP). This cost was determined by analyzing 26 industrial…