Issue: Sports Stadium Corrosion

A major sports stadium with artistic design which was the pride of the local community was found to be experiencing corrosion, even though the structure was composed of weathered steel. There was a lot of finger-pointing between the designers, architects, builders and suppliers as to the cause of the corrosion. To aid in the determination of where blame could be placed during the course of litigation, it was necessary to consider ambient conditions and exposure to temperature, moisture and wind, and so this required a meteorologist. this consultant was retained by the provider of the steel used in the construction. The first task this consultant was given after being retained was to lay the groundwork for a measurement study to quantify the amount of corrosive salt in the air from the nearby ocean. This consultant traveled to the region, and criss-crossed the area to find suitable measurement locations where sensors could be placed to ensure results were representative of conditions upwind, near and downwind of the stadium.

Following this stage of work effort, this consultant then proceeded to do a statistical or "climatological" study to determine the prevailing and major wind conditions at the stadium and their variability, the seasonal and diurnal probabilities of rain occurrence and amount, daily variations of temperature and humidity, the frequency of dew as a function of time of year and time of day, and the likelihood of salt material being carried by the wind from various directions depending on time of day, season and weather situation. This required acquisition of a great deal of meteorological data from surrounding sites, analyzing their representativeness to conditions at the stadium, and consideration of the major weather patterns and seasonal conditions which strongly impacted the potential flow of corrosive salt to the stadium area.

It was noted that other structures such as bridges, in other locations, which were also constructed with the same weathered steel did not exhibit the same kind of corrosion noted on the stadium. This observation led to an additional requirement for me to travel to some of those locations which were in tropical environments where the moisture levels were very high, to observe the locations and exposures, and also to conduct a comparative study of how wind, temperature, humidity and precipitation varied at those locations compared to conditions that prevailed at the stadium.

When the case went to trial, this consultant was able to establish convincingly at trial, in concert with the other experts, that the likely cause of the corrosion was not a defect in the steel used, but rather a design problem which allowed water to collect and sit at the bottom of the steel structures for prolonged periods of time either due to rainfall, or the formation of dew. Due to our convincing arguments, the jury unexpectedly ruled in favor of this consultant's client, the steel company.

To see the resume of the expert associated with this case study, see the link below.