1996 Winner: Industrial Research
Ambitious Project Seeks to Improve Corrosion Inhibitors
The cost of corrosion in terms of material loss and safety risks in the oil and gas production industry is extremely high making the formulation of new corrosion inhibitors of major economic importance in Alberta. Travis Chemicals Inc., active in the supply of corrosion inhibitors for this industry for a number of years, has embarked on an ambitious research project in conjunction with the University of Calgary and the High Performance Computing Centre to develop new products, and a better means of developing and evaluating corrosion inhibitors. Early experimental results have identified a number of promising chemical compounds that will be the subject of continued testing and advanced computational modelling.
When this suite of chemicals reaches the market, there will be a ready demand from a variety of Alberta producers in several sectors. The corrosion inhibitors could find use in downhole environments and in a wide range of surface facilities from compressor stations to refineries. As well, major steps forward have been made in terms of the methods used to assess the effectiveness of the corrosion inhibitors currently available and new ones being produced. Currently employing 115 people, Travis Chemicals has not only supplied chemicals and services to the domestic oil and gas industry for 40 years, but is also strongly committed to research and development. Its 8000 square foot laboratory complex in Calgary equipped with highly sophisticated analytical equipment, serves two functions: technical service work in support of customers, and research and development of new and improved products.
