Failure Analysis - A Practical Guide
Online
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Mar 30 - 31, 2023
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Course Code: 13-0312-ONL23
- Overview
- Syllabus
- Instructor
Overview
This course is held online over 2 days on the following schedule (All times in Eastern Time Zone):
9:30 am to 5:30 pm Eastern (Will include the usual breaks)
After participating in this course, you will be able to:
- Analyse failed parts and components using a systematic approach and obtain conclusions based on sound scientific principles.
- Apply this information to improve design and reliability of metallic, ceramic and polymer parts and machinery.
Description
Today’s competitive industrial environment demands reliable and effective solutions to problems. Root cause failure analysis is essential to improve quality and reliability and prevent catastrophic failures. While a large range of analytical techniques are now available, proper methodology and techniques must be used to obtain reliable results.
This course will focus on practical techniques to perform a successful failure analysis. Relying on years of experience, the instructor will describe techniques and approaches combined with practical examples. The participants are encouraged to bring examples from their own experience for discussion and preliminary analysis.
Course Outline
- Basic principle of failure analysis
- Destructive and non-destructive testing
- Basic types and properties of materials: polymers, ceramics and metals
- Most common types of Failures (fatigue, corrosion, overload, environmental degradation, etc…)
- Fundamentals of corrosion
- Analytical Tools
- Practical Examples taken from various industries: HVAC and Plumbing, civil engineering, pressure vessels, extractive metallurgy, oil and gas industry
Who Should Attend
Plant Managers • Superintendents and Supervisors • Technical Managers • Engineering Consultants • Maintenance Personnel • Laboratory Personnel • Quality Management Personnel • Accident Investigators • Insurance Litigators and Purchase Officials.
More InformationTime: 9:30 AM - 5:30 PM Eastern Time
Please note: You can check other time zones here.
Syllabus
Program Outline
Day 1
Conducting A Successful Failure Analysis
Scientific method, Proper documentation and preservation of the evidence, Preliminary examination, Collection of data and samples, Photography and videos
Review of Basic Types of Materials
- Polymers, ceramics and alloys
- Mechanical and chemical properties
Types of Failures
- Ductile/Brittle, Fatigue, Wear
- High temperature effects
- Cracking (hydrogen, scc)
- Corrosion
Corrosion Aspects
- Basic theory: Corrosion reactions, key parameters,
- eH –pH diagrams, kinetics, corrosion control
- Protection methods: coating, inhibitors, cathodic protection, material selection
Day 2
Analytical Tools
- Visual exams, Destructive vs non-destructive, Metallographies, Electron microscopy, FTIR, Chemical analysis (quantitative vs qualitative)
Practical Examples to Illustrate the Various Types and Causes of Failures:
- Typical material defects
- Material selection
- Fatigue
- Corrosion
- Welding
- Design vs manufacturing
Typical Examples of Failures in HVAC and Plumbing, Civil Engineering, Pressure Vessels, Extractive Metallurgy, Oil and Gas industry
Discussion of Examples (Participants are Encouraged to Present Examples for Group Discussion and Analysis)
Instructor

Nicolas Geoffroy, P.Eng., Ph.D., Metallurgist, holds a bachelor degree in materials engineering and a doctorate in metallurgy from McGill University. As a Metallurgical Engineer, he carries out on-site investigations, performs simulations and laboratory testing, analyses and characterizes macroscopically and microscopically all types of material and prepares expert reports. During his years of experience in the field of materials, he took part in various projects in the aerospace, oil and gas and extractive sectors in North America and Europe. He also though at the undergraduate level at McGill University, Canada.
He has conducted laboratory testing and simulations to verify hypotheses on the nature and cause of hundreds of failures involving metallic materials. He developed a specific expertise in the corrosion and cathodic protection fields. He presently works for CEP Forensic in the Materials and Chemistry group.

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Fee & Credits
$1295 + taxes
- 1.4 Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
- 14 Professional Development Hours (PDHs)
- ECAA Annual Professional Development Points
OTHER UPCOMING DATES
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