Coatings, Storage Tank & Piping Expert Witness

Disputes this covers

• Underground storage tanks and flexible piping — leaks, permeation and degradation of polymer and composite tank and piping systems in petroleum service.
• Protective and corrosion-resistant coatings — blistering, delamination, cracking or early loss of protection.
• Insurance and subrogation — independent determination of cause where a release or a coating failure sits at the centre of the loss.
• Supply and installation disputes — whether the material supplied, or the way it was applied or installed, met the specification.

The technical questions that usually decide the matter

• Was the polymer compatible with the fuel or chemical it carried, including blends introduced after it was installed?
• Did the material swell, soften, embrittle or lose additives over its service life, and at what rate?
• For a coating, did failure start at the substrate, within the film, or between coats, and was surface preparation and cure adequate?
• Was the failure a defect present from manufacture or installation, or deterioration that developed in service?
• Was the product a reasonable choice for the environment it was placed in?

Why this sits inside the principal’s field

Petroleum underground storage tanks and flexible piping are a specific area of the principal’s experience, and these systems are built from the polymers and composites that are the core of his discipline. Coatings and films, adhesion, cure and barrier performance are among the process areas this practice works in directly.

Credentials relevant to admissibility

• PhD in polymer science and engineering, University of Manchester (UMIST), England.
• Professor Emeritus of Polymer Science & Engineering, The University of Southern Mississippi; formerly professor of chemical engineering and of materials science and engineering, Iowa State University.
• Registered Chartered Engineer (UK) and Registered Chartered Scientist (UK).
• Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals & Mining (UK), the Society of Plastics Engineers, and the Nigerian Academy of Engineering.
• Holder of seven patents; author of more than 150 publications in refereed archival scientific and engineering journals and books.
• Senior industrial experience, including as Senior Project Leader and Engineer at Corning Incorporated.

The full record, including awards and appointments, is set out on the credentials page.

How an engagement runs

Conflicts are cleared first. After an engagement agreement is in place, the evidence is reviewed, any testing is commissioned through independent university and industry laboratories, and the opinion is reported to counsel before it is written up. The scope of expert work, and answers to the questions counsel usually ask first, are on the Expert Witness & Litigation Support page.