Sean Brossia

Sean Brossia, Ph.D. Director, Technology Development, DNV Materials Fellow

Sean Brossia, Ph.D. is the director of Technology Development for DNV Columbus and the DNV Materials Fellow. Dr. Brossia has over thirteen years experience in investigating the corrosion behavior of iron, nickel, titanium, copper, and aluminum based alloys in aqueous and non-aqueous systems for applications and use in highly diverse industries. He has co authored nearly 50 technical publications and has filed six patent applications in these areas. He presently is focused on applied corrosion and materials research in support of a wide range of areas including pipeline, oil and gas, energy generation, automotive/aerospace, and biomedical applications.

Prior to joining DNV Columbus, Sean was the manager of the Environmental Performance of Materials Section at Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, Texas. There, he was involved in numerous projects related to the development of corrosion and corrosivity sensors, evaluation of coatings and paints, failure analyses, and long-term life prediction of high level nuclear waste container materials. He was also involved with corrosion, stress corrosion, and integrity issues associated with oil and gas exploration equipment and microbially influenced corrosion. His most recent projects at Southwest Research were focused on structural health assurance of engineering systems through the coupled use of integrated wireless sensor networks and prognostication methodologies as applied to pipelines, aircraft, spacecraft, and bridges, corrosion of military ground and air combat vehicles, natural gas pipeline systems, and enhancing the understanding of localized corrosion processes in fabricated (e.g., welded) components. Before joining Southwest Research, Sean was involved in new stainless steel alloy development, metallic coatings, intergranular corrosion of weldments, and surface treatments for stainless steels at Armco, Inc. in Middletown, Ohio.

Sean is an active member of NACE International and ASTM International and currently serves on a number of committees including the policy and public affairs committees of NACE and the long-range planning committee of ASTM G01 Corrosion of Metals. He also holds the positions of "S - Science and Technology of Corrosion" Technology Coordinator for NACE and Vice-Chair for Programs for ASTM G01 Corrosion of Metals. For his Ph.D. research he was awarded the Allan Talbot Gwathmey Award for most outstanding Ph.D. dissertation in the physical sciences and engineering at the University of Virginia in 1997 and the 1998 Morris Cohen Award from the Corrosion Division of the Electrochemical Society. More recently he was awarded the ASTM G01 Award of Appreciation in 2000 and was an invited speaker at the Gordon Corrosion Conference in 2004.

In addition to his formal education in materials science, metallurgy, and corrosion engineering, Sean also has received advanced training and has experience in various aspects of project management, risk communication, personnel management and labor law, and intellectual property considerations.