AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands, November 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Avantium has introduced a novel technology to measure corrosion. The technology has broad potential in the oil and chemical industry, where corrosive effects of crude oil, oil fractions and chemicals can have devastating effects on pipelines, refineries and chemical plants. Avantium's novel technology is used to assess the corrosive properties of fluids on metal and provides valuable insights that will help to minimize the damaging effects of corrosion.

Based upon its proprietary Nanoflow technology, Avantium has developed a new tool, which allows the quantitative analysis of corrosion of liquids on metals.

The most distinctive feature of Avantium's corrosion measurement equipment is that it combines the use of a short residence time of the liquid at elevated temperatures with a closed loop system. A patent describing Avantium's methodology was published in September 2008 (WO2008/115050 A1).

The main advantages of Avantium's technology, in comparison with the standard batch-coupon methodology, are: that smaller quantities of liquids are needed and that degradation of corrosive species (e.g. organic acids) at elevated temperature is decreased. In addition, the metal is continuously in contact with fresh feed and the evaluation can be conducted in a parallel fashion which has a significant positive effect on productivity.

Avantium has made the technology available to customers interested in analyzing the corrosivity of their feeds (e.g. as a function of process conditions or water content) or assessing the corrosion behaviour of metals, coatings or other materials. Avantium's customers can access this novel technology by outsourcing projects to Avantium or by purchasing a parallel corrosion assessment system.

Profile Avantium

Avantium is a leading technology company in the area of advanced high-throughput RD operating in the energy, chemicals and pharmaceutical industries. The company develops products and processes in the area of biofuels, bio-based chemicals and novel crystal forms of existing drugs by applying its proprietary, high-throughput RD technology. Avantium has demonstrated the potential of this technology by providing RD services and tools to more than 70 companies worldwide. Avantium's customer base includes many of the world's largest energy, chemicals and pharmaceutical companies, such as BP, Shell, Sasol, Pfizer and GSK. Avantium has approximately 130 employees; its offices and head quarters are based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

http://www.avantium.com

For further information: Please contact: Mariette Hoogendoorn at +31-20-586-8010