Science Slam Award: From rotten eggs to rotten pipelines

Gabriel Volpe Pimenta secures second place

At a glance:

• Event: Science Slam for early-career researchers organised by the Materials Research Department of the Ruhr University Bochum.
• Achievement: Gabriel Volpe Pimenta, doing his master thesis at the Max Planck Institute for Sustainable Materials, secures the second place.
• Topic: Computational materials design helps to uncover how sour gas corrosion degrades iron surfaces.

Gabriel Volpe Pimenta who is conducting his master thesis at the Max Planck Institute for Sustainable Materials, has been awarded second place at the Science Slam hosted by the Materials Research Department of the Ruhr University Bochum. The event brought together Master’s students, PhD researchers and early postdoctoral researchers to present their research to a broad audience in an engaging and accessible way.

In his presentation, “From Rotten Eggs to Rotten Pipelines”, Volpe Pimenta explained the mechanisms behind sour gas corrosion - the degradation of iron caused by hydrogen sulphide (H₂S). Sour gas corrosion is a widespread challenge in the oil and gas industry. Computational materials design helps in understanding the underlying processes. The research was carried out as part of his Master's specialisation project in chemistry.

Science slams aim at explaining research in accessible and entertaining ways to a wide audience.