Follow Anthony Setiadi and his thoughts on EUROCORR 2026

Arriving at Eurocorr at the Dublin Convention Centre, my first thought was simply: what a fantastic event this is.

The scale of the conference was impressive, with parallel sessions running throughout the day covering such a wide range of topics across corrosion science and engineering. There really was something for everyone, whether you were a student, researcher, engineer or industry professional.

With so many interesting sessions happening at the same time, the Eurocorr app quickly became my essential companion for planning the day and finding my way between rooms. It was a great way to make sure I didn’t miss the talks that were particularly relevant to me. The quality of the presentations was excellent, and the Q&A sessions afterwards were equally engaging. Credit must go to both the presenters for sharing their knowledge so openly and to the organisers for putting together such a comprehensive programme.

It was particularly encouraging to see so many ICorr Sustaining Member companies represented. Having the opportunity to speak with representatives from these companies, I could really see how passionate they are about our industry and, importantly, how keen they are to engage with the next generation. The Careers Fair was a great example of this. Many of the companies had stands where students could come along, ask questions about the industry and find out more about the skills and qualities that employers are looking for. I think initiatives like this are incredibly important.

One of the things that ICorr is keen to promote is greater engagement between our members and younger people who may be considering a career in corrosion. We need to inspire the next generation to join our industry and help build the talent pool that will be needed to take on the important challenges ahead. And those challenges are significant. Corrosion has an enormous economic impact, estimated at around 3% of global GDP, as well as important environmental consequences. As we move towards greener technologies and look for ways to extend the life of critical infrastructure, understanding and managing corrosion will become increasingly important. Bringing talented young people into our industry is therefore not just desirable, it is essential.

This year, EUROCORR also incorporated ICorr’s Corrosion Science Symposium, organised by our Corrosion Science Division. It was great to see the latest research being presented and to experience the enthusiasm of those working at the forefront of corrosion science. The strong attendance continued throughout the afternoon, right up until the closing sessions at 6pm, with some talks attracting such large audiences that they were standing room only.

Another highlight of my EUROCORR day is our president Yunnan Gao receiving his 2026 World Corrosion Organization (WCO) Corrosion Awareness Honour. This is a huge honour for both Yunnan and ICorr, and it makes me incredibly proud to be part of an Institution that makes such a real difference.

Of course, a conference is not just about presentations and technical discussions. One of the things I enjoy most is the opportunity to meet people, reconnect with colleagues and make new connections. The Conference Networking Dinner at the Guinness Storehouse was certainly a memorable way to finish the day. The venue was fantastic, the food and drinks were excellent, and, most importantly, the people were wonderful. There were plenty of lively conversations throughout the evening — some about corrosion, some about the industry, and plenty about everything else.

Before I knew it, my day at Eurocorr had come to an end, and it was time to prepare for my flight home the following morning. Looking back, I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to attend Eurocorr and to support ICorr and our members. It was a fantastic experience and a great reminder of just how much knowledge, expertise and enthusiasm exists within our industry.

To join ICorr’s global community of corrosion experts, visit https://www.icorr.org/join-the-institute/

For more information on ICorr, email: admin@icorr.org

For more information on EUROCORR, visit: https://eurocorr.org/

Recognition highlights sustained contribution to corrosion awareness and international collaboration

The Institute of Corrosion is pleased to announce that its President, Dr Yunnan Gao, has received the 2026 WCO Corrosion Awareness Honour, presented during the morning Plenary Session of EUROCORR 2026 in Dublin on 10 September 2026.

The honour was presented by Professor En-Hou Han, President of the World Corrosion Organization (WCO), in recognition of Dr Gao’s contribution to promoting awareness of corrosion and corrosion protection and his continued commitment to increasing the visibility and importance of corrosion prevention within the international community.

The recognition reflects a sustained programme of activities spanning professional institutions, industry, academia, universities and the wider corrosion community.

Raising Awareness of Corrosion

As President of ICorr, Dr Gao has made corrosion awareness and knowledge sharing an important part of his presidential activities.

Over the past two years, he has delivered corrosion awareness and ICorr presentations across all eight UK ICorr branches, engaged with universities, students and early-career engineers, and undertaken extensive knowledge-sharing activities internationally.

His activities in the UK and China have included numerous presentations and professional engagements, while his work with universities has helped strengthen awareness of corrosion as an important engineering discipline and career.

These activities reflect ICorr’s wider commitment to advancing corrosion science and engineering and ensuring that knowledge of corrosion prevention reaches beyond specialists within the profession.

Building International Collaboration

A significant feature of Dr Gao’s work as ICorr President has been the strengthening of international cooperation.

ICorr has continued to develop close relationships with leading corrosion organisations, including the World Corrosion Organization (WCO), European Federation of Corrosion (EFC), Chinese Society for Corrosion and Protection (CSCP) and Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP).

A particular achievement has been the development of UK-China cooperation through the 1^st UK–China Corrosion Summit in Manchester in September 2025 and the 2^nd China-UK Corrosion Summit in Beijing in April 2026.

These events brought together experts, researchers, engineers and industrial stakeholders from both countries, providing valuable opportunities for knowledge exchange, professional networking and discussion of the challenges facing the corrosion community.

Dr Gao has also continued to represent ICorr at major international corrosion conferences and professional forums, helping to strengthen connections between corrosion professionals and organisations across Europe, Asia, North America and the Middle East.

A Collective Achievement

Commenting on receiving the honour, Dr Gao said: “I am deeply honoured and grateful to receive the 2026 WCO Corrosion Awareness Honour. I regard this recognition as much more than a personal achievement. I accept it on behalf of the many ICorr members, volunteers, colleagues, academic and industrial partners, and friends across the global corrosion community who work tirelessly to make corrosion better understood and better managed.”

He added: “Corrosion is often invisible until its consequences become visible. Yet its impact on safety, infrastructure, the environment and our economy can be enormous. Raising awareness is therefore not simply about promoting our profession—it is about helping society understand the importance of preventing corrosion before its consequences occur.”

The Institute of Corrosion warmly congratulates Dr Gao on this significant recognition and acknowledges the many members, volunteers, partner organisations and colleagues whose continued commitment to corrosion awareness contributes to ICorr’s mission.

The honour also reinforces the importance of international cooperation in addressing corrosion challenges. Through collaboration between professional organisations, industry, academia and government, the corrosion community can continue to improve understanding, strengthen professional capability and promote effective corrosion prevention around the world.

The Institute of Corrosion congratulates Dr Yunnan Gao on receiving the 2026 WCO Corrosion Awareness Honour.

Advancing Corrosion Science and Engineering.

Photo 2: Professor En-Hou Han, President of the World Corrosion Organization, presents the 2026 WCO Corrosion Awareness Honour to Dr Yunnan Gao.

Photo 3: Dr Yunnan Gao delivers his acceptance speech following the presentation of the 2026 WCO Corrosion Awareness Honour.

Photo 4: Presentation of the 2026 WCO Corrosion Awareness Honour during the EUROCORR 2026 Plenary Session in Dublin.

ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao represented the Institute of Corrosion at the 10^th China International Petroleum and Petrochemical Corrosion and Protection Technology Exchange Conference (2026 ChinaCorr), held in Shanghai, China, in July 2026. The conference provided another important opportunity for ICorr to engage with the international corrosion community, including valuable interaction with the Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP) and leading corrosion professionals from China and around the world.

Following ICorr’s participation in the ICCPA 2026 conference in Chengdu earlier in July, the Shanghai event represented a further significant opportunity during the President’s visit to China to promote ICorr internationally and strengthen professional relationships across the global corrosion and materials protection community.

A Major International Corrosion and Protection Forum

The 10^th China International Petroleum and Petrochemical Corrosion and Protection Technology Exchange Conference brought together senior representatives, technical experts, researchers and industry professionals from across the petroleum, petrochemical, oil and gas, pipeline and engineering sectors.

The conference is positioned as an international platform for technical exchange and cooperation in corrosion protection, with a particular focus on the transformation of corrosion management towards whole-life-cycle, digital and intelligent approaches. The technical programme addressed a wide range of current industry challenges, including corrosion integrity management, digital monitoring and early warning, corrosion big data and artificial intelligence, corrosion-resistant materials, coatings and inhibitors, cathodic protection, CCUS and supercritical CO₂, hydrogen transportation, and pipeline integrity.

The breadth of participation reflected the increasingly international nature of corrosion engineering and asset integrity. The conference information specifically identified participation from major international oil and gas companies, professional organisations, universities, research institutes and technology providers, alongside major Chinese petroleum and petrochemical organisations.

ICorr Represented at Plenary Level

Upon invitation, ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao attended the conference on behalf of the Institute of Corrosion and delivered a plenary lecture introducing ICorr and its activities, followed by a technical presentation on a relevant corrosion engineering topic.

The presentations provided an opportunity to introduce ICorr’s role as a leading UK professional body for corrosion science, engineering and management, and to highlight the Institute’s growing international engagement. They also provided a platform for sharing practical experience and technical knowledge with a large audience of corrosion professionals from China and overseas.

The strong interest from delegates demonstrated the value of international professional organisations sharing experience, technical practice and approaches to professional development across national and regional boundaries.

Strengthening Engagement with AMPP

A particularly important feature of 2026 ChinaCorr was the strong participation of the Association for Materials Protection and Performance (AMPP).

AMPP was one of the organisations listed among the hosts of the conference, alongside Northeast Petroleum University, the Petroleum Corrosion and Protection Committee of the Chinese Petroleum Society and several major Chinese industry organisations. AMPP also promoted the event internationally under the name 2026 ChinaCorr, describing it as an event focused on new technologies, methods and achievements for the industry, with digital transformation and low-carbon, high-quality industrial development among its key themes.

For ICorr, the presence of an AMPP delegation provided an especially valuable opportunity for direct interaction with senior colleagues from another leading international corrosion organisation. Dr Gao met with AMPP representatives during the conference, including the Immediate Past Chair of the AMPP Board of Directors, Juan Caballero, providing an opportunity to exchange views on the development of the corrosion profession, international cooperation and opportunities for closer engagement between professional communities.

The relationship between ICorr and AMPP is particularly important in the context of the increasingly global nature of corrosion engineering. While the two organisations operate within different professional and geographical environments, they share many common objectives: advancing corrosion knowledge, supporting professional competence, promoting good engineering practice, developing the next generation of corrosion professionals and raising awareness of the importance of corrosion management.

The Shanghai conference therefore provided a valuable setting for continuing dialogue and strengthening professional relationships between ICorr and AMPP.

Connecting with the Wider International Corrosion Community

In addition to engagement with AMPP, Dr Gao took the opportunity to meet with senior representatives of other international and Chinese corrosion organisations.

These included discussions with the President of the Chinese Society for Corrosion and Protection (CSCP), Professor Xiaogang Li and the President of the World Corrosion Organization (WCO), Professor En-Hou Han, further strengthening the network of professional relationships that ICorr has been developing internationally.

Such engagement is an important part of ICorr’s international strategy. Through collaboration and professional exchange with organisations such as AMPP, CSCP and WCO, ICorr can help create stronger links between corrosion professionals across different regions and support the sharing of knowledge, standards, experience and best practice.

These relationships are also particularly relevant as the corrosion profession responds to rapidly developing challenges associated with the energy transition, including CCUS, hydrogen, new materials, ageing infrastructure, digitalisation and increasingly sophisticated approaches to corrosion risk management.

Continuing ICorr’s International Presence in China

The participation in 2026 ChinaCorr forms part of ICorr’s continuing programme of international engagement in China and follows the Institute’s participation in ICCPA 2026 in Chengdu earlier in July.

Taken together, these engagements provided an excellent opportunity for ICorr to maintain a visible presence within the rapidly developing Chinese corrosion community, meet professional colleagues and industry leaders, and further develop relationships with international corrosion organisations.

For ICorr, international engagement is not simply about attending conferences. It is about building long-term professional relationships, sharing knowledge and experience, supporting the development of corrosion engineering as a profession, and creating opportunities for cooperation between organisations and their members.

The Institute is grateful to the organisers of 2026 ChinaCorr for the invitation and warm welcome extended to its President, and particularly values the opportunity to engage with the AMPP delegation and other international colleagues during the conference.

ICorr looks forward to continuing this dialogue and strengthening international cooperation in the corrosion and materials protection community.

Conference information

Further information about the 10th China International Petroleum and Petrochemical Corrosion and Protection Technology Exchange Conference (2026 ChinaCorr) is available from the Official Conference Website and the AMPP 2026 ChinaCorr event page.

Photo 1: Delegates Attending 2026 ChinaCorr in Shanghai, China, July 2026.

Photo 2: ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao Delivering a Plenary Lecture on ICorr and A technical Topic at 2026 ChinaCorr.

Photo 3: Delegates Attending the Plenary Lecture Delivered by ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao at 2026 ChinaCorr.

Photo 4: ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao Receiving A Certificate of Appreciation at 2026 ChinaCorr.

Photo 5: ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao with the Immediate Past Chair of the AMPP Board of Directors, Juan Caballero, at 2026 ChinaCorr.

Photo 6: ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao with the President of the Chinese Society for Corrosion and Protection (CSCP), Professor Xiaogang Li, at 2026 ChinaCorr.

Photo 7: ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao with the President of the World Corrosion Organization (WCO), Professor En-Hou Han, at 2026 ChinaCorr.

Dr Yunnan Gao, President of the Institute of Corrosion, represented ICorr at the International Conference on Corrosion Protection and Application (ICCPA 2026), held in Chengdu, China, in July 2026. As an EFC Event No. 549, ICCPA 2026 provided an important international platform for the exchange of knowledge and expertise in corrosion and corrosion protection, bringing together experts, researchers and industry professionals from China and around the world.

The 2026 International Conference on Corrosion Protection and Application (ICCPA 2026) was held in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China, from 24 to 26 July 2026 under the theme “Green and Low Carbon, Open Exchange, Cooperation and Win-Win”. The conference was jointly organised by the European Federation of Corrosion (EFC), the Sichuan Society for Corrosion and Protection, the Chongqing Society for Corrosion and Protection and the Southwest Institute of Technology and Engineering, together with a wide range of academic, research and industrial organisations in China.

ICCPA 2026 was designated EFC Event No. 549, making it a significant event within the EFC international conference programme and one of the largest EFC events to have been held in China. The conference attracted more than 500 experts, academics and technical professionals from over 10 countries, including China, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as other European countries.

Strong International Participation

The conference programme covered a broad range of topics reflecting the increasingly diverse challenges facing corrosion science, engineering and materials protection. These included material damage and surface protection in extreme environments, corrosion protection of aerospace materials and structures, high-temperature corrosion, marine corrosion, corrosion and protection in sustainable energy systems, oil and gas corrosion, corrosion inhibitor technology, abrasion-resistant materials, advanced functional anti-corrosion and anti-fouling coatings, as well as a dedicated Young Scientists Forum.

The technical programme provided an opportunity for researchers and practitioners to exchange the latest developments in corrosion mechanisms, materials performance, surface engineering and corrosion protection technologies, while also considering the application of these developments to major industrial challenges.

The conference featured contributions from a number of internationally recognised corrosion and materials experts. Among the invited speakers were Chinese Academy of Engineering Academicians Professor Shandong Tu, Professor Shengkai Gong and Professor En-Hou Han, together with international experts including Professor Damien Feron of Université Paris-Saclay, Professor Philippe Marcus of École Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Paris and Professor Tomáš Prošek of the University of Chemistry and Technology, Prague.

ICorr Represented at the Conference

The Institute of Corrosion was represented by its President, Dr Yunnan Gao, who attended the conference on behalf of ICorr and contributed to the technical programme as an invited plenary speaker..

Dr Gao’s participation provided an opportunity to introduce the Institute of Corrosion to a broad international audience in China and to highlight ICorr’s role as a professional body supporting the development of corrosion science, engineering competence and professional standards.

Photo 1: Delegates at ICCPA 2026 in Chengdu, China, July 2026.

Photo 2: ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao at the ICCPA 2026 Opening Ceremony.

ICorr Plenary Contribution

As part of the plenary programme, Dr Gao delivered a lecture introducing ICorr and its international activities, followed by a technical presentation on a topical issue in corrosion and materials engineering.

The plenary lecture provided an opportunity to share ICorr’s experience and professional activities with delegates from China and other countries, while demonstrating the Institute’s commitment to international cooperation and knowledge exchange. It also provided an effective platform for strengthening awareness of ICorr among corrosion professionals, academics and industry representatives in China.

Photo 3: ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao Delivering A Plenary Lecture at ICCPA 2026.

Photo 4 ICorr President Receiving the Certificate of Appreciation at ICCPA 2026.

Strengthening ICorr-EFC and International Collaboration

ICCPA 2026 was particularly significant for ICorr because of its status as an EFC Event No. 549. The conference brought together representatives of the EFC community and provided a valuable opportunity for ICorr to engage directly with EFC colleagues and the wider corrosion community in China.

Photo 5: EFC Delegates at ICCPA 2026, including ICorr President Dr Yunnan Gao.

Following the official announcement by the World Corrosion Organization (WCO), the Institute of Corrosion (ICorr) is proud to announce that its President, Dr Yunnan Gao, has been selected as the recipient of the 2026 World Corrosion Organization (WCO) Corrosion Awareness Honour, a major international recognition of his sustained leadership in promoting corrosion awareness, education, outreach and global collaboration.

This prestigious international honour recognises Dr Gao’s outstanding contribution to raising the profile of corrosion and corrosion protection across industry, academia, professional institutions and the wider engineering community. The award was established by the WCO in association with the European Federation of Corrosion (EFC) and the Chinese Society of Corrosion and Protection (CSCP) and recognises pioneering individuals who have made a substantial contribution to raising awareness of corrosion and corrosion protection among government, industry and the general public.

The official WCO announcement is available here: https://corrosion.org/Awards/Corrosion+Award+2026.html. 

Commenting on the award, Dr Gao said:

“I am truly honoured and deeply humbled to receive the WCO Corrosion Awareness Honour. I see this recognition not only as a personal honour, but also as recognition of the collective efforts of the many colleagues, volunteers, professional organisations and industry partners around the world who are working together to raise awareness of corrosion and promote better corrosion prevention and protection.”

“Corrosion has profound implications for safety, infrastructure resilience, sustainability and society. I firmly believe that increasing awareness and understanding of corrosion is essential if we are to prevent avoidable failures, protect our infrastructure and support a more sustainable future. I am particularly pleased that this WCO honour recognises the importance of awareness, education, collaboration and communication in achieving this goal.”

The Institute of Corrosion warmly congratulates Dr Yunnan Gao on this prestigious international recognition. His receipt of the WCO Corrosion Awareness Honour is a proud moment for ICorr and a reflection of the Institute’s continued commitment to advancing corrosion awareness, professional competence and international cooperation.

The award will be formally presented by WCO President Prof. En-Hou Han during the plenary session on the morning of Thursday 10 September 2026 at EUROCORR 2026 in Dublin, where ICorr looks forward to celebrating this important achievement with Dr Gao and colleagues from across the global corrosion community.

About the Institute of Corrosion

The Institute of Corrosion (ICorr), established in 1959, is the UK professional body dedicated to advancing the science, engineering and professional practice of corrosion prevention and control. Through its members, branches, technical divisions, training, publications and international partnerships, ICorr promotes professional competence, knowledge sharing and best practice in corrosion management for the benefit of industry, infrastructure and society. To find out more about ICorr, visit: https://www.icorr.org/.