Analyze

Surface Diagnostic

Understand what your surface reveals before deciding how to treat it.

Discoloration, deposit, roughness modification, or visible alteration can have different origins. Appearance alone is not always sufficient to identify the phenomenon.

The Stakes

What the diagnostic provides

Characterize the surface

Objectively assess the observed condition and distinguish the phenomena that may be causing the anomaly.

Understand before treating

Connect observations to the material, its history, and operating conditions to guide investigations.

Define the strategy

Specify relevant operations and controls, or necessary complementary investigations, before selecting a treatment.

Your need

When to deepen the analysis?

Technochim connects surface observation to the material, its topography, treatment history, and operating conditions to determine useful investigations and guide the treatment strategy.

A deposit, discoloration, or surface modification appears on your installation.
Corrosion or localized alteration is suspected.
A phenomenon reappears after cleaning or treatment.
The surface condition must be characterized before a maintenance or restoration operation.

Our Approach

From observation to understanding the surface

The diagnostic combines information from the installation and surface characterization. The methods used are selected according to the observed phenomenon and the question to be resolved.

Document the history

Gather materials, operating conditions, previous treatments, observations, and available data.

Observe the surface

Examine the location, distribution, and characteristics of anomalies.

Characterize

Select relevant measurements and investigation methods according to the need.

Guide the strategy

Interpret the results to define the treatment or necessary complementary investigations.

Understanding the diagnostic

A surface is more than just its appearance

Identical discoloration can correspond to different phenomena. Conversely, two visually similar surfaces can present different surface states.

Deepen surface characterization

Depending on the issue, Technochim can combine visual inspection, roughness measurements, 3D topography analysis, microscopy, or surface replicas to deepen the diagnostic.
Examinations can be performed directly on the installation, on transportable parts, or from replicas of selected areas, when configuration and method allow.
If available observations do not allow for a conclusion, additional investigations are defined before selecting the treatment strategy.

Ra and Sdr: characterizing beyond a single value

Ra characterizes the average roughness of a profile. Two surfaces with comparable Ra values can nevertheless have different three-dimensional reliefs.
Sdr (developed interfacial area ratio) complements this information by quantifying, as a percentage, the additional area related to the measured relief compared to the projected area.
Combining Ra, Sdr, and three-dimensional observation enables a more detailed characterization of surface conditions and an objective assessment of changes before and after treatment. This approach provides complementary metrological indicators to document the result obtained and support technical decisions.

Fields of application

Tanks

Water loops

Piping

Process equipment

Parts and components

Surfaces showing an anomaly or alteration

Technochim Expertise

From diagnostic to treatment

Technochim’s specificity is to connect surface characterization with knowledge of materials, chemistry, and treatment processes.

This approach makes it possible to select a treatment strategy based on the actual surface condition and operating environment, rather than on appearance alone.

Let's talk about your installation

Describe your equipment, its condition, and your constraints to prepare a discussion with Technochim.

Let’s understand the actual state of your surface to define a suitable strategy.