Corrosion from fundamentals to extremes Faraday Discussion

Welcome

Join us in Manchester in April 2027 for this edition of the Faraday Discussion series focused on Corrosion from fundamentals to extremes. The Faraday Discussions are unique international discussion meetings that address current and emerging topics at the forefront of the physical sciences. Corrosion in extreme environments is a critical challenge for contemporary energy and infrastructure systems, including nuclear technologies, hydrogen production and storage, batteries, offshore renewables, and high‑efficiency solar. The Discussion will bring together established and early-career scientists, postgraduate students and industrial researchers working on corrosion science and technology to deliver an unmissable opportunity to share and discover new work, reconnect with colleagues and establish new collaborations.   On behalf of the organising committee, I look forward to welcoming you to Manchester.   Nick Birbilis (Co-chair)

Why attend?

Find out more about Faraday Discussions in the video and FAQs – see Useful links on the right.

A unique conference format that prioritises discussion

At a Faraday Discussion, the primary research papers written by the speakers are distributed to all participants before the meeting – ensuring that most of the meeting is devoted to discussing the latest research.   This provides a genuinely collaborative environment, where discussion and debate are at the foreground. All delegates, not just speakers, are invited to make comments, ask questions, or present complementary or contradictory measurements and calculations.

An exciting programme of talks – and more

Take part in a well-balanced mix of talks, discussion, poster sessions and informal networking, delivered by our expert events team. You can explore the full programme in the downloadable files on the right – whether you’re attending in-person or online, every minute provides an opportunity.   The conference dinner, included in the registration fee, contains the Marlow Cup ceremony: a unique commemoration of past Faraday Discussion organisers that is sure to encourage further discussions over dinner.

In-depth discussion with leaders in the field

World-leading and established researchers connect with each other and early-career scientists and postgraduate students to discuss the latest research and drive science forwards. It’s a unique atmosphere – and challenging others to get to the heart of the problem is encouraged!

Your contributions, published and citable

A citable record of the discussion is published in the Faraday Discussions journal, alongside the research papers. Questions, comments and remarks become a valuable part of the published scientific conversation, and every delegate can make a major contribution.

Themes

The conference will be organised into four linked themes: 

Multi-principal element alloys

Multi-principal element alloys (MPEAs) offer high specific strength, in many cases exceptional corrosion resistance, oxidation resistance, and refractory properties. This session will be of critical interest to those not only in the corrosion community, but microscopists (including HR-TEM, synchrotron and 3D atom probe), and materials modellers. This session will explore the unique structures of MPEAs and their structure-property relationships. Techniques of interest will include in-situ electrochemical techniques, such as scanning probe methods, spectroelectrochemistry, in-situ or quasi-insitu electron microscopy, and electron and field ion based microscopy and spectroscopy tools.

Corrosion of light alloys

Light alloys are critical to all facets of contemporary life, for example air travel, the space and automotive industries, and consumer electronics. Due to their necessarily highly complex and engineered microstructures, they remain one of the most studied and complex systems with respect to their mechanisms of corrosion. This session will be of critical interest to those not only in the corrosion science community, but to those involved in protective coatings, life-prediction and modelling, and to industry. Techniques of interest will include scanning probe methods, advanced electrochemical techniques, and multi-physics methods such as COMSOL, DFT or first principal methods.

Artificial intelligence in corrosion

Machine learning can serve as the ‘brains’ behind artificial intelligence models that may be deployed in materials design, corrosion protection, and in ‘predictive’ scenarios. This session will explore the current use and future potential of machine learning and artificial intelligence in corrosion science and technology. Is it useful? Where are the limitations? How can this technology be democratised to assist the whole field? The session will be of significant interest to those that are in the domains of corrosion science, computational chemistry, ICME (Integrated Computational Materials Engineering), physics, software, industry and in the transition of fields. Techniques of interest will include cloud computing, GPU processing, algorithm selection, thermodynamics, first principles, large language models, computer vision and natural language processing.

Corrosion in extreme environments

As materials are deployed in increasingly demanding conditions, understanding their degradation mechanisms is essential to ensuring safety, performance, and long-term reliability. This session will be of key relevance to those in corrosion science, chemistry, engineering (civil, mechanical, and nuclear), infrastructure owners and operators, and industry. It will explore corrosion phenomena arising from high temperatures, radiation, extreme pH, aggressive electrolytes, high pressures, and coupled mechanical or chemical stresses. Given the breadth of the topic, the session will encompass all relevant methods and approaches, including advanced electrochemical techniques, in-situ and operando characterisation, modelling and simulation, and studies of materials in practical service environments.