5 Naukova St., 79601, Lviv, Ukraine

Phone: (0322) 63 3088; fax: (0322) 64 9427;
e-mail: pminasu@ipm.lviv.ua;
http://www.ipm.lviv.ua

H. V. Karpenko Physico-Mechanical Institute was founded in Lviv in 1951 on the basis of Lviv Academy institutions and today is the major research center in Western Ukraine with a staff of 550 people. 350 of them work in research departments, 6 are doctors of sciences, 105 are candidates of sciences and 112 are research engineers. The Institute incorporates 18 research departments, two laboratories, a research management unit and a pilot plant.

The Institute carries out research in three areas:

– physicochemical mechanics of materials brittle fracture, in particular, hydrogen and liquid-metal embrittlement of materials;

– theory, methods and technologies of protecting metal structures against corrosion and corrosion-mechanical fracture;

– physical fields in inhomogeneous environments as well as information and measuring systems, methods and means of nondestructive testing and technical diagnostics of materials and environments.

The Institute has 3 renowned science schools that regularly organize scientific seminars:

– in problems of brittle fracture mechanics (led by NAS academician V. V. Panasyuk);

– in corrosion and corrosion protection of metals (led by NAS corresponding member V. I. Pokhmurskiy);

– in physical fields in inhomogeneous environments and nondestructive testing of materials and environments (led by NAS corresponding member Z. T. Nazarchuk).

Since 1965 the R&D journal «Physicochemical Mechanics of Materials» has been published by the Institute. This journal has become the leading publication on the problems of physicochemical mechanics of brittle fracture, the effect of environments on the metal strength, development of the theory, methods and technologies of metal protection against corrosion. In is translated into English by ‘Kluver Academic/Plenum Publishers’ under the title «Materials Science».

The Institute proposes for cooperative commercialization:

– organizing the production facility for and production of thermo-insulated corrosion-resistant pipes for public utility services of Ukraine;

– development and manufacture of high-efficiency equipment for cleaning the surfaces of structural elements of bridges, pipelines, storage reservoirs before depositing corrosion-resistant coatings on them. Work towards corrosion protection of bridges, capacities and pipelines has been already performed in the ‘Odessa-Brody’ pipeline system;

– development and manufacture of equipment and materials for depositing wear-resistant coatings when restoring the serviceability of worn structural materials, engine shafts, primarily, in agriculture equipment. There are 19 stations in Western Ukraine that provide the abovementioned services;

– organizing the production of rock-crushing tools for mining industry of Ukraine.