Galvanization

The zinc serves as a sacricial anode so that even if

the coating is scratched, the exposed steel will still
be protected by the remaining zinc.

Galvanize redirects here. For other uses, see Galvanize

(disambiguation).
Not to be confused with galvanism or
Electrogalvanization.
Galvanization or galvanisation (or galvanizing as it

The zinc protects its base metal by corroding before

iron. For better results, application of chromates
over zinc is also seen as an industrial trend.

1 Etymology

Galvanized nails.

The earliest known example of galvanizing of iron, encountered by Europeans is found on 17th-century Indian
armor in the Royal Armouries Museum collection.[1] It
was named in English via French from the name of Italian
scientist Luigi Galvani. Originally, galvanizing was the
administration of electric shocks, in the 19th century also
termed Faradism. This sense is the origin of the meaning of the metaphorical use of the verb 'galvanize', as in
'galvanize into action', or to stimulate a complacent person or group to take action. The term galvanizing has
largely come to be associated with zinc coatings, to the
exclusion of other metals. Galvanic paint, a precursor to
hot-dip galvanizing, was patented by Stanislas Sorel, of
Paris in December, 1837.[2]

A street lamp in Singapore showing the characteristic spangle of

hot-dip galvanization.

is most commonly called in that industry) is the process

of applying a protective zinc coating to steel or iron, to 2 Methods
prevent rusting. The most common method is hot-dip
galvanizing, in which parts are submerged in a bath of Hot-dip galvanizing deposits a thick robust layer of zinc
molten zinc. Galvanizing protects in three ways:
iron alloys on the surface of a steel item. In the case
of automobile bodies, where additional decorative coat It forms a coating of zinc which, when intact, pre- ings of paint will be applied, a thinner form of galvanizvents corrosive substances from reaching the under- ing is applied by electrogalvanizing. The hot-dip process generally does not reduce strength on a measurlying steel or iron.
1

4 GALVANIZED PIPING

able scale,[3] with the exception of high-strength steels 3 Eventual corrosion

(>1100 MPa) where hydrogen embrittlement can become
a problem.[4][5] This is a consideration for the manufacture of wire rope and other highly stressed products. The
protection provided by hot-dip galvanizing is insucient
for products that will be constantly exposed to corrosive
materials such as acids. For these applications, more expensive stainless steel is preferred. Some nails made today are galvanized. Nonetheless, electroplating is used
on its own for many outdoor applications because it is
cheaper than hot-dip zinc coating and looks good when
new. Another reason not to use hot-dip zinc coating is
that for bolts and nuts size M10 (US 3/8) or smaller, the
thick hot-dipped coating lls in too much of the threads,
which reduces strength (because the dimension of the
steel prior to coating must be reduced for the fasteners Rusted corrugated steel roof
to t together). This means that for cars, bicycles, and
many other light mechanical products, the alternative to
Although galvanizing will inhibit attack of the underlyelectroplating bolts and nuts is not hot-dip zinc coating,
ing steel, rusting will be inevitable, after some decades,
but making the bolts and nuts from stainless steel.
especially if exposed to acidic conditions. For example,
corrugated iron sheet roong will start to degrade within a
few years despite the protective action of the zinc coating.
Marine and salty environments also lower the lifetime
of galvanized iron because the high electrical conductivity of sea water increases the rate of corrosion primarily through converting the solid zinc to soluble zinc chloride which simply washes away. Galvanized car frames
exemplify this; they corrode much quicker in cold environments due to road salt, though they will last longer
than unprotected steel. Galvanized steel can last for many
decades if other means are maintained, such as paint coatings and additional sacricial anodes. The rate of corrosion in non-salty environments is mainly due to levels of
sulfur dioxide in the air.[8] In the most benign natural enGalvanized surface with visible spangle
vironments, such as inland low population areas, galvanized steel can last without rust for over 100 years.
The size of crystallites in galvanized coatings is a visible
and aesthetic feature, known as spangle. By varying the
number of particles added for heterogeneous nucleation 4 Galvanized piping
and the rate of cooling in a hot-dip process, the spangle can be adjusted from an apparently uniform surface See also: Galvanic corrosion
(crystallites too small to see with the naked eye) to grains
several centimetres wide. Visible crystallites are rare in In the early 20th century, galvanized piping replaced cast
other engineering materials.
iron and lead in cold-water plumbing. Typically, galvaThermal diusion galvanizing, or Sherardizing, pro- nized piping rusts from the inside out, building up plaques
vides a zinc diusion coating on iron- or copper-based on the inside of the piping, causing both water pressure
materials.[6][7] Parts and zinc powder are tumbled in a problems and eventual pipe failure. These plaques can
sealed rotating drum. Around 300C, zinc will diuse ake o, leading to visible impurities in water and a slight
into the substrate to form a zinc alloy. The preparation of metallic taste. The life expectancy of such piping is about
the goods can be carried out by shot blasting. The pro- 70 years, but it may vary by region due to impurities in
cess is also known as dry galvanizing, because no liquids the water supply and the proximity of electrical grids for
are involved; however, no danger of hydrogen embrittle- which interior piping acts as a pathway (the ow of elecment of the goods exists. The dull-grey crystal structure tricity can accelerate chemical corrosion). Pipe longevity
of the zinc diusion coating has a good adhesion to paint, also depends on the thickness of zinc in the original galpowder coatings, or rubber. It is a preferred method for vanizing, which ranges on a scale from G40 to G210, and
coating small, complex-shaped metals, and for smoothing whether the pipe was galvanized on both the inside and
rough surfaces on items formed with powder metal.
outside, or just the outside. Since World War II, copper

3
and plastic piping have replaced galvanized piping for interior drinking water service, but galvanized steel pipes
are still used in outdoor applications requiring steels superior mechanical strength.
This lends some truth to the urban myth that water purity
in outdoor water faucets is lower, but the actual impurities
(iron, zinc, calcium) are harmless.
The presence of galvanized piping detracts from the appraised value of housing stock because piping can fail,
increasing the risk of water damage. Galvanized piping
will eventually need to be replaced if housing stock is to
outlast a 50 to 70 year life expectancy, and some jurisdictions require galvanized piping to be replaced before
sale. One option to extend the life expectancy of existing
galvanized piping is to line it with an epoxy resin.

Galvanized construction steel

This is the most common use for galvanizing, and hundreds of thousands of tonnes are galvanized annually
worldwide. In developed countries most larger cities
have several galvanizing factories, and many items of
steel manufacture are galvanized for protection. Typically these include: street furniture, building frameworks,
balconies, verandahs, staircases, ladders, walkways and
more.

See also
Cathodic protection
Corrugated galvanized iron
Galvanic corrosion
Galvannealed - galvanization and annealing
Rust
Rustproong
Sendzimir process
Sherardizing

References

[1] Summary of XRF analysis conducted on or about 30

September 1999 by the Royal Armouries Museum in
Leeds and written up as part of a thesis by Helen Bowstead
Stallybrass at the Department of Archaeological Sciences,
Bradford University.
[2] Process for protecting articles made of Iron or Steel
from oxidation. Specication of patent granted to M.
Sorel, of Paris, France, December, 1837. Journal of the
Franklin Institute (Philadelphia, Pa.), Published by Pergamon Press, 1838, via Google Book Search.

[3] Industrial Galvanizes: http://www.ingal.com.au/IGSM/

28.htm
[4] Zinc Plating and Hydrogen Embrittlement.Hydrogen
Embrittlement Handbook
[5] Steel Selection. American Galvanizers Association.
Retrieved 3 April 2015.
[6] Porter, Frank C. (1991). Zinc Handbook. CRC Press.
ISBN 978-0-8247-8340-2.
[7] Natrup, F.; Graf, W. (21 November 2014). 20 - Sherardizing: corrosion protection of steels by zinc diusion
coatings. In Mittemeijer, Eric J.; Somers, Marcel A. J.
Thermochemical Surface Engineering of Steels: Improving
Materials Performance. Elsevier Science. p. 737. ISBN
978-0-85709-652-4.
[8] Atmospheric Resistance.
(UK).

Galvanising Association

8 External links
American Galvanizers Association

9 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

9.1

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Galvanization Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galvanization?oldid=741825096 Contributors: Malcolm Farmer, Rjstott, Rmhermen, William Avery, Heron, 168..., Ellywa, Andrewa, Trackball, Omegatron, Jerzy, Robbot, Cornellier, Mattaschen, Mikeroodeus,
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Epbr123, Barticus88, Pajz, Frank, Merbabu, AntiVandalBot, Tommason~enwiki, Chazmosis, Cwolfe8229, Farosdaughter, Myanw, JAnDbot, D99gge, Petecarney, Plantsurfer, Swpb, Fdac, DerHexer, Hdt83, Tlim7882, Towerman86, Wikimandia, IceDragon64, Hmsbeagle,
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