What is Galvanizing
In 1742, a chemist named Melouin presented a paper to the French Royal Academy in which he described how a zinc
coating could be obtained on iron by dipping it in molten zinc.
However, it was not until the 1830's that patents were taken out in England and France covering this process for
protecting iron from rust.
More than 150 years on,
applications for hot dip galvanizing continue to grow and it has become part of our every day life.
It is environmentally friendly, easthetically pleasing and helps save our natural resources by protecting steel
from the damaging effects of corrosion.
Galvanizing is a term often used to describe zinc coatings in general. However, different types of zinc coating vary
in thickness and effectiveness.
It is therefore important to understnd that all zinc coatings are not the same and the life of a zinc coating is
directly proportional to its thickness.
Hot dip galvanizing after fabrication provides the best long term corrosion protection for steel products achieved
through a continuous and extemely tough metallurgically bonded coating which offers both barrier and sacrificial
protection.
The zinc coating reacts with the atmosphere to form a thin, passive zinc oxide layer which then protects the surface
from further corrosion.
Even if the zinc layer is damaged, the zinc corrodes in preference to the underlying steel
and heals itself around the point of damage.
This is in stark contrast to paint coatings or other metal coatings such as nickel or chrome. Here accelerated
corrosion of the underlying steel takes place around the damaged area.
