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Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Introduction: What is Galvanized Iron?

Galvanized Iron is

Iron

iron with a protective

Zinc

zinc coating on the outside. By coating the

Iron

iron with

Zinc

zinc, the material is well protected from corrosion, something that

Iron

iron by itself is known to struggle with. This is critical as rust/corrosion will eat away at the exterior and core of the

Iron

iron causing structural integrity issues [1].

Iron vs. Galvanized IronImage Removed

Galvanized Iron vs. Iron


How it's Made

Hot Dip

The hot-dip method involves submerging the Iron surface into molten Zinczinc. Before the Iron is placed into the molten Zinczinc, it must first be chemically cleaned to remove any surface impurities. The Iron iron is then submerged into a highly concentrated Zinc zinc bath (~95%+ pure). While in the bath, the Zinc zinc and Iron metallurgically bind together to form metallic layers, with the Zinc zinc preventing corrosion to the inside Iron [2].

Cold Dip

Another method is cold-dip galvanization, which involves coating the outer layer of Iron iron with a Zinczinc-rich paint. The paint can be applied from a variety of methods from hand brushes to spray guns.  Another cold method of application is electrogalvanizing, which is similar to electroplating, in that Zinc zinc is used as the Anode anode to electroplate the Iron iron metal, providing a strong bond between the Zinc zinc and Iron layers [2].


Advantages vs. Disadvantages


AdvantagesDisadvantages
Galvanized Iron provides three main benefits in terms of corrosion protection and longevity. The first is barrier protection, where the Zinc layer provides a
  • Protection from red rust
    • Barrier protection: physical barrier between the atmosphere and
Iron. The second is cathodic protection, where the Zinc layer undergoes oxidation in order to prevent the inner Iron layer from oxidizing (rusting). The third protection is the Zinc patina, also known as the oxidized zinc layer, which provides an additional layer of protection from the environment.
    • iron
    • Cathodic protection: zinc layer undergoes oxidation before iron does
    • Zinc patina: oxidized zinc layer provides additional protection [1]
  • Strengthens integrity compared to bare metal
  • Higher scratch resistance [3]
  • High cost
  • Develops white rust overtime
  • Increased weight from zinc layer [3]



Applications

Galvanized Iron has a variety of application from structures to nuts/bolts. It is used almost everywhere because of its protection against corrosion and its longevity against the elements. Although Galvanized Iron is fairly common, its similar counter part, Galvanized Steel, is used much more often because of its strength benefits over Iron. It is used in structures like bridges, buildings, streetlights, etc for its recyclable properties and corrosion resistance. Furthermore, it is used in nuts, bolts, washers, etc so that any joints that are held together don't experience corrosion overtime [4].


References

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