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Hot-Dip Process
Surface preparation:
The material to be hot-dip galvanized should be free of welding slag, rolled-in mill
scale, paints, varnishes, oil, and grease.
Overlapping surfaces should be cleaned before fabricating, because any residual oil
and grease may trap moisture, which creates a safety hazard during the hot dipping
process. Immersion in the molten zinc changes this moisture into steam, which causes
miniature explosions in the zinc bath, producing uncoated areas adjacent to the unsealed
areas, as well as creating a potentially hazardous condition.
Cleaning the fabricated pieces is generally a two-step operation. The work piece is
dipped into a hot caustic bath, or a similar solution, to remove oil, grease, and other organic
contaminants.
Next, the work piece is thoroughly rinsed with clean water and immersed in a mineral
acid bath (usually sulfuric or hydrochloric acid) to remove rust, mill scale, and other inorganic
contaminants.
After rinsing, the work piece is ready for the next stepfluxing.
Occasionally, after the degreasing operation, the steel may be cleaned by dry abrasive
blasting. Sand castings must be abrasive blast cleaned to remove the burned-on
sand from the casting operations.
To improve the wetting of the molten zinc onto the steel substrate, providing good adhesion
and build up of the different alloys.
In the dry process, the items are immersed in a heated aqueous 20 to 40% solution of zinc
ammonium chloride called a pre-flux solution.
The items are then thoroughly dried in an oven before being dipped in the molten zinc.
In the wet process, the items are passed trough a layer of molten zinc ammonium chloride
which rests on top of the molten zinc.
Dipping
All types of plain carbon and alloy steels as well as iron and steel castings can be
galvanized. This includes materials ranging from bolts and nuts to large fabricated pieces.
The largest kettle in the United States can galvanize objects up to 25 m (82 ft) long, in
a single dip. Objects larger than the kettle can be galvanized by a procedure referred to as
double dipping (first dipping one end and then the other end).
Bath
Small fabricated pieces can be mounted on jigs and dipped in batches. Larger pieces are
dipped individually.
Small articles, including nuts and bolts can be placed in perforated baskets and then dipped.
The work piece remains in the molten zinc until the alloying reaction is complete.
Depending on the chemical composition of the steel and the configuration and mass of
material being coated, this process can take from 30 seconds to eight hours.
Generally the work piece must attain the temperature of the zinc bath, which may
vary from 450 to 475C (840 to 885F).
Most galvanizers prefer to keep the temperatures of their kettles on the cooler side to
prolong the life of the kettle.
The galvanizing kettle is essentially a high-grade steel plate firebox, 30 to 35 mm (1 to 1.5
in.) thick that usually lasts from two to five years.
When the alloying action is complete, the steel is removed from the kettle to air cool
or it may be immersed in a water quench tank. The quench operation freezes any
further reaction (alloying) between the steel and the zinc coating.
Post treatments
Reduction of coating thickness by reducing the amount of molten metal adhering to the
article as it leaves the bath. This may be done by rolling, wiping, centrifuging, or air blasting.
These operations must be done while the coating is still molten.
Alteration of the properties of certain types of steel may be affected by certain processes
incidental to the hot-dip galvanizing process, such as quenching after hot dipping.
Skip welds, crevices, and/or other areas where pickling acid may be trapped. This trapped
acid may
Vaporize rapidly during hot dipping, possibly causing damage to the work piece
Leak out, causing staining or other deterioration of the coating
Areas where pockets or air bubbles may form, preventing the molten zinc from contacting
those areas.
Pieces too large for the dip tank. These pieces may be dipped one section after the other. It
is important to be sure that the overlap area is properly coated.
Warping of the work piece may occur due to unequal thicknesses or nonsymmetrical design.
Dissimilar metals. Ideally, a work piece to be hot-dip galvanized should be made of the same
alloy of steel throughout; different alloys of steel have different galvanizing characteristics.
The purpose of hot-dip galvanizing is to protect steel from corrosion; the length of
time this protection can reasonably be expected to last sometimes is called the service life.
Service life usually is directly related to the thickness of the protective zinc coating
and generally is governed by the amount of zinc deposited where the coating is thinnest,
rather than by the average thickness of the coating. Average thickness can be determined by
weight.
The articles to be galvanized are weighed after pickling and drying, then weighed again after
galvanizing. Or, a sample of known weight and area and of the same composition as the
article to be galvanized may be attached to that article. Zinc coating weight is then
determined by dividing the weight gain by the total area of the pieces galvanized.
Thus, a total weight gain of 680 g (24 oz) over a total area of approximately 1 m2 (10 ft2) =
680 g/m2 of coating (2.4 oz/ft2).
ASTM A123=
Products fabricated from rolled, pressed, and forged steel shapes, plates, bars,
and strips: 1/8 in. - 3/16 in. thick 1/4 in. and heavier
ASTM A153=
HARDWARE: Class ACastings: gray iron, malleable iron, steel Class BRolled, pressed,
and forged articles (except those included under Classes C and D) B-1-1/16 in. and over in
thickness and over 15 in. in length B-2-under 3/16 in. in thickness and over 15in. in length B-
3-15 in. and under in length and any thickness Class CFasteners (over 3/8 in. in
diameter) and similar articles. Washers 3/16 in. and 1/4 in. thick Class D--Fasteners (over 3/8
in. and under in diameter), rivets, nails, and similar articles. Washers under 3/16 in. thick
ASTM A386=
Class A-Castings: gray iron, malleable iron, steel Class B-Rolled, pressed, and forged steel: B-
1-1/16 in. and over in thickness. . . B-2-Under 3/16 in. in thickness
Class C-Bolts and drive screws (3/8 in. in diameter) and similar articles. . .
Class D-Bolts and drive screws (3/8 in. in and under in diameter), similar articles.
The conversion factor is 1.7 to obtain an estimated average thickness measurement in mils
when the weight is given in ounces per square foot, and 0.14 to obtain an estimated average
thickness in microns when the weight is given in grams per square meter.
Thus, if the coating weight is determined to be 1 oz/ft (305.2 g/m), the estimated average
thickness will be 1.7 mils (43 m).
A properly prepared sample article, or a sample coupon, which was attached to a larger piece
of work is hot dipped.
The coated sample is then cleaned with a suitable solvent to remove grease; it is dried,
weighed, and then immersed in a chemical solution that dissolves the zinc coating.
The stripped article is then rinsed, dried, and weighed again. This weight is subtracted from
the original weight, giving the weight of the zinc coating from which a predicted average
coating thickness may be calculated.
While the weighing and stripping methods give fairly accurate average coating weights of the
zinc coating, these methods do not provide any information about how evenly the coating is
distributed.
A variant of this is the Priece Test, which uses the chemical stripping method to test the
thickness of galvanized coating on a chain link fence. You may see a chain link fence rated
10M, for example, which means that according to the test criteria, the coating could be
submerged in the acid for 10 one-minute intervals before failure.
Adhesion
Hot-dip galvanized coatings applied to high-silicon steels may exhibit poor adhesion.
Paring test
This method is not a true measure of the metallurgical bonding of the galvanized coating to
the base steel, but can serve as a quick field measure of adhesion.
The inspector uses a sharp knife and considerable pressure to attempt to remove a portion of
the coating.
The basic finish requirements of the galvanized coating are that it be relatively smooth,
continuous, lustrous, and free from gross surface imperfections, such as cracking,
peeling, bare spots, lumps, blisters, and inclusions of flux, ash, or dross.
Smoothness is a relative term, and the job specification must be the determining factor in
setting tolerances for smoothness.
Differences in the luster and color of galvanized coatings generally do not significantly affect
corrosion resistance, and the presence or absence of spangle (zinc crystals) has no effect on
coating performance.
The well-known spangle effect found on galvanized products is simply a factor of primary
crystallization. It chiefly depends upon such elements as the zinc bath chemistry, rate of
cooling, method of pickling, steel chemistry, and thickness of the coating. In fact, dull-gray or
patchy matte-gray galvanized coatings give service lives equal to bright or
spangled coatings.
Illustrated here is a typical hot-dip galvanized surface. It is silver-gray and has spangles of
different sizes.
Cooling rate has a direct effect on surface brightness and spangle size. Faster cooling usually
results in a brighter coating with smaller spangles. Alloy composition of the
base metal also may affect appearance.
As seen in Table 8.3, bare spots can occur for a variety of reasons.
Paint, grease, or oil residues on the steel, if not removed prior to hot-dip
galvanizing, can cause localized black or ungalvanized areas in an otherwise normal
galvanized coating. These areas can vary in color from gray to black to brown, but no
galvanized coating is formed.
Mill scale or rust scale on an iron or steel product generally is caused by the process
used to form the item. A localized black or ungalvanized area in an otherwise normal coating
can occur if scale has not been removed. These ungalvanized areas also may occur in a linear
pattern on an angle, channel, or other rolled product.
Residual welding slag also can cause a localized black or un galvanized area.
General roughness
Rough, heavy coating refers to galvanized components with markedly rough surfaces. This can
include coatings that have just a rough surface and, in some cases, can involve some groove-
type surface configurations.
A rough coating usually is caused by excessive growth or unevenness of the alloy layer. This
condition is attributable to the chemical composition of the steel or its original surface
condition. The irregularity of the alloy layer tends to increase with its thickness; thus, heavy
coatings are usually rougher than light ones. Where thick protection is applied, some degree of
roughness may be unavoidable.
Dross protrusion
Dross protrusions, stipple, appear as small, hard lumps on an otherwise normal galvanized
surface. The protrusions result from agitation of the dross layer at the bottom of the bath or
from dragging material through the dross layer. A clean kettle is less likely to produce this
defect.
The dross incorporated in the coating prevents drainage of the bath zinc in the immediate area
and a buildup occurs. Some think that because the dross consists of the same iron-zinc alloy
as the coating, it may provide the same corrosion protection as a normal galvanized
coating, however, this may not be the case.
You may be interested to know that this dross is removed from the kettle and may be either:
A lumpy and uneven coating results when the speed of withdrawal is too fast or the bath
temperature is too low to allow surplus zinc to run back into the bath.
Runs also may be caused by delayed drainage from bolt holes, folds, seams, and other
pockets where zinc collects, and are a direct consequence of the product design.
In both instances, the inclusions are associated with bare spots in the coating. Black spots
formed by the included flux particles are distinguishable from dirt smuts, splash marks, and
other less harmful types of contamination by their tendency to pick up moisture.
Ash inclusions
A gray coating is most frequently found on heavy sections that cool slowly, and with certain
types of steel, such as those with relatively high silicon or phosphorus content, or severely
cold-worked steel, all of which may exhibit abnormally rapid alloy growth.
Rust stains
Rust stains may be caused by seepage from joints and seams after galvanizing, as shown in
the slide, or by material being stored under or in contact with rusty steel.
With certain high-silicon content steels, a slight rusty appearance on the surface may form
after some period of exposure. This is not a failure of the galvanizing, but a phenomenon with
this type of steel.
White rust (wet storage stains)
Wet storage stain is the name given to the porous, bulky deposit which may form on the
surface of closely stacked, freshly galvanized articles that become damp (from exposure to the
weather or from condensation) in poorly ventilated conditions during storage or transit.
If wet storage stain is noticed, the coating inspector should closely examine the articles to
ensure that the hot dip galvanized coating is still intact and meets specified thickness
requirements.
Whether or not any of these conditions are grounds for rejection depends on the job
specification. Some of these conditions do not always impair the corrosion resistance
of the coating, and it is important that the buyer, fabricator, and inspector have a mutual
understanding of what constitutes unacceptable work.