Saving with the Galvanization Process

Production of metal parts

Iron and steel are widely used materials in the production of metal parts. Steel is a metal alloy composed mostly of iron (≈98.5%); it also contains carbon (0.5 to 1.7%) and traces of silicon, sulfur, and oxygen.

However, a negative aspect of materials made of iron and steel is that, over time, they rust, causing significant economic and environmental losses. It is estimated that approximately 20% of the iron produced worldwide is used solely to replace rusted parts.

Protection Against Iron Corrosion

Some of the most widely used methods to protect iron and steel, thereby reducing the enormous losses caused by rusting, are electroplating and galvanization.

Electroplating is a process in which the metal part to be protected is coated with a more noble metal that acts as a sacrificial metal; that is, this metal will have a higher oxidation potential than iron and will therefore oxidize in its place.

Cold galvanization, in turn, can involve the use of zinc, copper, nickel, brass, gold, bronze, chrome, and so on. It is also known as electrolytic galvanization, as the chosen metal is deposited onto the part through a process involving electricity. This process is called metal electrodeposition.

Electrical energy must be supplied for the metal to be deposited from its ions through the supply of electrons (electrolysis). This is an electrodeposition process in which a direct current is forced through the electrodes and the solution, causing the coating metal to be connected to the positive pole to promote its oxidation, replenishing the solution with cations of the metal electrodeposited onto the conductive object connected to the negative pole.