What is hot-dip galvanizing?

Beginnings of hot-dip galvanizing

Beginnings of hot dip galvanizing as a method of corrosion protection of iron and steel reach as far back as the 16th and 17th century, when zinc trade first is first recorded in China and Northern India. Around that time, the expression “corrosion” also started to be used.

In 1742, a Frenchman by the name of Malouin invented a procedure in which iron was dipped into molten zinc, thus protecting it against corrosion. The procedure of hot dip galvanizing was patented by Sorel in 1837, and after 1840, first galvanizing plants started to appear in France, England and Germany.

The galvanizing procedure was brought to Celje by in industrial Adolf Wesen, who began galvanizing hollowware, and the tradition is still maintained in Celje today.

Hot-dip galvanizing as corrosion protection

Hot-dip galvanization is one of the most effective, environmentally friendly and long-term methods of protection from physico-chemical reaction between the material and its environment. This phenomenon is called rust or corrosion.

In natural environment metals generally have a tendency towards more stable forms, which for most are represented as oxides, sulfides and similar compounds. This tendency also presents the driving force of corrosion; metal is transforming into a more stable form, thus being dissolved or corroded. This occurrence on iron is called rust.

During the process of hot-dip galvanizing, steel and zinc form a metallurgic bound into a protective layer.

Long-term corrosion resistance

A major advantage of hot dip galvanizing is its long-term corrosion resistance. The durability of such coating depends on the type of the environment in which it is located.

According to the standard SIST EN ISO 14713 (Protection against corrosion of iron and steel in structures. Zinc and aluminum coatings), there are six categories of atmospheric environments. If the initial hot dip galvanized coating is 100 µm thick, it will last more than a hundred years in a rural atmosphere (type C2:0.1–0.7 µm/year), and more than fifty years in an urban area (type C3: 0.7–2 µm/year).

Primary activity of the company Pocinkovalnica, d.o.o. is hot-dip galvanizing of steel, a method widely acknowledged as the most successful corrosion protection of steel. The company was established in 1997, while our tradition and experience in hot dip galvanizing reach as far back as the second half of the 19th century.

During this time we have become a successful, market orientated company with a significant market share on markets of Slovenia, Croatia and Austria, which ensures that we maintain a stable business position.