Hot Dipping

Hot dipping consists of immersing the object to be coated

In to a bath of molten metal for a short period of time.

Hot-Dip Galvanizing Kettle

Hot-Dip Process

There are several major stages in the hot-dipping 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.

Acid Pickling Tank

Fluxing
The purpose of fluxing is
To remove oxides that may have formed during the cleaning and handling process just prior
to the actual galvanizing;

To improve the wetting of the molten zinc onto the steel substrate, providing good adhesion
and build up of the different alloys.

Fluxing may be conducted as a dry or wet process.

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).

Figure 28.3: Fabricated Piece Being Dipped into Zinc

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.

Figure 28.4: Perforated Baskets Used for Dipping

Small Parts
Strip steel (sheet) can be continuously galvanized at a rapid speed.
Sheet steel can be dipped singly in rapid sequence.

Figure 28.5: Steel Beam Leaving Bath

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

Figure 28.6: Fabricated Steel Leaving Galvanizing

Bath

Figure 28.7: Galvanizing Small-Diameter Pipe

Post treatments are performed to produce one or more of the following results:

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.

Improvement of the properties or the appearance of the coating may be accomplished by

such treatments as chromating, phosphating, light rolling, and roller leveling.

Hot-Dip Galvanizing Quality

Some quality issues relating to hot-dip galvanizing include:

Alteration of the properties of the substrate
Design of the work piece
Coating thickness and service life
Adhesion
Appearance

Alteration of Substrate Properties

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.

Work Piece Design and Fabrication

Design and fabrication of the work piece can affect quality in a variety of ways, including:

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.

Coating Thickness and Service Life

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 specifications for coating weight requirements for

Some hot-dip galvanized products are listed in ASTM Specifications-

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.

ASTM A325= High Strength Bolts

ASTM A394= Tower Bolts

ASTM A153= Class C

Weight of zinc coating may be converted to an estimated average thickness measurement by

multiplying the weight of the coating by a conversion factor.

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).

It must be stressed that this is an estimated average thickness measurement. Theoretically,

there could be bare spots in some places and triple thicknesses in others, affecting average
weights.

Conversion from Zinc Coating Weight to Estimated Average Coating Thickness

Conversion Factors
1 mil = 25.4 m
1 oz. = 28.35 g
1 oz/ ft2 x 1.7 = 1.70 mil
1,000 g/m2 x 0.14 = 140 m
Determining coating thickness by chemical stripping (ASTM Standard Test Method A
90 [Vol. 01.06])

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.

Magnetic thickness test

The standard Type 1 and Type 2 magnetic thickness test instruments also may be used to
determine spot thickness of the applied coating.

Adhesion
Hot-dip galvanized coatings applied to high-silicon steels may exhibit poor adhesion.

One recognized method for testing adhesion of galvanized coating is the:

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.

Depending on the job specification, adhesion is usually considered satisfactory when it is

possible to remove only small particles of the coating.
It should not be possible to peel any portion of the coating in the form of a layer to expose the
underlying iron or steel.

8.3 Visual Inspection of Hot-Dip Galvanized Articles

Conditions Causes Grounds for Rejection

Bare spots Paint, grease, or oil residue Yes, except where spots
on steel are small and suitable
for patching
Scale or rust residue
Weld slag
Rolling defects
Sand embedded in casting
Over drying
Excess aluminum

General roughness
Dross protrusion
Lumpiness and runs
Flux inclusions
Ash inclusions
Dull gray or mottled
appearance
Rust stains
Wet storage stain(white rust)
Articles in contact during
galvanizing
Composition or original No, except by prior
surface agreement
condition of substrate
Over pickling
Uneven cold working
High galvanizing
temperature and/or
long immersion time
No, unless dross No, not if due to steel
contamination is heavy composition
Blisters Surface defects in
substrate
Absorbed hydrogen
Withdrawal speed too high No, except by prior
agreement
Cold galvanizing bath
Delayed run-off from
seams, joints,
etc.
Articles in contact during
withdrawal
Stale flux burned on during Yes
dipping Yes
Yes, unless removed
Surface residues on steel
Flux picked up from top of
bath
Ash burned on during Yes, if in gross lumps
dipping
Ash picked up from top of
bath
Composition of substrate No, not if due to steel or
(high silicon, severe composition or
phosphorus, or carbon) condition, or limited to
occasional area
Severe cold working
Slow cooling after
galvanizing
Weeping of acid, etc., from No
seams
and folds
Storage on or near rusty
material
Storage of close-packed No. Attack is generally
articles superficial. May be
under damp conditions prevented or delayed by
chromate in treating
Packing of articles while
after galvanizing
damp
Appearance

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.

The galvanized coating should be continuous to provide optimum corrosion protection.

Handling techniques for galvanizing may require the use of chain slings, wire, or
other holding devices to immerse materials into the galvanizing kettle if the item has no
suitable lifting fixtures.

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.

Figure 8.11: Typical Galvanized Surface

Some conditions which may be noted in visual inspection

of hot-dip galvanized articles include:
Bare spots
General roughness
Dross protrusion
Lumpiness and runs
Flux inclusions
Ash inclusions
Dull-gray galvanized coating
Mottled appearance
Rust stains
White rust
These conditions and causes are listed in Table 8.3.
Bare Spots

Figure 8.12: Bare Spots Caused by Oil, Grease, etc.

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.

Figure 8.13: Ungalvanized Area Caused by Scale

Residual welding slag also can cause a localized black or un galvanized area.

Figure 8.14: Ungalvanized Weld Area

 -Rolling defects in steel may be broadly classified as discontinuities in the steel which
have been closed and elongated during rolling, but have not welded.
Examples are laminations, laps and folds, and nonmetallic impurities rolled into the
metal surfaces. Defects of this type sometimes are detected before or after pickling, but may
not become apparent until opened by the heat of the galvanizing bath.
Minor flaws in the basic material may be removed by local grinding, but little
reclamation is possible where the steel surface is seriously defective.

Figure 8.15: Bare Spot Caused by Rolling Defect

Other causes of bare spots include:

Sand embedded in castings: This condition can prevent a galvanized coating from
forming. Sand and other surface inclusions are not removed by conventional acid pickling, and
abrasive cleaning of castings generally is required to attain a clean surface for galvanizing.
Over drying: If the time between pre-fluxing and galvanizing is prolonged or the
drying temperature is too high, the corrosion protection afforded the cleaned steel by a pre-
flux may be lost. This is indicated by a rusty appearance on the galvanized article. The
appearance of the galvanized coating is similar, in extreme cases, to that of under
preparation.
Excess aluminum: A condition sometimes referred to as black spots may occur if the
aluminum content of a bath, on which a flux blanket is used, is too high. No trouble should be
experienced if the aluminum content of the bath is maintained below approximately 0.01%,
which is well above the range needed to brighten the coating.
Articles in contact: The zinc in the galvanizing bath should have free access to all
parts of the surface. Articles entering and passing through the galvanizing bath should not be
in tight contact with each other.
Improperly removed drips

General roughness

Figure 8.16: 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

Figure 8.17: Dross Protrusions

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:

Reclaimed and resold to galvanizer or other zinc users, or

Processed into zinc dust for zinc-rich coatings

Lumpiness and runs

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.

Figure 28.19: Flux Inclusions

Flux inclusions may originate in several ways. Stale or spent kettle flux, for example,
tends to adhere to the steel instead of separating cleanly from the surface as the work is
dipped. This may occur even with active flux if residual grease, scale, or other surface
contaminants resist the cleansing action of the flux blanket.

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

Figure 8.20: Ash Inclusions

Ash inclusions are zinc ash, the oxide film that sometimes develops on the surface of the
galvanizing bath. As with flux, ash may be burned on the steel during dipping, or picked up
from the top of the bath during withdrawal. Ash inclusions can occur on work pieces that
are cumbersome and require slow withdrawal from the bath.

Dull-gray galvanized coating

Figure 8.21: Dull-Gray Galvanized Coating

A gray or mottled appearance develops during cooling and is caused by diffusion of the zinc-
iron alloy phase to the surface of the coating. It usually appears as a localized dull patch on an
otherwise normal surface, although, in extreme cases, it may extend over the entire
surface of the steel.

Dull coatings, usually more brittle, may occur on steels with:

Silicon
Phosphorus
High carbon

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

Figure 8.22: Dull-Gray Galvanized Coating

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.

Figure 8.23: Wet Storage Stains (White Rust)

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.