ABSTRACT
Suitable corrosion protection systems are significant factors in the consideration of life cycle costs for steel hydraulic structures. In addition to organic coating systems, zinc and its alloys offer effective and durable corrosion resistance to steel. Hot-dip galvanizing as a barrier coating prevents from penetrating of corrosive media into the steel matrix and sacrifices in preference to steel. However, hot-dip galvanizing as corrosion protection system has not yet been approved by the relevant authority in Germany. To make it usable as a corrosion protection system for steel hydraulic structures in the future, different factors must be considered. These are (i) corrosion protection type, (ii) resistance to mechanical stress, (iii) combinability with cathodic corrosion protection, (iv) environmental effects and (v) the crack formation and propagation during hot-dip galvanizing. This paper is based on long-term exposure tests with corrosion protection systems consisting of hot-dip galvanizing and duplex systems in five-year campaigns.
