Steel Products and Corrosion Resistance from Surdex Steel

How Susceptible Are Steel Products to Corrosion?

There is no such thing as a perfect material. Each and every material has its strengths and weaknesses. Metals, in particular, are at risk of corrosion when they react with the elements of their surrounding environment. It is known that steel products may corrode. The question is how likely this is to happen.

Steel Products: Corrosion Risk

There are several factors which determine the likelihood of a product made from this alloy to corrode. The first one is its make. There are many different types of steel and some are more resistant to corrosion than others. The ones with a higher level of resistance owe this to specific alloying elements. One of the most resistant varieties is stainless steel. It contains at least 10% of chromium. This helps it to become highly resistant to the damaging effects of moisture, acids and bases.

The problem with the addition of alloying elements is that they change the properties of the metal and some of these changes are not always desirable. Besides, the addition of such elements may push the price of the end steel products too high. That is why alternative means for protection are used. The main ones include galvanisation and painting. Galvanisation involves the dipping of the metal in a bath of molten zinc. In this way, it gets protective zinc coating. In the case of painting, protective paint is applied onto the ready products. Both methods make the ready products more resistant to corrosion and increase their durability and useful life.

The environment where the products are used has a direct impact on their risk of corrosion. Products which are set in environments with high moisture level and high temperature are more likely to suffer damage and tend to have a shorter useful life. The same applies to those which are exposed to chemicals which react with them for a longer period of time.

Overall, the different steel products have varying levels of corrosion resistance depending on inbuilt and environmental factors.