Protective Effects of Different Coatings on Carbon Steel Exposed to Salt Environments

The protective effects of hot galvanizing, zinc-rich coating and high performance coating on carbon steel exposed to salt environments and simulated seawater were investigated using accelerated corrosion tests, surface morphology analysis and electrochemical methods. The results show that in the salt environment with a pH value of 6.5 or simulated seawater, the high performance coating showed the best effect in protecting carbon steel from corrosion. While in the salt environment with a pH value of 3.5, both the high performance coating and zinc-rich coating exhibited good protective effect and the zinc-rich coating was a little better.