Kinetics of the Atmospheric Corrosion of Galvanized Steel

Atmospheric corrosion behavior was evaluated separately on skyward and groundward surfaces of galvanized steel test panels exposed in both industrial and marine environments. The behavior in every case can be accurately described by the same general kinetic relationship, ?W = KtN, where the empirically determined co-efficients, K and N, can be used to separate the tendency for a corrosion product to form from the effect of that corrosion product on the subsequent reaction. The specific kinetic equations which apply in each case can be used to reliably predict long-term atmospheric corrosion behavior.