SOME FACTORS CONTROLLING COATING THICKNESS IN CONTINUOUS GALVANIZING OF STEEL WIRE

In 1967, Australian Wire industries introduced a commercial galvanizing process, known as ″gas wiping″ , which has allowed the use of much higher processing speeds while maintaining a control of coating thickness. The commercial development of the process was accompanied by a research effort to examine the factors controlling coating thickness. This article discusses some factors prevailing at the point of emergence of the wire from the molten zinc and attempts to relate such factors as fluid dynamics during free withdrawal, the development of a model system, and the influence of solid media at the meniscus region to the practical galvanizing process.