| Covering steel with sacrificial metallic coatings to protect it from corrosion is a well-known and commonly accepted practice. More than one-half the zinc mined throughout the world is now used for galvanising steel. The basic hot-dip galvanising process had changed little since its discovery 260 years ago until about thirty years ago when many of the major steel companies were experimenting extensively with alloys of zinc. The focus was to find a new alloy that would combine the attribute of aluminium, as a barrier, and zinc, as a sacrificial mental, to improve performance in industrial and marine atmospheres without adding coating mass.
Steel companies in Europe asked International Lead Zinc Research Organization (ILZRO) to co-sponsor the work under way at Centres de Recherches Metallurgiques (CRM) in Belgium. The improved corrosion protection of a coating in the 95% Zn to 5% Al eutectic ratio was known from laboratory tests, yet process problems plagued production trials. The result of their efforts was the discovery of an alloy, containing precise concentrations of zinc to aluminum in the eutectic range and a small addition of rare earth mischmetal, which improved the reliability of the coating process and optimised coating performance. The first of world-wide patents was granted to ILZRO for this new alloy, trademarked Galfan�, and issued in 1981 because of its unique properties. ILZRO and the network of Galfan producing licensees, over the years, have refined the application process, developed the know-how and facility requirements that assures Galfan coated product performance.
Galfan�s superior corrosion protection as illustrated in salt spray tests have been confirmed at rural, industrial and marine environmental test sites, in various worldwide locations, over the past twenty-two years. This type of long-term environment exposure testing of Galfan coated products is a continuing programme. Galfan�s coated wire has proven superior corrosion protection as compared with conventional galvanised coated wire due to Galfan�s exceptional formability, weldability, sacrificial protection, and paintability it has established a global preference in numerous wire applications. Therefore, it was not surprising the Gabions used for ground stabilisation at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, Australia was specified to be manufactured from Galfan� coated wire.
Some of the other outstanding applications for Galfan� coated wire include carbon steel wire, coated at size and drawn size for mechanical springs, metallic coated marcelled tension wire for use with chain-link fence, high-tensile fence and trellis wire, wire strand, overhead ground wire (ACSR), stranded steel core (ASCR), core wire (ASCR), chain-link fence fabric, barbed wire, poultry and animal cages, fishing ropes and vineyard wire.
In October of 2000 the Galfan estate was transferred from ILZRO to Galfan Technology Centre (GTC) Inc, (USA), a newly formed Pennsylvania corporation. GTC�s position as international Galfan technology administrator, for Galfan coated products world-wide, is an invaluable source for licensees to stay up-to-date on new Galfan product and applications development, as well as a reference for Galfan customers to identify and locate qualified Galfan coated product suppliers.
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