Rust Prevention
Many people don’t notice how easy it is for cars to get rusted when they live near the ocean or they just don’t take care of their car very well. One way to prevent car paint damage is by prepping the vehicle correctly. An easy way to prevent rust from happening to the car is by using corrosion protection. There are four different types of corrosion that can occur if not well taken care of. These are crevice, pitting, galvanic, and cosmetic. According to “A Guide To Corrosion Protection”, crevice corrosion is often associated with small volumes of stagnant solution or electrolyte trapped in crevices of joints or in surface deposits and poultices. Pitting corrosion is a localized attack, usually caused by chlorides as pits form, resulting in a roughened surface. Crevice and pitting corrosion can lead to steel perforation and premature functional failures. Galvanic corrosion occurs when dissimilar metals are in contact with one another. Corrosion that initiates on a visible surface of a vehicle, usually at nicks or scratches in a post-coating, is called cosmetic corrosion. In most instances, cosmetic corrosion is an appearance issue; however, it can lead to damage including perforation.
To prevent rust on the underbody structural components people will usually coat it to provide a first line of defense against corrosion. The most commonly used coatings are conversion, hot melt wax, electro coat, metallic, organic, auto deposition, and powder. Phosphate conversion coatings are employed to enhance paint adhesion, thereby indirectly enhancing corrosion resistance. Hot melt wax coatings are used extensively on underbody structural components to provide corrosion protection, and are usually applied through a dipping process.
Electro coating or E-coating is a process in which electrically charged particles are deposited out of a water suspension to coat a conductive part. Metallic coatings such as zinc, zinc-iron and aluminum are applied to steel components to inhibit corrosion, using the electroplating, mechanical plating, electro less or hot dipping process. An organic coating such as paint is a cost effective corxrosion protection method. It prevents, or retards, the transfer of electrochemical charge from the corrosive solution to the metal beneath the coating. Auto deposition is a waterborne process that relies on chemical reactions to achieve deposition. A powder coating is achieved by applying a dry powder to a part. The part is then heated, fusing the powder into a smooth, continuous film