HITECHNI ‘AL INTRODUCTION Designing with Steel for Corrosion Protection - Common Issues Introduction The corrosion protection of steel structures is usually focussed on the selection of the corrosion protection system, However, the correct design and detailing of steelwork in the initial instance can greatly improve the performance of a corrosion protection system. All too often, energy and resources are devoted to the question of “What is the best corrosion protection. system for steel in this environment?” when an equal or ceven greater effort should be directed to adopting the correct steel design principles in the first place. This discussion will focus primarily on mid steel in atmospheric environments as this Is bath the largest application of ‘metal in engineering and construction and also the largest area of the cost and impact of corrosion. What Is Good Design? The good design of steelwork can be thought of as the foundation on which, an effective corrosion protection system can be built. Irthe design. ‘ofa steel structure is poor, then the corrosion protection system will not be able to protect it properly, no matter how sophisticated and/or well applied it is, For example, there is no point designing for a thirty metre galvanized steel beam if there is no way of actually galvanizing such a beam in the fist place. Likewise, to use another example, there are many potential problems if stel is designed with sharp edges, lap welds and inaccessible areas if the structure or item is to ultimately be painted with a protective coating, Good design of steelwork, including the consideration of the ultimate corrosion protection system, should be done at the beginning of the design process, not as an afterthought, otherwise expensive detailing or re-design may then be necessary. ‘Careful design will remove many of ‘the corrosion hazards or “hotspots” that commonly affect steel structures and that are often independent of the actual corrosion protection system being considered. .68 CORROSION & MATERIALS Section 3 of AS/NZS 2312 provides some useful guidance that designers can apply when designing steel sections and it is highly recommended that this document be referenced, ‘The list below Is by no means exhaustive, but it provides a checklist ff “common” issues and some of these will be explored below and in a following part of this discussion: = Dissimilar metals = Ponding crevices 1 Flat surfaces in contact ‘Joints and connections (bolting ‘and welds) s Sharp edges and comers s sheltering Detailing of welds ‘Inappropriate material selection Dissimilar Metals Contact between different metals introduces the possibility of galvanic corrosion, Galvanic corrosion occurs because metals have a potential difference between them. This potential difference causes a current flow which ‘then results in galvanic corrosion. There fare many metals that can corrodle or ‘cause corrosion of the steel when they are in electrical contact. In special situations, the contact does not have to be physical: two metals in close proximity to each other ‘can be bridged when they are in the presence of a suitable electrolyte, for example seawater. This may occur in situations where the metals are submerged and also in areas of high moisture and significant time of ‘wetness, for example coastal locations and some industrial environments. The electrolyte allows for the transfer of ions between the two metals which then sets up an electrical circuit when they are in physical contact. ‘One metal will become anodic and the other will become cathodic. ‘The anodic metal will corrode more quickly and the cathodic metal will be protected or corrode more slowly. ‘The concept of galvanic conrosion can ‘be used to the advantage of corrosion protection designers, sch as the case With zine anodes and impressed current, but unintentional galvanic corrosion can result in costly damage and premature failure of steel structures, One of the major areas where galvanic corrosion can be a problem is with fasteners. Fasteners can be made of various materials and this causes issues if suitable material is not selected for a certain application. Corrosion in fasteners can be more dramatic because the severity of the galvanic corrosion is related to the ratio of the area between the cathodic and anodic ‘metals. Because fasteners are relatively small, the ratio of thelr surface area ‘compared to that of the overall structuce will be quite small. For ‘example, zinc coated fasteners used ‘with stainless steel can corrode quite quickly in corrosive environments dlue to the fact that zinc is anodic to stainless steel. Zinc coated fasteners for screws have only have a relatively ‘mall mass of zinc on them, resulting “hen they art corroding satriftially (On the other hand, even though zine is anodic to stainless steel, the use of stainless steel fasteners in galvanized steel structures is common. This is stainless steel fasteners, resulting in ‘minimal corrosion of the structure. In corrosive environments, however, such asin coastal applications, there still ‘may be some cosmetic corrosion of the zine around the fastener, so it may well be advisable to use galvanized fasteners sn such applications to avoid the unappealing staining that results. It is always best practice to attempt using @ fastener made either of the same metal as the structure or one that is cathodic to the metal in the structure