# The Impact of the Wiping Process on the Final Characteristics of Hot-Dip Galvanized Steel Wires

## TL;DR

This paper investigates how the wiping process after hot-dip galvanizing affects the corrosion resistance and coating quality of steel wires.

## Contribution

The study systematically compares two wiping methods and quantifies their impact on zinc coating properties and corrosion resistance.

## Key findings

- The wiping process significantly influences the thickness and uniformity of the zinc coating.
- Corrosion resistance was evaluated using standardized salt fog tests to assess long-term performance.
- SEM and EDX analyses revealed differences in coating morphology and composition based on wiping method.

## Abstract

Corrosion resistance of steel wires can be achieved through several approaches, one of the most established being hot-dip galvanizing. The effectiveness of anticorrosive protection of a galvanized wire is considered to depend not only on the galvanizing process itself, namely bath composition, temperature, and immersion duration—but also on the post-galvanizing wiping method, which ultimately determines the final thickness and uniformity of the zinc coating. This study describes and quantifies the resulting parameters of the Zn layer, systematically comparing two technical variants. Four parameters were analyzed to characterize the coating: the effective thickness of the constituent layers, their morphology (examined by SEM), their compositional profile (EDX mapping), and their microhardness. To comprehensively assess the influence of the wiping method on the anticorrosion performance of the galvanized wire, the final corrosion tests, fifth in the sequence, will be conducted in a salt fog environment using an Erichsen chamber, in accordance with standardized procedures.