Session: Next-Generation Coatings: Predictive Strategies for Service Life, Durability, and Sustainable Performance
Field validated, durable steel protection in severe corrosion environments (C2026-00046)
Tuesday, March 17, 2026
2:30 PM - 3:00 PM Central
Location: 372 BC
Earn .5 PDH
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Tests procedures described in recognised standards such as ISO 12944 provide a way of assessing paint systems by means of accelerated laboratory tests in order to be able to select the most suitable in a reasonable period of time. However, it shall be clearly understood that artificial ageing will not necessarily have the same effect as natural exposure. This means that the correlation between accelerated tests and real exposure is not always accurate, and it depends on many different factors. Zinc-rich primers offer superior anticorrosive performance compared to barrier coatings due to their unique mechanism of protection: zinc-rich primers provide cathodic protection, where zinc particles act as a sacrificial anode. Recent studies have proven that zinc-rich primers consistently outperform zinc-free alternatives, which showed good performance in cyclic ageing test, under real-world conditions. This paper will provide further evidence that zinc-rich primers outperform zinc free solutions when exposed to very aggressive corrosivity environments. Real-life exposure up to three years will be presented for different standard systems confirming that the use of an epoxy coating with a high content of zinc dust as primer is the best choice to protect steel when long durability is desired.
