Research: Find 4 strategies that are used to prevent rusting of car parts and/or water pipes? Briefly explain how they work in your own words. What are some pros and cons of these methods?

Answer

Method 1: Applying Oil - Coating materials with oil will help to prevent rust or slow its formation since it prevents moisture from reaching the iron, which can get oxidized.

Pros: It can be applied easily to most materials and it's of relatively low cost

Cons: Some materials can't be covered with oil because they can interfere with the process they are designed for. Example: Food transport machinery

Method 2: Paint the metal - Similarly to the oil a good amount of paint can cover the metallic parts and prevent moisture from the air to get in direct contact with the iron.

Pros: It is easy to apply paint to most metals.

Cons: Contrarily to oil, paint can be more expensive depending on the application.

Method 3: Galvanization - is the process of applying a protective zinc coating to iron or steel materials to prevent or slow the rusting processes.

Pros: The galvanization process makes steel highly durable and the material usually becomes scratch free.

Cons: Steel structures that are either too big or too small are unsuitable for the galvanization process.

Method 4: Store in a controlled environment - Metals corrode easily when exposed to environments with high humidity. To preserve a metal in good condition, it should be stored in environments with low humidity content and not in contact with salts or acids.

Pros: It does not alter the properties of the equipment.

Cons: Not all metal objects can be stored in environments containing low humidity.