<Li> The zinc protects iron by corroding first . For better results, application of chromates over zinc is also seen as an industrial trend . </Li> <P> The earliest known example of galvanized iron was encountered by Europeans on 17th - century Indian armor in the Royal Armouries Museum collection . It was named in English via French from the name of Italian scientist Luigi Galvani . The armored application is the origin of the metaphorical use of the verb "galvanize", as in to reinforce . Originally in the 19th century, the term "galvanizing" was also used to describe the administration of electric shocks . </P> <P> In modern usage, the term "galvanizing" has largely come to be associated with zinc coatings, to the exclusion of other metals . Galvanic paint, a precursor to hot - dip galvanizing, was patented by Stanislas Sorel, of Paris, in December 1837 . </P> <P> Hot - dip galvanizing deposits a thick, robust layer of zinc iron alloys on the surface of a steel item . In the case of automobile bodies, where additional decorative coatings of paint will be applied, a thinner form of galvanizing is applied by electrogalvanizing . The hot - dip process generally does not reduce strength on a measurable scale, with the exception of high - strength steels (> 1100 MPa) where hydrogen embrittlement can become a problem . This deficiency is a consideration affecting the manufacture of wire rope and other highly - stressed products . </P>

Galvanized steel is steel that has been coated with which one of the following metals