V. APPLICATION-RELATED FAILURES Application-related failures are undoubtedly the cause of the majority of diffculties encountered with protective coatings or paints of all types. Paints and coatings are failure-oriented, particularly on large structures, bridges, off-shore platforms, ships, nuclear energy plants and similar structures, for a number of reasons. 'The painting or coating operation is the last item of work on most large projects. The contractor, the owner and the engineers are pushing to have the job completed. Many times their completion deadline may be passed, which puts pressure on to complete the coating job as rapidly as possible. This get the job done fast philosophy is a source of many coating failures. There is also a natural tendency on the part of people to overlook and resist the proper cleanliness and the proper surface preparation that is needed for an effective coating job. There are untold examples of this where chewing tobacco, cigarettes, small rocks, mud, steel shot and similar trash have been carefully coated over. Most of the defects that occur in applied coatings are not related to the coating manufacturer, a poor formulation or the selection of a wrong material, but are people-related. This is caused by lack of knowledge, lack of training and lack of understanding of the consequences of a poorly applied coating. Other contributing factors are a lack of proper coating application specifcations and a lack of proper inspection. Care in writing the application specifcations, proper training of applicators, care in the application itself, care in the inspection of the fnished coating are essential for a proper coating application and for an effective coating result. 1. Mixing Paint, as supplied by the manufacturer for a specifc use, is usually ready for application by brushing or by spraying when received by the applicator. Such paint will have been formulated to have more than suffcient durability in the environment where it is to be used, and no change should be made in the composition or in the adjustment of the consistency of the liquid coating unless specifed by the manufacturer. For proper application, a paint must be a homogeneous mixture, as it was when manufactured. n the mixed state, the consistency of the formulation is uniform and the pigments are evenly dispersed. During prolonged warehouse storage, pigments tend to settle to the bottom of containers. Also, the surface of some paints may be covered with a tough skin. t is essential that a paint be carefully remixed before application is attempted. All settled pigment must be redispersed and any surface skin must be removed. Failure to effect such complete mixing can cause early failure of the paint system. 2. Thinning As previously stated, the consistency of a paint or coating is usually correct as it is received from the manufacturer. Most manufacturers attempt to provide the liquid coating at the proper consistency in order to prevent failures related to thinning. There is no universal thinner for the wide range of sophisticated coatings that are necessary today. Improper thinning can cause many different types of failure. As an example, mineral spirits can be tolerated by liquid vinyl coatings in certain amounts; however, if added excessively to a vinyl coating poor adhesion will result. Improper thinning of an epoxy coating can increase the viscosity rather than reduce it. An alcohol type solvent for a polyurethane could cause immediate jelling. While thinners Page 22 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings are an essential part of any coating, they are incorporated in the manufacture for proper application, proper leveling on the surface and proper drying. It is occasionally necessary to decrease the viscosity of a paint by the addition of thinners. Such adjustment of the consistency should be made only as directed or advised by the manufacturer, by means of the proper specifed thinners and at ratios specifcally recommended. Substitution of other thinners for the specifed ones should not be undertaken without consultation with the suppliers; for none of the many thinners available are generally adaptable for all paint formulations. Thinners should be added slowly and with constant stirring. Adding a large amount all at once may result in local over-dilution and may cause curdling of the paint or focculation of the pigment. This precipitation may appear to stir in, but that portion of the mix that has curdled or focculated is never restored to its original condition, causing early failure. 3. Atmospheric Conditions Painters normally determine the time of application, which can contribute to the success or failure of the coating, depending on the condition of the atmosphere. Certainly, it is a poor decision to apply a coating before an approaching rain squall, and yet this is often done. Painters have also been observed wiping condensed moisture from the surface of the steel structure and then applying the coating. Inorganic zinc coatings have been applied to steel surfaces which were suffciently cold to freeze the water from the liquid coating, making the coating useless. Water base coatings do not evaporate properly when the humidity is too high or the temperature too low, and the coating will not form properly under these conditions. The condition of the atmosphere while the paint is being applied and cured can contribute to its success or failure. Paint should be applied during relatively dry conditions. The relative humidity should be 80% or less with the dew point at least 3C (5 F) less than the ambient metal or surface temperature. When the metal temperature is above 38C (100F), precautions must be taken to make certain that the paint or coating does not dry too rapidly. Organic coatings tend to overspray or surface dry and blister. norganic zinc coatings may form a powdery soft flm that does not harden properly. Temperature is critical for the cure of many coatings, particularly epoxies and coal tar epoxies. Because they are internally reactive, unless the temperature is proper, they will not cure to a satisfactory coating. Such materials should not be applied at temperatures less than 25C (60F) except on recommendation by the manufacturer. t is wise not to paint if the ambient temperature is below 5 C (40 F), or less than 3C (5 F) above the dew point. Application should be restricted to those hours when the temperature is suffciently high to offset the possibility of condensation of moisture during application and the drying period. 4. Coating Thickness A coating is a relatively thin flm or barrier separating two reactive materials: the atmosphere on one side and the substrate on the other side. This barrier must have an even thickness over the entire surface to be protected; otherwise, there will be areas prone to early failure because they are too thin to separate properly the two reactive elements. Thickness, therefore, is extremely important. Each coating should have optimum thickness, depending upon the surface over which it is applied and the atmosphere in which it is to operate. This optimum thickness can be determined only by actual experiment or by consulting the manufacturer of the coating. While too thin a coating can cause early failure, an Page 23 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings excessively thick coating can also cause early failure. This is particularly true of inorganic zinc coatings. Where they are applied too thickly, they tend to mud- crack. Internally reactive coatings, such as epoxies and polyurethanes, tend to crack and disbond due to internal stresses within the coating because of shrinkage during the curing reaction. Many such coatings have literally pulled themselves off the surface due to excess thickness. Any painter or coating applicator should understand the problems arising from either too thin a coating or one which is considerably over the optimum thickness for proper use. It must also be recognized from a practical standpoint that the coating applicator cannot apply a completely uniform coating, particularly to complicated structures. Coating specifcations often give a minimum thickness, such as "the coating shall be applied in two coats to a minimum of 10 mils. Such a specifcation does not recognize the excess thickness that may result. A proper specifcation should recognize the practical aspects of application and provide the applicator with a range of thickness which, if followed, will provide the proper average coating thickness for the use involved. The thickness of a coating can be measured during the application process by a wet flm thickness gage. While this is not a positive instrument, it does indicate what the thickness of the coating will be after it has dried. A number of instruments provide the thickness of the coating after it has dried. Such an instrument is an essential part of the equipment of any paint foreman or inspector who is doing a proper job. 5. Overspray Overspray is a major cause of pinpoint rusting of steel surfaces. Many modern, high-performance coatings have a tendency to overspray unless properly applied. These include coating types such as solvent-based inorganic zincs, organic zincs, solvent-dry vinyls, chlorinated rubbers, acrylics, heavy-bodied epoxies, and other similar formulations. Overspray is the adherence of semi-dried coating particles to the surface to be coated. The dust or coating particle dries partially in the air between the spray gun and the surface, and does not then fow together with or join other particles to form a continuous coating. There are bare or very thin areas between these discrete coating particles. These bare areas act the same as pinholes, and pinpoint rusting results. Because overspray is the result of incorrect spray technique or improper adjustment of spray equipment, it can occur in any coat from the primer to the fnal top coat. t may be caused by the spray gun being held too far away from the surface to be coated, being held at a long angle to the surface rather than perpendicularly, or having been adjusted with too little material pressure and too much air pressure. With airless equipment, overspray can be caused by too small a gun tip or one with too wide a spray pattern. Airless equipment is preferred for application of a material with a tendency to overspray because there is no air atomization involved. The proper technique to prevent overspray requires optimum spray gun adjustment for both air and liquid volume and the application of an even, wet coat over the surface, with each pass of the coating being overlapped 50 percent. This method ensures that any minor dry particles at the edge of the fan are incorporated into a wet coating surface. Page 24 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings Existing overspray on a surface being coated must be removed or pinhole failure will almost surely occur. At best, an unsightly coating application will result. The dry, adherent particles should be wiped, scraped or sanded from the surface before a proper wet coat is applied, or, if pinholing of the coat applied over existing overspray has already taken place, the overspray area should be given a wet brush coat to work the coating into the existing porous overspray area. 6. Pinholes Pinholing is a common type of application failure. It may result from several causes. The formulation of the coating itself can cause pinholes, primarily because of improper solvent balance when solvents evaporate too rapidly at one stage of the drying process. Another, more common cause is Improper application, usually during spraying. The spray gun may be held too close to the surface with excessive atomization pressure, or excessive material pressure may be combined with low atomization pressure. A third cause of pinholes may be the surface itself. Concrete may already contain innumerable bugholes that must be flled if an impervious coating is to be obtained. Pictorial descriptions of bugholes in concrete are found in the ASTM Manual of Coating Work for Light Water Nuclear Power Plant Primary Containment and Other Safety-Related Facilities. One cause of pinholing is the top coating of inorganic zinc primers with organic top coats. During a period shortly after the inorganic zinc coating has been applied, it remains a porous flm and solvents from the organic top coats can easily penetrate into the inorganic coating. When the top coat is applied in the sun or under warm conditions, the penetrated solvent evaporates rapidly causing vapor pressure within the inorganic zinc and under the organic top coat. This vapor pressure may create small blisters or bubbles which, when they break, cause pinholes to form. Top coats with slow drying characteristics or with high solids and a low solvent content help to alleviate this condition. Pinholes are an immediate problem. Once they occur, they will persist no matter how many subsequent coats are applied. As one coat is sprayed over another, or over pinholes in the substrate, the existing pinholes will act as a reservoir for solvent vapor from the following coat. The vapor pressure in the pinholes will then cause a bubble in the following coat that will eventually break, leaving a passage to the original pinhole and the underlying surface. Mechanical force is necessary to fll the pinholes with liquid coating. This flling is accomplished by brushing a coat into the pinholed area. Several passes over the same area may be required to fll all pinholes. Pinholing occurs most readily in lacquers and solvent-dry coatings. Extra care should be taken during application of these coatings to prevent pinholes from forming. 7. Spatter Coating Spatter coating is caused during the spraying process where the liquid coating particles hit the surface, but the number of particles is insuffcient to form a complete and continuous wet coat. This is often caused where a painter does not suffciently overlap each pass of the spray gun, or where he tends to fick the spray gun at a long angle to the surface at the end of his spray pass. Oftentimes, particularly under poor lighting conditions, the surface may look as though it is completely coated. On the other Page 25 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings hand, once the coating has been exposed for a short period of time, particularly on steel, general pinpoint rusting will occur over the area where the spatter coating exists. These pinpoints of rust will take place wherever there is an opening between the droplets of the coating. While it doesnt seem like this type of coating failure should be common, it is one which is quite prevalent on many steel structures. The answer to this, like many other application related failures, is care during the application process, making certain that each pass of the spray gun is overlapped at 50% with the coating going on as a wet flm, making sure that the spray gun is held perpendicular to the surface and that the gun is not ficked at an angle at the end of the spray pass. Cross spraying is also a method of application which helps to provide an even, uniform coating. 8. Holidays A painters holiday is any place on a structure the painter has missed. This can be behind angles, around rivets, longitudinal areas on pipe, or any area where the coating has failed to be applied. Spatter coating is related to holidays in that, as previously indicated, some areas of the coating appear fnished, even though the coating is not continuous in that area. Holidays can be overcome only by care on the part of the painter during the application. 9. Cratering Cratering in a coating can be a most diffcult application problem. Most cratering is encountered during the application of slow drying or baked coatings, such as pure phenolics, epoxy phenolics, pure epoxies, polyurethanes, etc. The internal cure coatings appear more susceptible to this phenomena than faster drying coatings such as vinyls and chlorinated rubbers. Cratering can be caused by several different conditions. D One of the most common causes is oil in the blasting or atomizing air. Here the condition will be general and caused by minute droplets of the incompatible oil on the surface or incorporated into the liquid coating during application. E Minute particles of dust or contamination from the atmosphere may cause pinholes. They can fall on the surface either before or during the application and may come from steam blow off, dust or soot from boiler stacks, fall out from paper mills, fertilizer plants or other similar operations. Fallout from jet aircraft around airports may cause problems. F Some cratering has been found which is due to the various protective skin creams used by workmen during the surface preparation or other sources during application of the coating. Silicone creams are particularly diffcult. Cratering in these instances is usually localized and due to contamination of the surface by those materials. Most silicone resins are incompatible with other coating vehicles thereby causing craters to occur. Cratering can be defned as the formation of small bowl shaped depressions at a point of contamination on the surface. The craters are caused by the surface tension of the coating being greater than the surface tension of the contaminant. A repelling of the coating away from a point due to a difference in static charge between a particle at the point and the coating itself will cause a crater. At times, the coating itself may be the cause of the diffculty, Page 26 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings having suffcient surface tension so that heavy areas of the coating will tend to pull together. Irrespective of the cause, failure of the coating can be expected in the low areas of these craters, usually in the form of pinpoint rusting starting at that point. Once the cratering has occurred, it is diffcult to overcome inasmuch as a second coat applied over the same area may again crater in the same spot. The procedure suggested in these cases is to physically roughen the cratered area by hand sanding or other means, and then apply the coating over the area by brush, working the coating into the cratered areas in order to physically coat the bottoms of the craters and make sure that the coating thoroughly wets the surface. Where this is not practical or it does not prevent the cratering, the coating must be removed and the surface reprepared, making sure that the cause of cratering is eliminated before applying the repair coating. 10. Bleeding This is the transfer of a soluble colored pigment or vehicle in a dried flm to a subsequently applied topcoat. It may also be the discoloration caused by the diffusion of soluble ingredients in the substrate. To correct this situation, coat the flm containing the bleeding ingredient with two coats of a sealer in which the bleeder is insoluble. An aluminum or emulsion fnish over asphalt vehicles or solvent type primers over wood substrates are examples. For areas of serious corrosion any sealing material must be selected with care to make sure of compatibility and proper adhesion. 11. Blushing This is the hazing or whitening of a fnish as the result of absorption and retention of moisture formed on the flm during or immediately after spraying. t is normally restricted to lacquers. Correction of this problem is not always possible without reducing humidity; however, recoating using a mist coat of retarder or a slower evaporating reducing thinner may help. Correct air pressure at the gun is important. Avoid using higher air pressure than needed as this will cause rapid evaporation and thereby increase moisture condensation. 12. Lifting This usually occurs when the solvents in a top coat attack and swell the previously applied flm resulting in distortion, blisters or the formation of a wrinkled fnish. t may also be caused by wax on the surface, use of incorrect thinner, poor dry of undercoats or poor adhesion of old flm. To correct, remove fnish from affected areas and refnish. Make sure surface is clean and dry. Allow longer drying time before recoating the undercoat. Make sure the solvent in the topcoat is compatible with the previous coat or undercoat before recoating. 13. Orange Peel This is a bumpy pattern inherent in nearly all sprayed flms, caused by either the spray pattern or the drying characteristics of the fnish. t is an appearance problem and should not cause coating failure. If the degree of orange peel is objectionable, then improvement in fow can be obtained from better spraying technique, application of a good wet flm, or addition of a small amount of slower solvents. 14. Runs or Sags Runs are downward movements of a paint flm resulting when excess material continues to fow after the surrounding surface has set. Page 27 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings Sags are downward movements of a paint flm between the times of application and setting resulting in a curtain appearance. Both of these problems may be caused by the use of too much wet paint. Coatings failure can occur because of thin coating above the sag or run. Reduce material according to label directions, apply thinner coat if rolled or brushed on. Regulate fuid adjustment on the spray gun to cut down fow of material. Make sure temperature of surface and coating are at acceptable level. If runs or sags are objectionable, the surface should be removed with solvent or sanded smooth and refnished. Page 28 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings Page 29 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings VI. DESIGN-RELATED FAILURE Many coating failures occur because of the design of the structure. Unfortunately, most structures are not designed with the painting or coating process in mind. This being the case, many failures are due not to the coating or its application, but merely to diffcult problems of application created by the design. Where there are design problems that make a structure diffcult to coat adequately, proper selection of the coating and careful and proper application can overcome many of the inherent problems created by the design. Following are a number of typical areas, primarily on steel structures, where coating problems are much more prevalent than on plain surfaces. 1. Edges Edges are always a problem on structures using steel shapes, where the number of lineal feet of edge compared to the plain surface is large. The edges of sheared plate are one of the worst areas because they are very sharp. The rounded edges of steel shapes, such as on I-beams, H-beams and angles are less of a problem; however, almost invariably where failure occurs on a steel shape, it will be on the edge frst. One cause is that many of the more sophisticated coatings, such as vinyls, epoxies or polyurethanes, have a high surface tension and also tend to shrink during curing. A high surface tension of the coating tends to pull the coating away from an edge, in many cases leaving an extremely thin coating at that point. This being the case, failure is inherent along the edge. On I-beams, angles and similar shapes, the applicator more often than not sprays on the plain surface while the edge is at a tangent to the spray and only becomes spatter coated, even though it may look well covered. Horizontal surfaces on structural shapes (I-beams, H- beams, etc.) tend to accumulate dust, dirt and chemical fumes that fow toward an edge when any condensation or precipitation occurs. As a result, a relatively strong chemical deposit forms and remains on the edge. Such a situation makes the edge even more susceptible to coating failure. There should be a direct application of the coating to edges prior to applying an overall coat to the structure. Edges should be double coated with each individual coat. This procedure will help to maintain a full coating thickness in these areas. 2. Deep square corners These areas are on the interior of angles and on the interior angle of H-beams, I-beams and very often on built-up, complicated steel sections. There are two problems. The frst is that these areas will accumulate dirt and dust, and even though the surface is well prepared by abrasive blasting, dust seems to accumulate in these areas to a greater degree than on the plain surfaces. It is also more diffcult to remove. When a coating is applied over dust or dirt in these areas shrinkage and oftentimes actual cracking of the coating occurs, creating an area for immediate failure. Second, even though the surface is thoroughly clean and free from dust, these areas more often than not receive a heavy coat because of the application of the coat to the fat areas with the spray overlapping into the corner. This can create the coating thickness on the interior Page 30 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings corner which is greater than recommended for the fat surface. During curing and when shrinkage occurs, the coating may tend to pull itself away from the interior corner, creating a very thin flm or a void underneath the coating. Although the coating may look continuous, if it is exposed to serious corrosive conditions or immersion, failure occurs by moisture penetration into this area. The ultimate cracking and breaking of the flm occurs at this point. To overcome this design diffculty apply thin, multiple coats to the deep corner, allowing each coat to dry before a second coat. 3. Discontinuous areas These areas are located around rivets, boltheads, threads and similar areas. The cause of failure is similar to that of sharp edges and corners. Careful application can eliminate discontinuities in these areas. A brush coat should be applied on all sides and edges of the discontinuous area prior to applying the overall spray coat. A brush coat is preferable to spray for the initial application as the physical action of brushing forces the coating into crevices and other small openings where the spray coat will not reach. 4. Welds There are literally millions of lineal feet of welds in many structures. Relatively smooth machine welds create few problems. Even so, there can be undercuts along edges that should be watched. Hand welds, in particular, require more care than plain surfaces. These welds are much rougher than machine welds and may have deep undercuts and holes along the edges, with weld spatter on adjacent surfaces and, in some cases, very rough, sharp protrusions. All of these are focal points for corrosion and for coating failure. Weld spatter, small balls of metal are spattered away from the weld proper during the welding process. They are always focal points for failure. Many times they are lightly adherent and provide not only protrusions, but undercuts as well. Weld spatter must be removed from the surface for a proper coating job. These are not always removed by sandblasting. Once the surface is prepared, however, it is the recommended procedure to brush coat a weld, working the coating into all of the rough areas before applying the overall coat to the plain surface. This aids materially in preventing premature failure at that point. Where welds are treated in this manner, oftentimes the plain surface of a coating will fail before the area of the weld. 5. Skip welding Overlapping plates and roof plates are often skip welded. The reinforcing ring around the top of a tank may be skip welded. Angles and similar shapes are skip welded where a continuous weld is not necessary for ultimate strength. From a coating standpoint, wherever serious corrosive conditions exist, skip welds are an invitation to coating failure and very inadequate surfaces for proper coating even in mild environments. Water and moisture accumulate between the plain surfaces of the plates. The skip weld does not keep out the moisture. t is almost impossible to apply a coating to the crevice between the skipwelds and to obtain a satisfactory corrosion resistant coating at that point. Page 31 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings The only practical answer is complete welding of all the seams to insure proper coating life in corrosive areas and to maintain good appearance without rust stains even under milder conditions. Caulking may even be necessary in some cases. 6. Back to back angles Many steel buildings have trusses, lattice work, and similar areas constructed from angles which are placed back to back. In some instances, the angles are precoated by galvanizing or with inorganic zinc. However, in any severely corrosive environment, even this procedure is prone to failure and extremely diffcult to protect properly by the use of coatings. The area between the angles is diffcult to clean and impossible to coat properly. Where such designs exist and where corrosion dictates, the only practical answer is to fll all of the void spaces between the angles with a plastic mastic or caulking compound and then apply a compatible coating over it. This, at best, is a stop-gap measure and is no substitute for the use of T shapes or pipe for structures where corrosive conditions exist. 7. Storage tanks Many storage tanks are constructed with cone or umbrella type roofs where there is usually a center pole with -beam rafters extending out to the edge of the tank. n addition to the many corners, edges, welds, bolts and rivets, there are two particularly diffcult areas from the standpoint of the interior coating of such tanks. The frst is the steel between the -beam rafter and the steel roof plate. Here the steel plate is merely laid on the rafter, and unless the coating is applied to the underside of the plate and the top-side of the rafter prior to installation, this area will fail even under mild conditions. f the coating is to be applied after construction, it is necessary to raise the roof by wedges and prepare the surface to coat in the best manner possible. This area is particularly vulnerable due to moisture condensation. The second area is the crevice between the lapped roof plates. Generally, the roof plates are welded on the exterior with the lap on the interior. n this reservoir for corrosive solutions failure takes place rapidly. A coating cannot prevent corrosion with this type of construction. Where a coating is required on the interior of such a tank, roof plates should be butt welded or should be welded on each side of the lap so that a continuous coating is possible. 8. Pipe structures Much of the construction of off-shore platforms is done with pipe to minimize coating failure and corrosion. Pipe provides a plain surface with no sharp corners or edges subject to early failure. t would seem, therefore, that pipe would be an ideal type of surface to coat. There can be problems, however, primarily ones of application. If failure occurs, other than at a joint, it is usually longitudinal with the pipe. This is caused by insuffcient overlapping of the spray passes during the coating process. In coating pipe, it is essential that each spray be overlapped at least 50%. With large pipe, this means that there are numerous passes required in order to obtain a holiday-free coating. n addition to areas where pipe is used as the principal construction member, there may be hundreds of miles of pipe used in a single industrial plant, all of which require coating. Here, in addition to the cylindrical structure, there are pipe fanges, valves, threaded joints, bolts, pipe hangers and pipe racks. These areas have all of the Page 32 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings focal points for corrosion which have been previously discussed, and wherever corrosion is a factor , care must be taken to make sure that all of the diffcult areas are fully coated. Much pipe used for new construction comes with a factory applied temporary coating. This must be removed by abrasive blasting for proper coating adhesion and performance. Care in the surface preparation and care in the application of the coating are the only answers to a satisfactory coating job. Page 33 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings VII. FAILURE BY EXTERIOR FORCES In almost all coating failures exterior forces are involved, since the environment in which the coating operates is the primary cause of failure. f there were no exterior corrosive environment, then no coating failure could occur, even though there were coating imperfections. n this section however, ordinary atmospheric conditions are not considered, since it is taken for granted that coatings must withstand most exterior conditions, including marine conditions. 1. Chemical failure Chemicals are the most obvious exterior force that can cause the failure of coatings, since the chemical industry, considered in its broadest scope, is one of the largest, if not the largest, industry where severe coating failures can occur. There are literally thousands of different chemicals to which a coating may be exposed and, this being the case, it is understandable that there are also hundreds of specialty coatings that have been developed to resist attack by these chemicals. The attack may be by simple solution of the coating, reacting with the coating to render it useless, or chemicals may actually penetrate the coating and cause corrosion to the steel underneath. Attack by volatile acids, such as hydrochloric and nitric, often cause the latter failure. The caustic chlorine industry and the rayon industry can cause coating failures both by actual coating attack and by penetration and under-flm corrosion. The interior and exterior of tank cars, specialty tankers and storage tanks in terminals are all areas where chemical attack of coating is common. There is no universal solution to the problem. Each condition must be considered on its own. The proper coating must be selected. The best surface preparation must be used and a defect-free application obtained. An improper coating selection or improper application of the right coating can be disastrous. 2. Erosion and abrasion These are exterior forces that can cause coating failure. One example is erosion by sand and wave action of coatings applied to steel piling on beaches. Sand erosion by wind is another example. Other examples are the abrasion on the interior of hopper cars, interior abrasion in pipe lines due to particulate matter in the liquid, or abrasion on foors by wheeled traffc. The moving and handling of many fertilizers can cause both abrasion failure and chemical failure of the coating. In such cases, specialty coatings must be selected to resist the abrasion and erosion as well as the normal corrosion which might be expected should the coating wear through. 3. Faying surfaces Coating failures can occur where joints in steel structures are formed by riveting or by the use of high strength bolts. Such joints are common on bridges and in many open steel work plants such as refneries and chemical plants. If there is a crevice at the joint, the coating applied to the surface can fail at that point, allowing access to moisture or chemicals, with resulting corrosion. Most coatings are unsuitable for use within the joint itself as they do not provide the proper coeffcient of friction to maintain the joint in a static condition. Even galvanized surfaces do not have suffcient coeffcient of friction to provide a proper joint. In the past, most joints have been made on a steel to steel basis in order to obtain the proper friction resistance. Page 34 Causes and Prevention of Paint Failure Ponderosa Protective Coatings Recently, however, it has been determined that inorganic zinc silicate coatings have adequate friction resistance and can be used as a coating between the contact surfaces in riveted and bolted joints. The use of the inorganic zinc coating as a base coating within and outside of the joint provides an excellent corrosion resistant answer for coating bolted or riveted structures. When there is liquid penetration at such joints, crevice corrosion can occur due to the oxygen concentration cell effect, especially if dissimilar metals make the steel surface cathodic to the bolt of high-strength steel. VIII. SUMMARY Coating failures may be caused by the coating formulation or the materials from which it is made; by the basic characteristics of the surface coated; by improper surface preparation; by the design of the structure coated; or by poor coating application procedures. Coating failures can be prevented only by using the proper material for the job, and by care in the application to achieve complete, uninterrupted coating coverages irrespective of the built-in problems of the design and materials of construction. On any coating job, the following procedures are recommended to assure coating success. 1. Analyze the exposure and the structure, and specify the material which will properly meet the conditions. Do not compromise on price or quality. The material is the least costly item of a coating application. 2. Use a detailed specifcation covering the method of surface preparation and the application of the coating. A general specifcation is not adequate. 3. Make a detailed inspection of the surface preparation and the application procedures to assure conformity with the specifcation in numbers 1 and 2 above. Irrespective of the structure or the corrosive conditions, a strong specifcation and good follow-up inspection are the two most important keys to a successful and failure-free coating job.