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I have vague recollections of having read somewhere that electrolytic rust removal can cause hydrogen enbrittlement of steel and, consequently, should not be used on structural components or those where strength is important.
Does anyone know whether I imagined this and, if I did not, is a real concern or a theoretical one which has no real impact in practice?
Regards,
Jamie.
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Unlikely to be an issue with cast iron or mild(ish) steels.
More of a concern with higher spec alloy steels but frankly they're not the sort of things that get so heavily corroded that the electrolytic process is considered.
C
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I have used various methods for rust removal, including white vinegar and Coca Cola. The latter works quite well rust removal. Not sure what it does to the human digestive tract. ;-)
Erich in Seattle
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Thank you for the replies and i shall have a read of the linked document.
Regards,
Jamie.
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Location: Auckland, NZ
20-07-2020, 08:12 AM
(This post was last modified: 20-07-2020, 08:18 AM by Bob Culver.)
The seriousness of h. E. varies dependng what you read. Once all set up the temptation is to apply electrolytic derusting to everything.
Many items are pickled and/or electroplated apparently without problems but may have had treatments of varying complexity applied.
The chroming of suspension parts of hot rods was/is seriously frowned upon.
Soaking in acid or electrolytic treatment should certainly not be applied to springs or springy steel. And ideally not to spokes, studs, steering parts, axles, tools etc.
There have been TV documentaries about the modern high rise London building that had to have thousands of giant ht bolts replaced after the heads started popping off!
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Hello Jamie,
I raised the issue a couple of years ago somewhere on this forum. The critical thing is to ensure that the company performing the work uses test samples with each and every batch when carrying out the processes, which Is expensive because the samples need to be analysed. It is my personal preference to avoid the risk with critical components.
Regards, Mark
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Thank you for the various replies.
I have now tried this and had very pleasing results. I used a handful of soda in a small cat litter tray (new), a 12v car battery and a battery charger topping it up. I cleaned the valve chest cover and a door hinge. The valve chest cover was so rusted that the breather holes were obstructed and the Austin legend was almost invisible. After a couple of hours, a scrub in hot water and a light brush to remove some stubborn paint, it is as good as new. The hinge was almost seized solid and was covered in payers of paint. Again, after a few hours, a scrub and a brush, it is clean, bare metal and hinges freely.
I shall avoid doing structural components as a precaution.
Jamie.
