JFE Steel Corporation announced today that it has expanded its technology to enable chromate-free production of all hot-dip galvanized steel sheets, allowing the company to discontinue production of sheets treated with hexavalent chromium, an environmentally hazardous substance.

The stable performance of JFE Steel’s existing chromate-free products has been highly evaluated by customers, prompting the company to fully convert to chromate-free hot-dip galvanized steel sheets.

Chromate treatments are used primarily in the electrical machinery and building materials fields to improve the corrosion resistance of hot-dip galvanized steel sheets. Until now, JFE Steel has manufactured chromate-treated JFE GALVAZINC^™ (GI) steel sheets plated with pure zinc and JFE GALVAZINC ALLOY^™ (GA) steel sheets reheated after galvanizing to form an alloy between the plating and iron. Now, however, the company can provide steel sheets of equal or better performance than those treated with chromate.

In the electrical machinery field, efforts to adopt chromate-free products have advanced aggressively since the 1990s, beginning in Europe. JFE Steel, anticipating this trend, pursued the development of high-performance chromate-free coated steel sheets and eventually introduced JC organic-coating that combine corrosion resistance and other useful properties, and JM inorganic-coating offering highly stable appearance even when heated at high temperatures.¹

In the building materials field, JFE Steel previously treated certain GI and GA steel sheets with chromate, but in response to customer demands for chromate-free products the company introduced JB inorganic coating made with a highly corrosion-resistant eNano^™ technology² in 2016.

Moving forward, JFE Steel will continue to work toward a more sustainable world by supplying products that meet customer needs for both performance and eco-friendliness.

¹ JFE Steel’s chromate-free hot-dip galvanized steel sheets

² Proprietary chromate-free technology developed by JFE Steel that forms a minute nano-molecular layer on the surface of the galvanized layer, which suppress the permeation of corrosion-causing oxygen and water, as well as a highly corrosion-resistant thin film

Note: eNano^™, JFE GALVAZINC^™, JFE GALVAZINC ALLOY^™ and ECOGAL-Neo^™ are trademarks of JFE Steel Corporation.

About JFE Steel Corporation

JFE Steel Corporation, one of the world’s leading integrated steel producers, was established through the consolidation of NKK Corporation and Kawasaki Steel Corporation in 2003. The company operates several steelworks in Japan and numerous branch offices and affiliates throughout the world. JFE Steel leverages world-class technologies and know-how to produce a wide range of products based on its “Only One, Number One” strategy of focusing on unique and best-in-class products. The company reported consolidated sales of 3,900 billion yen in 2018 and consolidated crude steel output of 27.88 million tons in the fiscal year ended March 2019.

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