I would speculate that galvanized steel represents less than .01 of one percent of total steel production. Mind you that is still quite a bit.
It's hard to say how much of total steel production is galvanized, because it can be galvanized well after production, but it's much higher than that, probably 20-30% or more. In 1994, galvanized steel was over 15% of U.S. production:
zinc.org
Galvanized steel has long been one of the most used building materials in the world. In 1994, the U.S. consumed more than 14 million metric tons of galvanized steel for a multitude of uses. Steel's combination of strength, formability and cost is unmatched by any other building material.
In 1994, the total U.S. production of raw steel was 91.2 million metric tons:
minerals.usgs.gov
The use of galanized steel has increased significantly since then, and is used extensively in China. China consumes more than 25% of the world's zinc each year, and had 27.8% growth in zinc consumption in 2004 (http://www.yukonzinc.com/zincMarkets.htm -- good explanation of the zinc supply gap situation).
galvanizeit.org
"Zinc and Steel
Zinc's most remarkable quality is its natural capacity to protect. By protecting steel against corrosion, zinc protects buildings, automobiles, ships and steel structures of every kind from corrosion by the atmosphere, water, and soil. By protecting against corrosion and its costly effects, zinc extends the life of steel, thus protecting investments. A typical galvanized coating can now be expected to last 70 to 150 years without maintenance in most urban and rural atmospheres." |
