Zinc alloys and heat treatments
Zinc alloy heat treatment

Zinc is mainly used for galvanizing and as an additive in bronzes and brasses. Zinc alloys are mainly shaped either by foundry processes (70%) or by continuous casting (30%) to produce sheet metal for roofing. The pressure die-casting process (see [M 3 650] ) is the most widely used for casting zinc alloy parts (in France, it accounts for 95% of the tonnage cast).

Due to the near-monopoly of die-casting, parts are of comparable shapes, sizes and, above all, thicknesses (see the article Foundry and casting of zinc alloys