1.Basic structure of color steel plate

Color steel plate usually consists of base plate and coating. The base plate is mostly made of metal, such as galvanized steel plate or aluminum plate, with strong load-bearing capacity and corrosion resistance. The coating is mostly polyester, silicone modified polyester or fluorocarbon, etc., which not only gives the color steel plate rich color choices, but also enhances its weather resistance, so that it can maintain stable performance in the environment of sunshine and rain.

2. What are the types of color steel plate?

According to different classification standards, color steel plate can be divided into the following four categories:

(1) According to the substrate material points

-Galvanized substrate color steel plate: the most common, galvanized layer weight 60~275g/m2, suitable for general construction.

-Aluminum-zinc plated substrate color steel plate (such as AZ150): aluminum-zinc alloy coating (55% aluminum + 43.4% zinc), better heat resistance, suitable for high temperature environment.

-Cold rolled sheet based color steel plate: no plating, need to be used with special coating, lower cost but poor rust resistance.

(2) According to the type of coating

-Polyester coating (PE): cost-effective, general weather resistance, life of about 7~10 years.

-Fluorocarbon coating (PVDF): strong UV resistance, life expectancy of more than 20 years, mostly used in high-grade buildings.

-Silicon modified polyester (SMP): excellent acid and alkali resistance, suitable for industrial plants.

(3) According to the use of points

-Roofing panel: usually ribbed or corrugated design (such as YX35-125-750 type), enhanced drainage and load-bearing capacity.

-Wall panel: high flatness, common thickness 0.4~0.8mm.

-Sandwich panel: filled with rock wool or polyurethane in the middle, with both thermal and acoustic insulation functions.

(4) Special function type

-Fireproof color steel plate: the substrate adds flame retardant, fire-resistant limit up to 1 hour (GB 8624-2012 standard).

-Antibacterial color steel plate: surface coated with silver ion coating, used in hospitals, food workshop.

3. Production process of color steel plate

(1) plate making process

Firstly, the steel plate will be made into the required specification and shape after acid washing, heating, rolling and other processes. Then, after cutting, bending and other processes, it is made into various components of color steel plate.

(2) Painting process

The painting process of color steel plate is generally divided into two parts: primer and top coating. Firstly, the primer is painted to form a protective film on the surface of steel plate. Then, the top coating is carried out to make the surface of the steel plate show the required color and luster.

(3) Composite process

Fillers (such as polyurethane or rock wool) are covered on the inside of the color steel plate to form a composite plate. This step is to improve the performance of heat preservation, sound insulation and fire prevention of color steel plate.

4.Advantages of color steel plate

(1) Lightweight and high-strength

Color steel plate takes galvanized or aluminum-zinc-plated steel plate as the base material, and the surface is coated with colorful coating, the density is only 1/10 of the traditional concrete, but the tensile strength is up to 300-500MPa (Data source: “Dimensions and permissible deviation of cold-rolled steel plate and steel strip” GB/T 708-2019).

-When used in large-span buildings (such as factories, gymnasiums, exhibition halls), it can reduce the self-weight of the structure and ensure the overall strength and stability.

-For transportation vehicles, such as truck carriages, the lightweight characteristics of color steel plate can reduce the weight by 15%-20%, thus reducing fuel consumption.

(2) Corrosion resistance and durability

Through the double protection of plating and coating, the service life of color steel plate can reach 15-25 years in wet or acidic and alkaline environment. For example, the weathering resistance of fluorocarbon coated color steel plate is more than 3 times higher than that of ordinary coating (refer to Color Coated Steel Plates and Steel Strips for Construction GB/T 12754-2019).

(3) Good heat insulation and sound insulation performance

Color steel plate can be combined with polyurethane, rock wool and other core materials to make color steel sandwich panel, which has obvious advantages in energy saving and comfort.

-Heat insulation effect: the heat transfer coefficient of color steel sandwich panel can be as low as 0.018W/m-K, and the energy-saving effect is upgraded by more than 40% compared with the traditional wall.

-Sound insulation effect: according to GB/T 19889-2005 Building Acoustics, the sound insulation capacity of color steel sandwich panel can reach 40-50dB, which is suitable to be used in meeting rooms, factory workshops and other noise control places.

(4) Diversified appearance and sense of design

The surface coating of color steel plate can realize a variety of colors, gloss and texture design, and some products can simulate wood grain and stone texture.

-According to market research data, building color steel plate has the largest demand in blue, silver gray and red, accounting for more than 70%.

-Appearance diversity not only meets the aesthetic demand of residential and commercial buildings, but also improves the overall landscape effect of the city.

(5) Efficient construction

color steel plate can be prefabricated in factory and assembled on site, and the construction speed is 60%-70% faster than traditional building materials. Take 1000 square meters workshop as an example, it takes only 3-5 days to complete the installation by using color steel plate roof.

(6) Environmental protection and energy saving

Color steel plate meets the standard of green building materials and has high environmental protection value.

-Recyclable rate: color steel plate can be 100% recycled, greatly reducing the waste of resources.

-Energy-saving contribution: high reflectivity of the surface of color steel plate can effectively reduce the solar radiation heat absorption and reduce the energy consumption of air conditioning. The thermal conductivity of some models is as low as 0.040 W/(m-K), which is close to the standard of heat preservation material.

-Environmental protection regulations: the new chromium-free plated color steel plate has been fully compliant with the EU RoHS environmental protection directive, reducing the emission of harmful substances.

5. The main use of color steel plate

(1) Construction industry

- Roof and wall: commonly used in industrial plants, warehouses, stadiums and other large-span building enclosure structure, construction efficiency than traditional materials to enhance more than 50%.

- Partition and ceiling: office, hospital and other places use color steel plate partition wall, both fireproof (part of the model fire-resistant limit of 1 hour) and sound insulation performance.

- Temporary buildings: movable houses at construction sites, disaster relief tents, etc., because they can be disassembled and reused, the cost is reduced by 30%~40%.

(2) Home appliances and furniture

- Refrigerator, washing machine shell mostly use color steel plate, rust and easy to clean.

- Cabinets, filing cabinets and other furniture using color steel veneer, beautiful and durable.

(3) Transportation

- High-speed rail, subway car interior panels commonly used color steel plate, light weight and in line with fire standards (such as EN 45545-2).

- Car box body using color steel plate can reduce weight by 15% ~ 20%, reduce fuel consumption.

(4) Agricultural and industrial facilities

Color steel plate also plays an important role in agriculture and industry.

-Agricultural greenhouse: color steel plate roof heat insulation and heat preservation, effectively improve the crop growth environment.

-Grain silo and cold storage: sandwich color steel plate can keep constant temperature and guarantee the quality of agricultural products and food.

Chemical plant and storage tanks: the use of corrosion-resistant color steel plate, can extend the service life, reduce maintenance costs.

As a new type of material with the advantages of light weight and high strength, corrosion resistance, heat and sound insulation, beauty and environmental protection, color steel plate has shown its wide application value in the fields of construction, transportation, home appliances and agriculture. With the development of green low-carbon and intelligent manufacturing, color steel plate will continue to play an important role as a key material to promote the global new building and industrial innovation.