Galvanising is coating steel with a layer of zinc, by dipping it in molten zinc. Zinc is attacked by air and water rather than the steel below it: even where the coating is scratched, the nearby zinc is corroded first and the steel is spared.

Chemistry · Glossary
Galvanising is coating steel with a layer of zinc, by dipping it in molten zinc. Zinc is attacked by air and water rather than the steel below it: even where the coating is scratched, the nearby zinc is corroded first and the steel is spared.
