English translation: corrosion-resistant aluminium
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18:58 Dec 19, 2010
French to English translations [PRO] Tech/Engineering - Materials (Plastics, Ceramics, etc.)
French term or phrase:aluminium inoxydable
As used in garden furniture.
Can I say "stainless aluminium" by analogy with "stainless steel"? There are some hits but I wonder whether there is an accepted term.
Explanation: Once oxidized, either naturally or by anodizing, aluminium is basically pretty corrosion resistant. It doesn't like salt solutions much, but they still make boats out of it for marine use.
Do you think this is actually a particular type of aluminium, as stainless steel is a particular type of steel, or simply a surqualification (for marketing purposes, generally) along the lines of "organic wood" or "pure spring water" "underwater subsea pipeline" (they generally are organic and pure and under water, respectively)?
Either way (ordinary aluminium or specially alloyed or coated aluminium), "corrosion-resistant aluminium" says it.
Only medium confidence because I really would like to know more.
-------------------------------------------------- Note added at 4 hrs (2010-12-19 23:01:38 GMT) --------------------------------------------------
My Disagree to another answer has been "corrected" with "Actually, anodizing doesn't 'create' an oxide layer - it's already present and anodizing merely consolidates it, as mentioned in the note added above."
Well, yes and no. True, aluminium straight out of the mill (bright or mill-finish) will soon start to acquire a thin layer of natural aluminium oxide. To obtain a thicker anodized coating of aluminium oxide, this pre-existing layer, which is actually very tough, however thin, has to be broken down to expose the underlying "pure" aluminium and oxidize it further. In addition, in many anodizing processes the alu. is pickled - dipped in acid or solvent solutions - to remove or weaken the thin natural oxide layer first. The electrolytic process involves an acid bath which eats at the pre-existing coating, enabling the electro-chemical component of the process to reach the underlying aluminium and build a thicker layer of aluminium oxide on the surface.
Stainless steel is made "stainless" by alloying it with things like nickel, manganese, and above all chromium. Although pure aluminium, once oxidized, is pretty corrosion resistant, the performance of aluminium can, like steel, be improved by alloying it with other metals. This garden furniture might use one such alloy, such as one of the marine alloys or something like magnalium:
Magnalium is an aluminium alloy with 1.5 to 2% magnesium and small amounts of copper, nickel, and tin.[1] Some alloys, intended for particular uses at the cost of poor corrosion resistance, may consist of up to 50% magnesium. It finds use in engineering and pyrotechnics. Alloys with smaller amounts of magnesium (about 5%) exhibit greater strength, GREATER CORROSION RESISTANCE, and lower density THAN PURE ALUMINIUM. Such alloys are also more workable and easier to weld than pure aluminium. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnalium
Without knowing for certain what feature of the aluminium renders it inoxydable, or even if it is more inoxydable than your run-of-the-mill aluminium, I would advise keeping it general.
-------------------------------------------------- Note added at 15 hrs (2010-12-20 10:17:08 GMT) --------------------------------------------------
les matériaux très spécifiques à l’instar du teck imputrescible ou de l’aluminium inoxydable
That's it then, we're dealing with "overqualification", like "language translator" or "technical engineer". Teak is by definition non-rotting and aluminium corrosion resistant. It might have been better written:
du teck - imputrescible - ou de l’aluminium - inoxydable
or du teck, qui est imputrescible, ou de l’aluminium, qui est inoxydable.
Even if the source document is marketing rather than technical, it would not be very clever marketing to risk offending the audience by talking down to them and using the term "non-rust" in relation to aluminium.
When someone is describing how designing garden furntiure is distinct to designing indoor furniture....
....et les matériaux très spécifiques à l’instar du teck imputrescible ou de l’aluminium inoxydable.
At this point in the debate I suggest it would be helpful if you were to post the full sentence from the source text containing the words "aluminium inoxydable". At least we would be able to determine whether 'inoxydable' does actually refer to 'aluminium' - or to the furniture (nay, to something else entirely...).
And please confirm whether you need a marketing expression for Tom, Dick or Harriet, or something that would sit nicely in a learned treatise on the chemistry of aluminium.
When marketing blurb refers to 'rust-proof aluminium garden furniture', it more likely reads (or is intended to be read) as 'rust-proof, aluminium, garden furniture'. The subtle difference being that 'rust-proof' refers to the 'garden furniture', not to the 'aluminium'. It's maybe a 'marketing ploy', but with incorrect punctuation it's potentially illegal in many countries.
There are several occurrences of this on websites of outdoor furniture retailers. I suspect that it's a marketing ploy. Technically speaking it's not wrong - it's like bottled water being advertised as "fat-free"
Automatic update in 00:
Answers
7 mins confidence:
passivated alominum
Explanation: I think this is sit, but please, note the low confidence
Marco Solinas Local time: 01:01 Native speaker of: English, Italian
Explanation: ...in making very high quality garden furniture from sand cast aluminium. This traditional technique allows us to create intricate classical designs that are rust proof, rot proof and hand made to last a lifetime.
The translation workplace 
peer agreement (net): -3
