Fouling Control of Navy Surface Ships - 1990

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1The Author The Author received a B.S. degree from the New York State College of Forestry, Syracuse University. He joined the staff of the Material Laboratory at the New York Naval Shipyard in 1951 and carried out applied research as a wood technologist in the foreign wood program for all wood minesweepers. In 1962, at the Naval Applied Science Laboratory, he was engaged as a rubber technologist in the development of elastomeric vibration damping materials and the Laboratory's research studies on marine fouling. Since 1970, at the David W. Taylor Naval Ship Research and Development Center, he has been a materials engineer involved with the Center's programs on deck coverings, corrosion and conservation of energy. He is a member of ASNE. ABSTRACT Ongoing investigations on three test ships covering a period of five years have identified the performance characteristics of an antifouling (AF) paint for long-term service. This paint ablates by the sequential hydrolysis of the surface and shearing action of the ship's passage through the water to remove the persistent settlement of microorganisms while continuously releasing an environmentally acceptable component to control calcareous fouling. During the past decade a variety of toxicants have been investigated and formulated into a number of AF paints that can be grouped on the basis of how the toxicant is combined and released from the paint matrix. Observations relative to color change, fouling and paint deterioration, define the qualitative criteria for evaluation. Quantitative data obtained with improved instruments for taking dry film thickness measurements and roughness determinations both in drydock and underwater accurately track these parameters during long-term service. Field studies have shown that ablation of the AF paint is an effective mechanism to limit the formation of microbial biofilms on AF paint surfaces. Field studies have also revealed that reliance on toxics will not control the accretion of microorganisms on a ship's hull. The ablative AF paint has been found to be superior to all non-ablative AF paints evaluated by the Navy to date.