Abstract
ABSTRACTThe rapidly increasing cost and the uncertain supply of oil provide strong impetus to And ways to conserve ships' fuel and to optimize its use. Underwater mechanical removal of marine fouling from U.S. Navy ship hulls and propellers has been shown to result in immediate and rather substantial fuel savings. The long‐term savings from underwater cleaning is not nearly so certain because of the interactions between the cleaning techniques, paint performance, and regrowth of the fouling. Of particular interest is the sensitivity of the fuel savings as a function of cleaning frequency.The following three questions are addressed: Does underwater cleaning lengthen Anti‐Fouling (AF) paint service life? Does underwater cleaning really save fuel? Is underwater cleaning cost effective? The answers to these questions obviously depend strongly upon the use of the ships and the manner in which they are operated. For U.S. Navy ships, underwater hull cleaning will save fuel provided adequate attention is given to the scheduling of the cleaning in terms of drydock cycle and deployment. Additional efforts toward optimization of underwater cleaning also are discussed.
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