An Assessment of Ablative Organotin Antifouling (AF) Coatings
Abstract
The widely used cuprous oxide antifouling paints are no longer able to meet the increasing demands of the Marine industry. Now that fuel and drydocking costs have soared, the Marine industry is looking for antifouling paints that will permit extended drydocking intervals and to perform foul-free between dockings to keep fuel costs to a minimum and in addition, to eliminate the costly underwater mechanical brushing. The new ablative antifouling coatings enable ship owners to achieve these results with organotin toxicants. The Marine industry, including the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard are beginning to obtain foul- free underwater hulls of up to four years, and the clean hulls have produced a ten percent fuel savings per ship per year. In addition, the inherent, self- cleaning action has completely eliminated the expense of underwater brushing and the ensuing damage suffered by the antifouling coating by the mechanical process. The U.S. Navy is investigating these ablative coatings and comparing its findings with those obtained on ships in the commercial sector. The overall results show a very close correlation regarding fuel savings and foul-free performance over longer drydocking intervals.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1983
- Accession Number
- ADA134019
Entities
People
- Theodore Dowd
Organizations
- United States Department of the Navy