Innovative Marine Coatings: Fighting Biofouling and Reducing

Posted on Feb 18, 2024 at 10:02 PM

Innovative marine coatings, particularly corrosive, are our life savers in the aquatic environment to withstand aggressive water actions. These maritime coatings, specially designed for the purpose, serve as a barrier to corrosion, biofouling, and other adverse environmental factors, enabling the marine assets to operate smoothly and last long. 

Many questions need answering, such as what these coatings are, why they are essential, and the different types available on the market.

What are Innovative Marine Coatings? 

Ships are made of steel and various other metals, and you know what happens when water hits metal? It rusts, not in the literal sense. However, if water can tear down a mountain, it can attack a ship's skeleton. What’s our defence against these natural forces? Innovative marine coatings! Here’s what they are:

Innovative marine coatings are advanced protective coatings intended for aquatic environments. These coatings are sprayed or brushed onto the bottom of ships, offshore equipment, and other marine devices to obtain multiple advantages. These coatings have been designed to be highly resistant to corrosion, reduce friction, prevent the colonisation of marine species, and mitigate the effect of aquatic activities on the environment.

What makes Marine Innovative Coatings so significant?

We’ve mentioned how waters eat away at the skeleton of ships; now, let’s get more technical. Turns out, it cannot be overstressed that the place of innovative marine coatings in marine painting is invaluable. Here are some key reasons why they are vital in the maritime industry:

1. Preventing Corrosion:

Here we stress again: Metal structures placed in marine zones are subjected to severe exfoliation and erosive corrosion. Marine coating innovations act as a protective barrier, preventing the affected material below from rusting and corroding due to saltwater, moisture, and harsh weather.

2. Battling Biofouling:

The adhesion of the marine organisms to the ship surfaces, a phenomenon classified as biofouling, is a critical issue for marine transport operators. These accumulations raise the resistance, reduce fuel efficiency, and increase maintenance expenditures in the short run. Innovative antifouling coatings are the ones that have self-cleaning properties that prevent the attachment and growth of barnacles, algae, and other various organisms. As ice and fuel consumption figures diminish, maintenance intervals extend.

3. Reducing Environmental Impact:

Classic antifouling coatings are likely to contain harmful chemicals such as copper and TBT, which are unsuitable for ocean ecosystems. Innovative marine engineering aims at the green and bio-solar colours, heavily relying on low-toxic or non-toxic formulations to reduce their negative environmental impact and comply with international regulations.

Traditional Marine Coating Classification.

Traditional marine coatings can be broadly classified into four categories.

1. Anticorrosive Coatings: These primers are specially developed for metal structures operating in saltwater environments and whose primary function is to offer corrosion resistance. Corrosion is a process of metal dissolution at a metallic surface due to the activity of corrosive agents.

2. Antifouling Coatings: Anti-foiling coatings are a group specifically designed to prevent the attachment and growth of marine organisms on underwater surfaces. This incorporates antiseptic effects to avoid the accumulation of such organisms as barnacles, fulgens, algae, etc.

3.  Anti-Slip Coatings: Antislip coatings are broadly applied as areas such as decks, walkways, etc., are prone to slip accidents, and their application serves as a hazard preventive intervention. These linings are integral in eliminating accidents or injuries that are likely to occur in a wet or slippery environment.

4.  Ballast Tank Coatings: Ships' ballast tanks are vulnerable to corrosion, differentiated from water and contaminants on the surface. Thus, the coatings are required for protection. These coatings are utilised to retain the structural integrity of the tanks as well as provide purification and resilience against pollution of the ballast water.

Innovative maritime coatings

Now that we know all the traditional coatings we used let’s get into the fun stuff! The marine coatings industry has seen the sprout of various revolutionary inventions in response to increasing concerns about sustainability. Some notable examples of innovative marine coatings include

1. Silicone-Based Coatings: Silicon’s hydrophobic characteristics increase hydro-repulsion, allowing ships to move at an ideal angle in the water and reducing friction and fuel waste during travel by creating a smoother and slipperier surface.

2. Self-Cleaning Coatings: The lotus effect, a copy of nature, is employed in developing a self-cleaning surface. Moreover, these coatings are waterproof, making dirt and pollutants slide off and causing the vehicle to remain in this excellent condition with less cleaning and maintenance.

3. Low-Friction Coatings: This is made possible by using low-friction coatings, often based on advanced polymers, thus allowing the ships to run even smoother with less drag. This results in lower fuel consumption and fewer emissions.

4. Non-Toxic Antifouling Coatings: Biocompatible alternatives that use many innovative plant compounds, bio-inhibitors, and non-metals have been produced. Such layers provide an efficient anti-biofouling layer that poses no harm to marine life.

What to do with all of this? 

Are you using a traditional or an innovative maritime coating in your shipping company? Do you know how destructive traditional coatings can be? Can you tell how big of a difference you’d make if you switched to innovative maritime coatings?

Maritimes Training Courses in Dubai teach you precisely what you need to know about these concepts and guide you to the proper way to deal with the change most effectively. 

Innovative marine coatings are altering the industry by creating a pioneering platform to offer protection and environmentally friendly solutions, mitigating other hazards such as corrosion, biofuels, etc. By funding this coating application, maritime companies will achieve longer asset lifetime, lower maintenance costs, higher overall performance, and less environmental impact.