Tough, Ultra-Rapid Restructuring Marine Coatings with Broad-Spectrum Anti-Fouling Behavior

The Navy has a need for passive non-toxic anti-fouling (AF) coatings to reduce or eliminate biofouling on ship hulls without the need for external activation and without leaching harmful biocides into the surrounding environment. Furthermore, the coatings need to be easily applied and provide a long operational lifetime (>5 years), while remaining environmentally benign. Prior attempts at preventing marine biofouling have relied heavily on toxic AF coatings, which release copper, tin, or organic biocides into the surrounding water. Recent restrictions led to the development of foul release coatings (FRCs) as non-toxic alternatives, which minimize the adhesion of marine foulers on their surface. Texas Research Institute Austin, Inc. will develop broad-spectrum AF amphiphilic silicones and polyurethanes containing a proprietary surface modifying additive (SMA). The coatings do not require a tie coat, cost approximately the same as copper-based paints, and are about half the cost of commercially available FRCs (Intersleek 1100SR). They are easily synthesized and can be applied by conventional means. When they come into contact with water the surface rapidly restructures (~3 min) and becomes highly lubricative. Furthermore, the coating has undergone static testing in the Atlantic (20 weeks) and Indian Oceans (16 weeks) resulting in negligeable biofoul coverage.