Boeing has apparently developed the ultimate anti-foul

[Trim50]

Wish I could keep my boat in the water for over a year and not have any barnacle growth like the 777...just saying.

Debris of plane found in Indian Ocean

[model 10]

I don't think they use anything special. Epoxy primer and a LPU topcoat. As a light composite structure, maybe it flipped over an over and over again, like a rotisserie.

[Trim50]

I'm pretty sure they use a Strontium Chromate-based primer coat. If these parts are from MH370, I'm going to look into using the stuff on my hull!

[captain465]

No one sees the growth on those parts??????????????????????

[Trim50]

The only growth I can see is Goose Neck Barnacles which result in open ocean in just 5 days. In these warm waters, those parts would look like a chunk of coral in just 2 months. I know this for sure as I just cleaned the bottom of my boat which has new antifoul after 2 months, and the barnacles in SE Asia thrive on Antifoul ;-)

[Alan Mighty]

Originally Posted by Trim50

The only growth I can see is Goose Neck Barnacles which result in open ocean in just 5 days.

Goose-neck barnacles, Lepas, grow about 1 mm a day. Sometimes a little longer (1.2 mm) in one day, depending on nutrients and water temperature. So don't feel the width, measure the length.


See: Growth and Maturity of the Barnacles Lepas hillii and Lepas anatifera

http://www.researchgate.net/publicat...ia_Pedunculata)


Al

[model 10]

Originally Posted by Trim50

I'm pretty sure they use a Strontium Chromate-based primer coat. If these parts are from MH370, I'm going to look into using the stuff on my hull!

They only use that on metal parts. You don't need a chromate on composite. It floated, remember?

[Trim50]

Are the Flaperons composite on the 777. If they are closed-off Aluminum 6061, it would float just like an empty fuel tank..eg the wings...where are they? Tail section was empty too...where is that giant piece of floating tankage?

[roverhi]

The flapperon is a portion of the wing. Deflects up and down to increase/decrease lift on the wing to bank the plane and pivots down in conjunction with larger flaps to increase lift for landing and take off. Looks to be at least partially aluminum, you can see the rivets on the forward end. It undoubtedly floated because of trapped air. Larger sections like the tail which is the section most often left intact in a crash may not have had enough trapped air to remain afloat. Hear they also recovered a suitcase recently that may have come from the plane. If the plane broke up on contact with ocean, there will probably be more flotsam wash up around the Indian Ocean over the next year or so. Other than the fact that the current in the area flows east to west, still not much of a clue why or where the plane went down.

Sure marine biologists are going to be studying the piece carefully to try and determine how long it's been in the water and maybe even where it's been all these months. Doubt that anything the piece was painted with would act as anti-fouling.

One wag said at least we can rule out alien abduction as the cause of the disappearance.

[model 10]

You guys are probably right. If you see rivets and it floated it must be a foam/ honeycomb filled structure with an aluminum skin. From the factory it would have had an anodized or alodine coating then the primer then LPU. I doubt the LPU failed enough to expose the primer, what ever kind it was.

[Trim50]

My biggest issue with this entire MH370 crash theory is that they claim it would fly till it ran out of fuel. If it runs out of fuel, the tanks will be empty floating monoliths...wings and tail. The tanks should...I believe, have a lining material that would be airtight even after being torn from the aircraft. The tail section always pops to the surface...even in catastrophic high speed impacts.

I'm sure we have some Boeing retires out there who know this stuff.

[Lodesman]

Might be the copper content in the alloy, especially if they used 2024.

[socaldmax]

Originally Posted by roverhi

The flapperon is a portion of the wing. Deflects up and down to increase/decrease lift on the wing to bank the plane and pivots down in conjunction with larger flaps to increase lift for landing and take off. Looks to be at least partially aluminum, you can see the rivets on the forward end. It undoubtedly floated because of trapped air. Larger sections like the tail which is the section most often left intact in a crash may not have had enough trapped air to remain afloat. Hear they also recovered a suitcase recently that may have come from the plane. If the plane broke up on contact with ocean, there will probably be more flotsam wash up around the Indian Ocean over the next year or so. Other than the fact that the current in the area flows east to west, still not much of a clue why or where the plane went down.

Sure marine biologists are going to be studying the piece carefully to try and determine how long it's been in the water and maybe even where it's been all these months. Doubt that anything the piece was painted with would act as anti-fouling.

One wag said at least we can rule out alien abduction as the cause of the disappearance.

Actually, that kinda supports alien abduction. Everyone gets beamed aboard the intergalactic sex probe ship, and a completely empty plane, flying on autopilot continues on until it runs out of fuel, whereupon it loses speed and altitude and essentially glides into the ocean.

That's why all of the comms gear in the main fuselage was disabled (always the first event in an alien encounter) yet the engine monitoring systems continued to transmit to Rolls Royce that the engines ran normally for another 7-1/2 hrs.

Up until now, my #1 theory included one of the pilots deciding to do a suicide mission with everyone aboard for religious reasons.

Theory #2 was he wanted a divorce and had an elaborate plan to "disappear" including a parachute, a very resourceful girlfriend who could single hand a 50 ft catamaran, a fast dinghy, and the best anchor in the world - but he was too lazy to just say, "I divorce you" 3 times.

[socaldmax]

Originally Posted by Trim50

My biggest issue with this entire MH370 crash theory is that they claim it would fly till it ran out of fuel. If it runs out of fuel, the tanks will be empty floating monoliths...wings and tail. The tanks should...I believe, have a lining material that would be airtight even after being torn from the aircraft. The tail section always pops to the surface...even in catastrophic high speed impacts.

I'm sure we have some Boeing retires out there who know this stuff.

The other evidence that supports that it did fly until it ran out of fuel was the engine monitoring data from Rolls Royce that the engines ran normally for 7.5 hrs until they stopped transmitting, indicating that the plane did fly for that period of time, roughly the amount of fuel it had.

I would imagine as the plane lost speed, it would lose altitude and pick up more speed and eventually crash into the ocean. The larger tank sections of the wings probably broke up, while a smaller piece like this is much stronger and can withstand more force in an impact.

I'm also surprised more debris hasn't been found before this, especially luggage, clothing or those much vaunted floating seat cushions.

[roverhi]

I don't monitor aircraft water impact crashes religiously but don't remember any large pieces of a plane popping to the surface. If anything will survive in a recognizable form it will be the tail section but those recovered came off the bottom not floating. Smallish pieces of disintegrated plane do float but not the big pieces as they can't trap enough air to be buoyant.

If there was anyone still alive in the cockpit, they could have attempted a water landing after flame out from fuel starvation. Contrary to popular image, water landings like happened to the plane in the Hudson River with the airplane remaining in one piece are rare. Happened in SF Bay many years ago with a 707 when the captain didn't realize the auto throttle wasn't engaged and landed short of the runway. That airplane was newish and went on to fly again after the most expensive rebuild in history. Most other water crashes have been less forgiving. In most attempted water landings, the plane will dip a wing tearing it off and cart wheeling the remains. The rest of the plane shedding pieces until it comes to rest. If that was how the plane hit the water, the fuselage may have remained relatively intact or in a few large pieces. The wings rip off disintegrating in the process taking that section of the fuselage with them. You could end up with forward and aft sections of the fuselage in large pieces. That would mean not much of a debris field. If it crashed in other than a semi controlled impact with the water in a high speed, high angle impact, the plane would have broken into very small pieces with only the engines remaining recognizable. That would mean a possible large debris field. In any case, it's doubtful that the wing tanks would have survived in one piece and water tight. Very much speculation, but there doesn't seem to have been much debris after the initial crash. The search area for this crash was huge so debris might not have been noticed but they spent a ton of money and resources trying to find out where the plane went down.

Originally Posted by Trim50

My biggest issue with this entire MH370 crash theory is that they claim it would fly till it ran out of fuel. If it runs out of fuel, the tanks will be empty floating monoliths...wings and tail. The tanks should...I believe, have a lining material that would be airtight even after being torn from the aircraft. The tail section always pops to the surface...even in catastrophic high speed impacts.

I'm sure we have some Boeing retires out there who know this stuff.