Test new kind of antifouling, silicone based

[JustMurph]

Originally Posted by Manateeman

Surfer Sex Wax improved their hook up chances but not reproductive success.

What are we talking about here?

[propmaster]

Originally Posted by fstbttms

At the very least your posts have been misleading. The "microplastics" identified in the link you just posted are actually flakes of anti fouling paint. So of course it is reasonable to assume these flakes also contain biocide. But your previous post made me (and others, obviously) believe what you were referring to were biocides trapped inside of a coating of plastic. What is missing from your treatise is a definition of "microplastics" which certainly covers a wider range of pollutants than the average reader is aware of.

Yes, it's exactly this, biocides trapped inside the plastic binder of the antifoul, do a google search, there are dozens of articles and papers about this.

The concentration of antifouling microplastics near marinas, shipping routes e.t.c. sometimes makes up for up to 80% of all microplastics in the area.

Everyone seems to care about the microplastics of everyday use plastics that are pretty much inert, huge amounts of money dumped into it but no one ever mentions antifouling microplastics because then some huge companies may start to take big losses.

It's a joke since all the funding for antifouling research goes to the same companies that are in jeopardy if the current biocides get banned.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by propmaster

Yes, it's exactly this, biocides trapped inside the plastic binder of the antifoul, do a google search, there are dozens of articles and papers about this.

You are misrepresenting what the article says. The article essentially says that that paint flakes ARE microplastics. It says nothing about binders. The binder is not the issue here. The fact that large amounts of tiny anti fouling paint flakes apparently exist in the seas is the issue.

From the article:

"After fibres, paint flakes appear to be the most abundant type of microplastic in the oceans..."

[propmaster]

Originally Posted by fstbttms

You are misrepresenting what the article says. The article essentially says that that paint flakes ARE microplastics. It says nothing about binders. The binder is not the issue here. The fact that large amounts of tiny anti fouling paint flakes apparently exist in the seas is the issue.

From the article:

"After fibres, paint flakes appear to be the most abundant type of microplastic in the oceans..."

A binder or resin is the carrier for the pigments and additives in paints, in ablative antifouling paints or coatings the binder is usually an acrylic type and the pigment is the biocide mixture, some manufacturers modify the binder or the biocide a little to achieve a more steady biocide release, on top of the main biocides which are the copper or zinc salts in yacht antifouling paint there are also adjuvant biocides that help to kill more types of sea organisms.
Microplastics can be flakes or spheres it doesn't matter what shape they are.
When the microparticles detach from the ablative type antifouling there's also biocide in them, ablative type coatings are designed to be hydrolytically unstable so the binder deteriorates so fast in water that when a ship moves the water drag causes all the deteriorated binder to detach from the surface dislodging any foulant that adhered to it and expose fresh biocide to the water, so in essence, these are designed to release microplastics filled with biocides into the ocean, whether the biocide completely leaches out in a year or two from each microplastic particle is something I don't know and depends on the specific composition of each coating.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by propmaster

A binder or resin is the carrier for the pigments and additives in paints, in ablative antifouling paints or coatings the binder is usually an acrylic type and the pigment is the biocide mixture, some manufacturers modify the binder or the biocide a little to achieve a more steady biocide release, on top of the main biocides which are the copper or zinc salts in yacht antifouling paint there are also adjuvant biocides that help to kill more types of sea organisms.

Microplastics can be flakes or spheres it doesn't matter what shape they are.

When the microparticles detach from the ablative type antifouling there's also biocide in them, ablative type coatings are designed to be hydrolytically unstable so the binder deteriorates so fast in water that when a ship moves the water drag causes all the deteriorated binder to detach from the surface dislodging any foulant that adhered to it and expose fresh biocide to the water, so in essence, these are designed to release microplastics filled with biocides into the ocean, whether the biocide completely leaches out in a year or two from each microplastic particle is something I don't know and depends on the specific composition of each coating.

My point is that I don’t believe that the layman understands that anti fouling paint flakes are considered to be microplastics and your argument would be better served if you took that into consideration.

[longjonsilver]

i think that too many people here just like to argue semantics

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by longjonsilver

i think that too many people here just like to argue semantics

Nobody’s twisting your arm to read it, chief.

[michaeld]

At the end of the day, if someone comes out with something better than Petit Trinidad Pro, I'll buy it.

Here in south Florida, it's the go to bottom paint.

After all, this area is ground zero for barnacles, green slime, and you name it marine growth.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by michaeld

At the end of the day, if someone comes out with something better than Petit Trinidad Pro, I'll buy it.

That's interesting. Most of the Florida divers I know rave about Sea Hawk Biocop.

[propmaster]

Originally Posted by fstbttms

That's interesting. Most of the Florida divers I know rave about Sea Hawk Biocop.

A new dual-biocide technology and revolutionary polymer binder system “PL3” produces an engineered biocide that leaves no harmful effects on the environment. Biocop TF is considered the top performer among antifouling paints and is safe in salt or fresh water on boats of all sizes.

Talk about false advertising.

Both the trinidad and the biocop have a very high biocide loading almost 70% , it's the only reason they work better than others, they can't sell these in the EU because there's a limit in the EU for the biocide content, the US doesn't have such limits.

[fstbttms]

Originally Posted by propmaster

Talk about false advertising.

I am a lifelong fan of Trinidad but I don’t know that I have ever cleaned a boat painted with Biocop, so I am unable to judge its effectiveness. I would certainly be interested in knowing how Sea Hawk can claim it is not harmful to the environment. It wouldn’t be the first time that company has made blatantly false statements about their products.

[Kit_L]

Joining to see where this goes. The silicon approaches seem to have advantages but are very costly. Here (South Coast NSW) none of the local shipwrights have used these products, so we have no local experience. And no one I know wants to be the first!

[Kit_L]

Just checking on to see where this went, and to see if Ilona replied. The hard silicon coating ("SEA-SPEED V10X Ultra Clear") seems promising, but as before, no one around here wats to be first.

And a note on PropSpeed: a few barnacles grew on the shank/hubs of our Duo Props, and I was too slow to get them in the beginning (perhaps four months). But the blades of the props are excellent, ten months later. And I chipped the barnacles that had attached, but as others have noted, the adults definitely cut through the silicon.

After we next anti-foul and prop-speed (February) I will make sure I do wipe all prop surfaces monthly (or may have to be more often). We live in 'Barnacle City' here in the Shoalhaven.