Siloxane-polyurethane marine coatings have been shown to be a viable approach to combat marine biofouling. The effects of incorporating phenyl methyl silicone oils in the siloxane-polyurethane system was investigated as a means to improve the fouling-release performance. Silicone oils are commonly used as an additive in silicone elastomer fouling-release coatings to provide lubricity to the surface which in turn helps reduce the adhesion strength of marine organisms. However the release properties are dependent upon the type of oil and the silicone matrix. Several phenyl-methyl silicone oils with a range of molecular weights were incorporated into a siloxane-polyurethane coating system. Surface energy of coatings evaluated by contact angle measurements showed stratification of the silicone oil to the surface. Macro-fouling release performance of oil modified coatings assessed by laboratory biological assay tests for barnacles (Amphibalanus amphitrite) and mussels (Geukensia demissa) suggest an improvement in fouling release performance, comparable to that of commercial fouling release coatings. However micro-fouling release performance of bacteria (Cytophaga lytica), and algae (Navicula incerta and Ulva linza) was unaffected by oil inclusion compared to 1st generation siloxane-polyurethane coatings. Some candidate coatings from this study performed similarly to commercial coatings in field immersion studies at several different test sites.

Fouling release performance of silicone oil modified siloxane-polyurethane coatings

250th National Meeting (2015)

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