{"id":8362,"date":"2020-12-18T11:27:36","date_gmt":"2020-12-18T11:27:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/?p=8362"},"modified":"2021-01-19T12:33:59","modified_gmt":"2021-01-19T12:33:59","slug":"eco-friendly-antifouling-avoiding-the-spill-of-biocides-with-finsulates-wrapping-solution","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/eco-friendly-antifouling-avoiding-the-spill-of-biocides-with-finsulates-wrapping-solution\/8362\/","title":{"rendered":"Eco-friendly antifouling: avoiding the spill of biocides with Finsulate’s wrapping solution"},"content":{"rendered":"

Antifouling paints cause the spill of biocides and microplastics in our oceans. Finsulate prevents this deliberate and unnecessary pollution with its eco-friendly antifouling wrapping solution.<\/h2>\n

As soon as a vessel or yacht gets into the water, mussels, algae and other organisms start to attach. This growth increases the drag of the vessel, resulting in higher fuel consumption and lower top speeds. To prevent this, vessel owners use toxic antifouling paints<\/a>. These paints kill all marine life. Furthermore, the huge amount of toxic copper that is released causes dramatic effects on precious corals. The regrowth of corals is decimated by copper because the coral larvae die. On top of this, the paint itself is also slowly released into the oceans. Annually, 50 million litres of paint particles end up in the seas. This amount of microplastics equals roughly 10-20% of the total plastic soup. This level of pollution requires the immediate adoption of eco-friendly antifouling solutions.<\/p>\n

Finsulate provides a solution that prevents both pollution and growth. The concept of using a wrap instead of a paint is revolutionary, however, and it takes time to convince conventional commercial marine business of its effectiveness. Nevertheless, in the area of yachting, Finsulate is already taking off.<\/p>\n

Biofouling<\/h3>\n

Fouling is the process whereby bacteria, microalgae, and subsequent larger organisms such as mussels, barnacles, and seaweeds attach to the hull of a ship. This process can take just weeks or even days in high fouling areas like the Caribbean. In colder water, it normally takes some months for growth to become fully developed, and in cold water during the winter, nothing much happens at all.<\/p>\n

This variety in fouling conditions in addition to the variety in the amount that ships move, makes prevention in all conditions a challenge: fouling mainly occurs when a ship is idle. As such, commercial container vessels that sail 100% of the time are less susceptible to fouling compared to yachts that are idle 95% of the time.<\/p>\n

Pollution<\/h3>\n

Regardless of the conditions, 99% of the vessels and yachts around the world are using toxic antifouling paint. Depending on the sailing conditions and frequency, the paints are more or less successful. All cases have one thing in common, however: the leaching of paint particles and biocides into the oceans.<\/p>\n

The annual consumption of antifouling paint worldwide is over 100 million litres. The purpose of the paint is to dissolve slowly in the water and, as a result, spread biocides that kill all marine life in the surrounding area. Concentrations of copper in the paint can reach 40% for commercial marine vessels. In yachting, the copper concentrations are lower, but they are combined with several persistent organic biocides. Annually, the use of antifouling paint leads to:<\/p>\n