MOL Tests Environment-Friendly Antifouling Treatment on Ferries

Logistics Insight Asia - Technology & Market Trends, 16/7/2008

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines recently announced that its Technology Research Center has successfully completed tests of a water-based antifouling treatment technology called Water Coat on six ferries. The test was a joint project with MOL Group company M.O. Engineering Co., Ltd. and NM Corporation Watercoat enterprise.

Water Coat has already been widely adopted on buildings, automobiles, electric railcars, and so on. However, this is the first time that it has been used on large-scale vessels. And, this is the world�fs first as the case to adopt the water-based antifouling treatment technology to large-scale vessels.

Characteristics of Water Coat:

· The function is semi-permanent after application with a high-pressure washer.
· There is no alligatoring or streaking because it is not a continuous coating
· Environment-friendly ingredients
· It reduces cleaning and coating frequencies and eliminates the need to clean with detergent, etc., reducing water consumption and the overall environmental burden.
· The coating reflects ultraviolet rays and increases weather resistance.

How Water Coat Works
The system, developed by the University of Fukui and NM in an industry-academic project, utilizes the characteristics of a special ceramic containing about 10 kinds of minerals found in nature to apply electrolysis to water, and uses that mechanism to produce a coating on the concave-convex surfaces of a target object, using the principle of electrolysis.

This coating technology is completely different from conventional chemical coatings including fluoride and silicon resin. It electrodeposits 100% inorganic glass ingredients (boric acid silica) to the molecules of a target object, crystallizing them by carbon dioxide in the air. The aggregation of crystallized glass molecules becomes the coating and covers the target molecules. This prevents fouling over a prolonged period of time.

Test Results
Period: June 2007 to May 2008
Test Vessels: Sunflower Gold, Sunflower Pearl, Sunflower Sapporo, Sunflower Daisetsu, Sunflower Furano, Sunflower Shiretoko
Test method: Applied Water Coat on windows of guests rooms, common bath, and restaurant, and conducted follow-up observation
Results of observation: Effects of cleaning by rain water and antifouling effects were apparent on surfaces exposed to rain. The tests also showed that it was easy to rinse away dirt on glass not exposed to rainfall. In this way, Water Coat also contributes to more enjoyable travel for ferry passengers.

Looking Ahead
MOL will promote the adoption of this coating on MOL Group ferries and cruise ships based on the results of this test. The company will also study Water Coat’s effectiveness as a hull antifouling method to reduce water resistance.

Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, www.mol.co.jp