Page 58: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (September 1999)

Ship Maintenance & Safety Products

Coatings Put To Test To Keep Ships Cool

Every Sailor who has made a deploy- deployments are made to high-tempera- To help lessen the load on shipboard ment to the Persian Gulf can agree on ture areas. Sustained operations in sear- cooling systems, NAVSEA's Corrosion one thing: it's blistering hot. At least ing weather increase stress on both Control Division (SEA 03M) is testing a two out of every three Navy ship equipment and crew. new derivative of the anti-stain paints

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Images courtesy Avondale Industries, Inc., New

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Intergraph and the Intergraph logo are registered trademarks of Intergraph Corporation. Other brands and product names are trademarks of their respective owners. Copyright 1998 Intergraph Corporation, Huntsville, AL 35894-0001. MC980373 56 Circle 271 on Reader Service Card already being tested by the Navy—an anti-stain paint that also absorbs fewer of the sun's rays. This special charac- teristic is known as Low Solar Absorp- tion (LSA).

This coating incorporates LSA and anti-stain properties into the standard topside paint formulation, and is applied in the same manner as the old paint sys- tem. The LSA coating is expected to result in interior temperature reductions of at least 10 degrees Fahrenheit. The

LSA coating will also help reduce ambi- ent exterior temperatures by reducing solar absorption.

USS Fletcher (DD 992), undergoing a maintenance availability at the Pearl

Harbor Naval Shipyard, is the first ship to receive the entire LSA paint pack- age—-stem to stern, freeboard to super- structure, and decks. The package con- sists of two different LSA coatings: an anti-stain coating for freeboard and superstructure and a non-skid coating for decks. USS Fletcher leaves the ship- yard in a late summer/early fall time- frame.

To quantify any temperature reduction achieved as a result of the LSA coating, temperature sensors were placed throughout USS Fletcher before paint- ing began. Initial readings from the sen- sors were recorded and sent to the Naval

Research Lab (NRL). Readings will be taken again after LSA coating applica- tion is completed, and will be taken reg- ularly thereafter to provide NRL mean- ingful data with which to perform an analysis.

The LSA coating also has anti-stain properties. Anti-stain coatings use chelating technology to avoid staining.

A chelating additive chemically trans- forms rust into a transparent film — in effect removing the reddish stain.

The LSA coating will lessen the load on shipboard cooling systems while improving working and living condi- tions aboard ship.

In addition, fewer hours will be required for topside paint preservation, easing the "chipping and painting" bur- den on the ship's crew. At the same time, the ship's operating systems will be able to function more efficiently, even in high-temperature zones.

Once the temperature reduction data from USS Fletcher is validated,

NAVSEA's Corrosion Control Division will begin immediate delivery of the

LSA paint package to the rest of the

Fleet. LSA technology is part of the

Capital Investment for Labor (SEA

LABOR) program, which is a series of initiatives to reduce maintenance work- load through superior products and technology. by Richard Parks, Director,

NAVSEA's Corrosion Control Division

Maritime Reporter/Engineering News