Environmentally Compatible Antifouling Materials Organometallic Polymers

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Abstract
Effective long term antifouling protection for Navy ships and submerged equipments may be realized by the mid 1970's. A novel concept in antifouling technology, Nonfouling Organometallic Polymers have been developed by the Authors at the Naval Ship Research and Development Center, Annapolis, Maryland. The synthesis of these antifouling resins is described herein. Insitu field exposure trials and laboratory studies indicate that organometallic polymers are capable of good antifouling performance while releasing organometallic ions at a rate at least one order of magnitude less than state‐of‐the‐art antifouling coating systems. It is anticipated that the organometallic polymeric antifouling system will improve the longevity of ships' hull coatings to five years, and reduce the pollution attributable to presently used high leaching antifouling coatings. Besides their use as coatings, organometallic polymeric resins have further Navy applications as fouling resistant structural plastics.