Increased demand for APC coatings in tanker refurbishment projects
More ship owners are said to be turning to MarineLine as an in-service tank coating solution for refurbishing product and chemical tankers.
W
hile Advanced Polymer Coatings (APC)‘s MarineLine 784 is already widely used on
newbuilding chemical and product tankers, with 60 coating projects planned for 2011 alone, at yards in Turkey, China and Korea, the Ohio-based company says the re-coating market is seeing a strong upturn in interest as well. Donald Keehan, APC Chairman, reveals
the company has launched a new pricing structure that makes the coating comparable in cost to conventional phenolic epoxies. “Now, ship owners, especially those in the product tanker market, can specify a better performing and more versatile tank coating while keeping their retrofit costs down,” he claimed.
More owners are opting to remove older conventional coatings from cargo tanks and upgrade them with the MarineLine 784 lining system, claims APC.
The initiative is expected to benefit
owners as they refurbish older product tankers to carry certain types of cargoes
such as biofuels, a sector of the market that is growing at an estimated 15% annually. “The problem with carrying biofuels is they are extremely corrosive in nature which can break down conventional tank coatings,” said Mr Keehan. “MarineLine’s unique corrosion-resistant coating however uses a tightly knit, cross-linked organic-inorganic polymer structure to create a nearly impermeable barrier, which can resist attack from aggressive cargoes such as biofuels.” Other key benefits cited by APC
include ease of cleaning and a reduction in the amount of cleaning chemicals needed. Furthermore,
the coating
can ensure a fast turnaround in port following cleaning. SCRT
Shiprepair and Conversion Technology 1st Quarter 2011
41
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