The selection, application and maintenance of outer hull coatings are an essential component of sustainable shipping and the efficient operation of ships. Mismanagement of these systems will result in increased hull roughness, fouling, fuel consumption, exhaust emissions, costs and the transport of invasive species. The commercially mature systems may be broadly divided into biocide based copper and copper free coatings, biocide free silicone fouling release technologies and inert hard coatings combined with underwater cleaning. These systems are performing remarkably well; however, there is no universal system that works satisfactorily under all operational conditions and improvements are still required to qualify as truly environmentally sustainable.
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