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The cargo tanks of the

“M/T Maasstad L,” owned


by SeaChem of Piracus,
Greece, were coated with a
cyclosilicon epoxy for
aggressive and fine
chemical carriage. The
coating gave the ship the
capability to carry cargoes
that normally would have
required stainless steel tanks.
(Photo courtesy of
Advanced Polymer Sciences)
By Norbert Ackermann, Anticorrosion Service, Trieste, Italy

T he internal coating of a ship’s cargo tanks is a com-


mon and necessary way to protect steel surfaces against
more years, the cost of ship lay-off
during repair work is not included.
corrosion, to avoid cargo contamination, and to facilitate This could mean a considerable
cleaning. In product and light chemical carriers, for loss of money to the ship owner.
example, full coating of internal tank surfaces is neces- The first step in a tank coating
sary to avoid corrosion damage and possible cargo conta- job—and the scope of this article—
mination, since a smooth coating facilitates tank cleaning is the correct choice of a coating
between cargoes and helps prevent contamination from system, which depends mainly on
rust or leftover cargo deposits. Therefore, proper tank the type of tanker and the possible
coating is essential for effective and profitable ship cargo range.
management.
Applying coatings in cargo tanks is more complex and Liquid Cargo Tankers
difficult than most other painting operations. For satisfac- Liquid cargo carriers can be
tory and durable results, every step must be carried out divided into four categories: crude
properly, including choice of coating system, planning, oil tankers, product carriers, light
work scheduling, staging, surface preparation, ventila- chemical carriers, and chemical
tion, dehumidification, paint application, inspections, carriers.
water testing (i.e., filling the cargo tanks with sea water
for at least 24 hours to detect possible defective spots in Crude Oil Tankers
the coating), and final touch-up. These vessels usually have a
A faulty coating job or improper cargo handling can dead-weight capacity of more than
shorten the service life of the coating, resulting in expen- 50,000 tonnes and are dedicated to
sive early renewal and lay-off time. Although tank coat- transportation of crude and refined
ing jobs are generally covered by a guarantee of one or oil. They are constructed of carbon
44 PCE April 1998
Copyright ©1998, Technology Publishing Company
steel with specified mechanical Table 1: Coating Systems for Cargo Tanks
properties. If the tanks are coated,
Number of
the coating is usually limited to Surface Preparation Coating System Minimum DFT stripe coats
horizontal surfaces (bottoms and
ceilings), which are more affected ISO 8501-1 Epoxy primer 100 microns 2
by corrosion than other surfaces. Sa 21⁄2 Epoxy undercoat 100 microns
The main causes of fast and dan- Epoxy finish 100 microns
gerous corrosion (pitting), espe-
ISO 8501-1 Epoxy phenolic primer 100 microns 2
cially on bottom areas, are sulphur
Sa 21⁄2 Epoxy phenolic undercoat 100 microns
compounds in cargoes reacting Epoxy phenolic finish 100 microns
with water to form acidic solu-
tions. Hydrogen sulphide may also ISO 8501-1 Epoxy isocyanate primer 90 microns 2
develop and form corrosive water Sa 21⁄2 Epoxy isocyanate undercoat 90 microns
droplets on tank ceilings. In addi- Epoxy isocyanate finish 90 microns

tion, inert gas such as CO2, which


ISO 8501-1 Zinc silicate 80 microns 1
is used to purge empty tanks and Sa 21⁄2
hence avoid explosion hazards,
may contain sulphur compounds. ISO 8501-1 Cyclosilicon epoxy 150 microns 1–2
Sa 21⁄2 Cyclosilicon epoxy 150 microns
Product Carriers
ISO 8501-1, Preparation of Steel Substrates Before Application of Paints and Related Products–Visual Assessment of
These vessels usually have a Surface Cleanliness
dead-weight capacity of less than
50,000 tonnes and are dedicated to capacity, carry refined petroleum ing probably would not withstand
transportation of refined petroleum products as well as aggressive the aggressive chemicals carried.
products. They are constructed of organic chemical products. Light Before entering service, however,
carbon steel, and the tank struc- chemical carriers are required to stainless steel tanks must be thor-
ture is similar to that of crude oil have a double-hull structure and oughly cleaned and passivated in
tankers. All cargo tanks receive a comply with tight regulations order to avoid possible corrosion
chemically resistant coating system regarding tank equipment and problems. Cargo handling and
to protect the steel surfaces from outfitting. For instance, internal tank washing require special care,
corrosion and to prevent cargo piping, if located in the tanks, since the stainless steel is corro-
contamination. In bare steel tanks, must have welded flanges. All sion resistant only if certain condi-
liquid cargo can impregnate rust cargo tanks are protected with a tions are met.
scales and pitted areas. While it chemically resistant coating,
can be impossible to clean these which should fulfill the same Tank Structures
surfaces with pressure water requirements as for product carri- To achieve a safe and mechani-
washing, a smooth-coated surface ers but with a broader resistance cally resistant structure, tankers,
usually requires only high-pressure range. like all vessels, are built with a
washing. Cleaning problems may framework of internal steel rein-
arise with high viscosity cargoes, Chemical Carriers forcement. Depending on the type
and so most product carriers are True chemical carriers are ves- and age of vessel, the framework
outfitted with heating coils, which sels with up to 15,000 tonnes may be located inside cargo tanks
can reduce the viscosity of the dead-weight capacity that carry or ballast tanks.
cargo for easier removal and also aggressive organic products as Figure 1 shows a tank structure
heat water in the tank for better well as certain inorganic acids. with all common reinforcing parts
cleaning. These vessels are required to have designed to provide bulkheads,
a double-hull structure and cargo bottoms, ceilings, and side shells
Light Chemical Carriers tanks made of stainless steel. the required longitudinal, vertical,
These carriers, usually with less Stainless steel cargo tanks should and transverse stiffness.
than 15,000 tonnes dead-weight not be coated, because the coat- Modern tankers have minimal

Copyright ©1998, Technology Publishing Company


PCE April 1998 45
Longitudinal
Longitudinal bulkhead Deck transverse
Upper deck Longitudinal Web frame Deck girder

Deck girder Longitudinal


ing system. Crude vegetable oils,
Stiffener
Main bracket fatty acids, and by-products (fatty
Main bracket Web frame acid distillates and acid oils) may
Side shell pose serious problems for carriage
Transverse bulkhead
Stiffener in coated tanks. Water content
Longitudinal
and loading/unloading tempera-
Stringer
Crosstie tures can make these cargoes even
Web (on bulkhead) more aggressive.
Main bracket

Main bracket
Lube Oils and Additives
Bottom transverse
This group of cargoes (excluding
Bottom shell
halogenated, phosphated, and
Longitudinal
Bottom girder Keel plate
ester types) usually poses no prob-
Bottom girder
lems for carriage in coated cargo
Fig. 1: Structural components of older cargo tanks tanks, but contamination of cargo
may be a problem, requiring thor-
cargo tank structures, since the stock, aviation fuels, heating oils, ough cleaning and drying of tanks
reinforcing framework is placed in etc. These cargoes are not very before loading. These products
ballast tanks, double bottoms, and aggressive, and they usually are usually can be carried in tanks
sometimes on the upper side of shipped in conventional epoxy- coated with conventional epoxy.
the main deck. Figure 2 shows coated tanks. However, some
schematically the structure of a unleaded gasolines may require a How Cargoes Affect
modern double-hull tanker where modified epoxy or zinc silicate Coating Selection
the required reinforcing of bulk- coating system. For the right choice of coating
heads is obtained by using corru- system and proper handling of
gated plates, a design which Solvents and Chemicals cargoes, a basic knowledge of the
makes coating operations much This complex group of liquid chemical properties of the most
easier. cargoes includes alcohols, ketones, common cargoes is advisable,
glycols, esters, ethers, aromatic since the behaviour of products
Liquid Cargoes hydrocarbons, chlorinated hydro- within the same groups of organic
and Cargo Handling carbons, etc. These cargoes vary compounds may vary to a great
Crude Oil from mild to very aggressive. They extent. For instance, methanol will
Raw crude oil is pumped directly are shipped in tanks coated with soften most organic coatings, but
from a holding tank into a ship’s epoxy, modified epoxy, and zinc alcohols with higher molecular
cargo tanks. It varies widely in silicate. Some of these products weight are far less aggressive.
chemical composition, sulphur, require extreme care in the choice In most groups of organic com-
and water content. Depending on of coating and cargo handling. pounds (i.e., alcohols, esters,
its chemical composition, the pre- ketones, etc.), individual com-
vailing components of crude oil Vegetable and Animal Oils pounds differ in their effect on
are naphthenic, paraffinic, or aro- Vegetable and animal oils may coatings. Compounds of lower
matic hydrocarbons. Crude oils are vary in composition. The most molecular weight usually are more
carried in bare steel tanks and important factor is their free fatty aggressive than their higher homo-
tanks coated with epoxy coal tar acid content, which greatly affects logues. For instance, pure epoxy
or epoxy paints. the suitability of coatings. Refined coatings are not suitable for long-
vegetable oils with low acid value term contact with acetone, other
White Oil are usually acceptable for carriage lower ketones (e.g., methyl ethyl
This group of liquid cargoes con- in conventional epoxy-coated ketone), or the lower esters such
sists mainly of aliphatic hydrocar- tanks. Those with a higher acid as methylacetate. They are, how-
bon products and includes gaso- value are more aggressive and ever, suitable for higher homo-
line, diesel oils, kerosene, virgin may require a more resistant coat- logues such as methyl isobutyl
46 PCE April 1998
Copyright ©1998, Technology Publishing Company
ketone and dibutylphalate. due to osmosis may occur. trade: vinyls, polyesters, epoxies,
This difference in behaviour Zinc silicate coatings are based epoxy phenolics, epoxy iso-
toward coatings depends mainly on inorganic binders and, there- cyanates, polyurethanes, alkaline
on the steric hindrance (three- fore, they have none of these dis- zinc silicates, and ethyl zinc sili-
dimensional structure) of individ- advantages. They are very resis- cates.
ual molecules. It is easier for tant to strong solvents but, on the Some of these coating materials
smaller molecules to penetrate the other hand, very sensitive to the have stopped being used for tank
polymeric structures, solvating or acidity (below pH 6) and alkalinity linings. Vinyls, being thermoplas-
encapsulating the polymer chains (above pH 9) of cargoes. For this tic, had limited solvent resistance.
in solvent. Steric hindrance also reason, they are not suitable for Glass-reinforced polyesters, used
depends on the number of chain cargoes such as most vegetable for transportation of acid cargoes,
branches. Linear chains have more oils, highly alkaline crude oils, were replaced by stainless steel
penetrating power than chains caustic alkalines, etc. Furthermore, tanks. Polyurethanes, loudly adver-
with lateral branches. hydrolisable cargoes such as esters tised in the 1980s for their wide
Other factors influencing the sol- and chlorinated hydrocarbons resistance to different types of car-
vent power of non-hydrocarbon must be carried dry in perfectly goes, showed some application
compounds on polymers are func- problems and unsatisfactory resis-
tional groups (such as –OH for tance to ballast water.
alcohols, –NH2 for amines, –O– Today’s state-of-the-art coatings
for ethers, etc.), polarity of mole- basically fall into the following cat-
cules, and hydrogen bonds. egories: pure epoxy, epoxy pheno-
All of today’s organic coatings lic, epoxy isocyanate, alkaline zinc
for cargo tanks are two-component silicate, ethyl zinc silicate, and
types, resulting in a chemically cyclosilicon epoxy. Typical systems
crosslinked film that cannot be Fig. 2: Transverse section of a modern based on these coatings are shown
redissolved. However, strong sol- double-hull tanker in Table 1.
vents can soften cured coatings,
causing swelling and, in some dry tanks. Pure Epoxies
cases, even scaling from the sub- Proper cargo handling is not Pure epoxy coatings are based on
strate. For instance, methylene always an easy task. Although bisphenol A/epichlorhydrin resins
chloride is such a strong solvent paint manufacturers furnish resis- reacting, through their terminal
for organic coatings that it is used tance lists for their tank coating epoxide (oxirane) groups, with hard-
as a paint remover. Therefore, it systems, some resistance lists eners having polyfunctional –NH2
should not be carried in tanks may contain up to 4,000 sea-trade groups (polyamines or polyamides).
coated with organic coatings. products. These lists must be Chemical resistance and mechani-
An additional factor affecting consulted for each cargo. More cal properties of epoxy coatings may
coating suitability is the water sol- aggressive cargoes are marked vary to a great extent, depending on
ubility of solvents. Most organic with one or more restriction nota- the formulation of individual paints.
coatings used for cargo tank pro- tions, which must be read and Factors influencing these properties
tection can tolerate a certain understood in order to avoid mis- are the molecular weight of resins,
degree of softening from solvent takes. Failing to comply with the type of hardener, and, to a lesser
absorption, provided they are restrictions or cargo handling degree, pigmentation and solvent
given sufficient time for the instructions may cause severe mixture.
absorbed solvent to evaporate and damage to coatings. Low molecular weight epoxy
to regain their original hardness. resins result in coating films with a
However, if the retained solvent is Protective Coatings higher density of three-dimensional
water-soluble and tanks are for Cargo Tanks crosslinkings as well as a lower
washed with water or loaded with During the last 30 years, several number of hydroxyl groups.
an aqueous cargo before the film types of coatings have been used Therefore, low molecular weight
has completely dried, blistering for tank lining service in the sea epoxy resins offer better chemical

Copyright ©1998, Technology Publishing Company


PCE April 1998 47
and water resistance than medium C for about one week to reach vents, and they may be sensitive
molecular weight epoxy resins, their full resistance range. to overthickness. A coating system
which, on the other hand, offer Chemical resistance of heat- with a DFT of more than 700–800
better mechanical resistance and cured epoxy phenolics against microns, which may occur in criti-
flexibility. strong solvents and fatty acids is cal areas such as angular welding
Amine hardeners confer good better than pure epoxies. From a seams on bottoms and ceilings,
chemical resistance on epoxy coat- practical point of view, however, may cause cracking through the
ings, while polyamide-cured epox- heat post-curing poses several whole coating film. Usually this
ies show more surface tolerance problems. To keep the cargo tanks phenomenon appears only after a
and better mechanical properties. at the required temperature, they salt water test and cannot be
For tank linings, polyamine hard- must be loaded with an inert detected during application.
eners are preferred because of cargo (e.g., lube oil) and heated
their superior solvent resistance. with heating coils. This procedure Epoxy Isocyanates
This resistance is also related to is usually insufficient to reach Higher molecular weight epoxy
the type of polyamine hardeners, 50–60 C in areas such as deck- resins can be crosslinked with
which are mostly aliphatic heads and external bulkheads, polyisocyanate compounds. This
polyamine adducts. requiring the use of auxiliary reaction occurs at room tempera-
Epoxy coatings are the most heaters in the double-skin com- ture, and the isocyanate reacts
widely used linings for cargo tanks partments as well as the construc- with the hydroxyl groups of the
because of their versatility, resis- tion and heating of provisional air epoxy resin. A densely crosslinked
tance range, and application prop- casings (void spaces made of stag- (epoxy urethane linkage) structure
erties. A properly formulated pure ing and tarp into which hot air is with excellent chemical resistance
epoxy coating can be applied by blown) on the deck areas above is obtained. Overcoating intervals
airless spraying at medium to high tank ceilings. Besides being expen- are similar to those of epoxy
dry film thickness (DFT) without sive and time consuming, heat phenolics.
sagging, with little overspray, and post-curing is subject to some Cured epoxy isocyanates offer a
without problems such as cracking risk, since it is quite difficult to resistance range similar to heat-
or pinholing. However, maximum ensure that all tank areas are kept cured epoxy phenolics, the only
overcoating intervals are relatively constantly and uniformly at the exception being alkaline cargoes,
short (three to five days), requir- required temperature for long which can be carried only at lower
ing a tight application schedule, periods. concentrations. Most cargoes can
and chemical resistance to strong Without heat treatment, the be carried after a curing time of 10
solvents is limited. Pure epoxies, chemical resistance of epoxy phe- days. Very aggressive products
for instance, are not recommended nolics improves after a service such as methanol can be carried
for transportation of methanol, time of at least three months if after a three-month service period.
ethanol, methyl ethyl ketone, or only moderately aggressive car- No heat post-curing is required.
some unleaded gasolines. goes are carried, but it does not On the other hand, epoxy iso-
acquire the full resistance range of cyanates are more difficult to
Epoxy Phenolics heat-cured coatings. In this case, apply than pure epoxies or epoxy
Epoxy phenolics are multifunc- carriage of products such as phenolics, or they at least have
tional epoxy resins, such as epoxy methanol and ethanol is not rec- more critical application proper-
phenol novolacs, prepared by the ommended. ties. For instance, due to their
epoxidation of phenolic resins Properly formulated epoxy phe- strong solvents, overspray may be
with epichlorhydrin. Aliphatic nolic coatings have application a problem. Also, epoxy iso-
amine-cured resins of this type properties similar to pure epoxies cyanates are very sensitive to
result in polymers with very high but usually longer overcoating overthickness.
crosslink density and, therefore, times, making recoating less criti- While, unlike epoxy phenolics,
outstanding chemical resistance. cal. On the other hand, they may the DFT of the whole system is
However, most epoxy phenolic create more overspray due to their usually not significant, too heavy
coatings require heating to 50–60 stronger (faster evaporating) sol- single coats can crack at 150–180
48 PCE April 1998
Copyright ©1998, Technology Publishing Company
microns DFT. In most cases, the these inorganic silicates is very and moisture. The carbonic acid,
cracking after drying can be different from organic compounds when penetrating the coating film,
detected by the naked eye, such as epoxies, since curing reacts with free zinc particles,
although sometimes it is visible occurs by a reaction between the completing the formation of a
only with a magnifying lens. The pigment (zinc powder) and the dense zinc silicate matrix. Contact
cracking usually does not split the binder (silica gel). The binder is with ballast (sea) water con-
whole coating film. Therefore, it supposed to react also with the tributes to this reaction, forming
will not result in rusty spots dur- steel substrate, forming a chemical zinc hydroxide. When this reac-
ing a salt water test. Unrepaired bond that results in outstanding tion is completed, a very hard and
cracks, however, will propagate adhesion. This chemical bonding dense coating film has formed.
during cargo service and cause to steel surfaces avoids undercut- The first alkaline zinc silicates
rusting and/or scaling of the ting, which can occur on sub- had to be post-cured by spraying
coating. strates protected with organic an acid solution on the coating
Areas usually affected by crack- coatings because their adhesion is surface. These types of inorganic
ing are angular welding seams created mainly by physical forces. zinc silicates had a silica to alkali
and corroded spots (pitting). The curing mechanism of inor- ratio of about 2:1, providing an
Stripe-coated areas, if overcoated ganic zinc silicates is very com- insufficient amount of free silicic
before completely dry, can cause plex. Today, only self-curing zinc acid for self-curing. Today’s self-
cracking or blistering. To eliminate silicates are used as linings for curing zinc silicates have ratios
this problem, each coat must be cargo tanks, and the polymerisa- from 3:1–5:1. The higher the sili-
inspected for cracking, and defec- tion is supposed to occur in three ca-to-alkali ratio, the faster the
tive areas must be repaired by stages: curing reaction occurs once the
sanding and touch-up painting. 1. Initial reaction involves con- water has evaporated. The curing
Paint defects such as sagging and centration of the components by speed also depends on the type of
orange peel must also be eliminat- water evaporation. This brings the alkaline metal, with lithium sili-
ed, because they are nearly always zinc and the silica gel into close cates offering the earliest insolu-
associated with cracking. contact, providing a moist coating bilisation. Fast curing has some
These application problems, on the substrate. During this advantages, since insolubilisation
besides the well known health stage, wetting agents in the paint and metallic hardness occur with-
problems of isocyanates, are the enhance contact of the coating in a few hours, but it can cause
main reasons for the reduced film with the steel surface. frequent plugging of the spray gun
usage of epoxy isocyanates. 2. During the second stage, nozzle. Fast-curing inorganic zinc
However, if they are used anyway, which occurs shortly after applica- silicates are advantageous for
epoxy isocyanates offer an excel- tion, insolubilisation of the coating application on outside structures,
lent tank coating system for film, caused by the reaction of zinc while zinc silicates with medium
aggressive cargoes, especially in ions with the silicic acid, forms the curing speed are preferable for
the case of newbuildings. When initial zinc silicate. After this reac- cargo tanks.
considering repainting of in-ser- tion, a solid, insoluble coating on Another important factor influ-
vice ships, epoxy isocyanates the metal substrate has formed. encing the curing characteristics
might not be recommended if the This coating has nearly the full of alkaline zinc silicates is the
tank plates are already heavily range of chemical resistance. zinc dust grade. Suitable zinc
corroded, since it may be difficult Mechanical resistance is acceptable powder should have a main parti-
to avoid overthickness on pitted but not complete, and the coating cle range from 6–10 microns. Finer
areas. film has a porous structure subject particle mixtures are less suitable,
to water diffusion. since they may cause sagging or
Alkaline Zinc Silicates 3. The third stage of the reac- cracking at low DFT.
Alkaline zinc silicates may be tion occurs over a long period of The corrosion resistance of inor-
composed of water-dissolved sodi- time, usually several months, and ganic zinc silicates is related to
um silicate, potassium silicate, or requires the action of carbonic the percentage by weight of zinc
lithium silicate. The chemistry of acid formed by carbon dioxide in the dried film. Top grade zinc

Copyright ©1998, Technology Publishing Company


PCE April 1998 49
silicates contain more than 90% sequent coats. with nearly full chemical resis-
zinc. Hence, the application of inor- tance and acceptable mechanical
Small amounts of additional pig- ganic zinc silicate coatings in resistance has formed.
ments such as iron oxide or cargo tanks requires a contractor 3. In the third stage, the polysil-
chromium oxide are also used to with specialised equipment as well ic acid further polymerises, react-
change the colour from the light as operators and coating inspec- ing with the zinc particles until a
grey of zinc. This helps a lot when tors familiar with this type of dense and hard coating film has
spraying and inspecting the coat- material. However, if the coating is formed. Carbonic acid and ballast
ing, since the abrasive-blasted sur- applied properly, it provides a sea water may also react with the
face is also grey. For application in tank lining with outstanding corro- zinc particles, creating an even
cargo tanks, coloured zinc silicates sion protection, superior solvent denser zinc silicate matrix. The
make avoiding holidays and stripe resistance, and excellent mechani- final chemical and mechanical
coat defects much easier. cal resistance. The duration may properties are essentially the same
Application of alkaline zinc sili- equal the service life of the tanker, as those of water-borne zinc sili-
cates is more difficult than that of compared to a duration of 10–15 cate coatings.
organic coatings for the following years for organic coatings. Possible The application procedure of
reasons. disadvantages are unsuitability to organic zinc silicates differs in
• Because of their high content cargoes with a pH lower than 6 some steps from that of inorganic
of metallic zinc powder, alkaline and higher than 9 as well as the zinc silicates.
zinc silicates cannot be applied by risk of contamination when trans- • Application can be carried out
airless spraying but only with low- porting sensitive products such as by airless spraying, since organic
pressure air spray equipment. aircraft fuels. zinc silicates have a lower content
Hence, the application rate is of zinc powder.
lower and specialised sprayers are Ethyl Zinc Silicates • Dehumidification and ventilation
needed. Ethyl zinc silicates are solvent- conditions during the drying and
• Dehumidification and ventila- borne paints consisting of ethyl curing period are far less critical
tion during the drying and curing silicate and zinc powder. To be than for water-borne zinc silicates.
periods (stages 1 and 2) are criti- self-curing, the silicate binder However, the relative humidity of
cal. If dead air pockets due to poor must be partially hydrolysed. the tank should not fall below
air circulation occur in the tank Essentially, the curing reaction is 60%, because otherwise insuffi-
during this period, the coating will similar to the reaction that occurs cient moisture for curing is avail-
not “metallise” in those areas. in water-borne, self-curing prod- able. Areas where the coating has
Once the maximum drying time ucts. not metallised can be cured by
has expired without proper curing, 1. During the initial reaction, raising the relative humidity or by
the reaction cannot be resumed, solvent evaporation occurs, bring- spraying atomised water.
and reblasting is required. ing the zinc particles and the sili- • A serious problem with ethyl
• Inorganic zinc silicates are cate into close contact and form- zinc silicate coatings is the diffi-
sensitive to overthickness. ing a loose coating film on the culty of respraying low DFT areas,
Depending on the formulation, a steel substrate. since intercoat adhesion problems
single coat may start cracking at a 2. Shortly after application of may occur. Once curing has taken
DFT from 150–250 microns. the coating, moisture from the air place, a second coat of ethyl zinc
However, cracking is usually continues to hydrolyse the organic silicate will not always react prop-
macroscopic (mud cracking) and silicate, freeing more silicic acid, erly with the first coat. This fact
can be easily detected and which reacts with the zinc parti- may also cause stripe coat adhe-
repaired. cles and the steel substrate. sion problems. These problems do
• Inorganic zinc silicates are Organic zinc silicates show a not exist with water-borne zinc sil-
applied in a single coat at 75–125 faster resistance to water and to icates.
microns DFT and one stripe coat solvents than their inorganic coun- Inorganic and ethyl zinc silicate
only. Therefore, possible coating terparts. After completion of the coatings were very popular as
defects are not readjusted by sub- second reaction, a coating film tank linings until the end of the
50 PCE April 1998
Copyright ©1998, Technology Publishing Company
C for at least eight hours with hot
air or steam is necessary.
Moreover, the coating system is
sensitive to overthickness.
Maximum DFT should not exceed
500 microns because of the risk of
solvent entrapment or cracking.
Overthickness could be a problem
when recoating older tankers with
corroded structures, since it may
be difficult to avoid a DFT of more
than 500 microns on pitted areas.
Another disadvantage is the need
of a heating device for possible
touch-up repairs during service.
The first cargo tanks were coat-
ed with cyclosilicon epoxy systems
in 1993. To date, about 30 tankers,
An inspector checks a center cargo tank in the “M/V Dzintari” owned by Latvian Shipping of mainly for the methanol trade,
Riga, Latvia. Cyclosilicon epoxy was used on all cargo tanks and pipes of this vessel, which
have been coated. The results are
was converted from a product carrier to a chemical carrier.
(Photo courtesy of Advanced Polymer Sciences) said to be very satisfactory with
some minor exceptions.
1970s. Today, their market share is strong primary chemical bonds
greatly reduced, since most ship makes the resin impervious to References
owners prefer tank linings that are penetration by the most aggressive 1. “A Coat for All Seasons,”
suitable for carrying vegetable oil solvents and resistant to acid and Hazardous Cargo Bulletin,
as well as aviation fuel without alkaline attack. Cyclosilicon coat- December 1995.
contaminating the cargo. (Both ings are said by their manufactur- 2. “Tank Coating for Chemical
inorganic and ethyl zinc silicates ers to resist, without restrictions, Carriers,” Shipping World &
pose the risk of contamination 98% of all common sea-trade car- Shipbuilder, October 1995.
from the zinc.) goes, including products unsuit- 3. E. Marcussen, “Protective
able for stainless steel, and to Coating for Ship and Shore Tanks
Cyclosilicon Epoxies have very low adsorption values. for Methanol and Other
These coatings are based on a As a result, they offer significant Petrochemicals,” World Methanol
completely new resin, which is advantages over conventional Conference, 1985, Amsterdam.
essentially a cyclic silicon struc- coatings regarding cargo range, 4. C.G. Munger, “VOC-Compliant
ture with five phenol glycidyl cargo handling, and tank cleaning Inorganic Zinc Coatings,”
ether groups (epoxidised phenol operations, especially in the case Materials Performance, October
groups) that are cured by means of light chemical tankers. 1990.
of a catalyst to give a highly The coating is furnished as a 5. Clive H. Hare. Protective
crosslinked homopolymer. two-component paint. It can be Coatings: Fundamentals of
Polymerisation occurs through applied like a conventional organic Chemistry and Composition.
etherification of the epoxy groups, coating with partial curing taking Pittsburgh, PA, USA: Technology
resulting—after curing—in strong place at room temperature. Publishing Company, 1994.
ether (oxygen to carbon) linkages Maximum overcoating time is lim- 6. C.G. Munger, Corrosion
without hydroxyl or ester groups, ited to four to five days at 20 C. A Prevention by Protective Coatings.
which are subject to acid attack or two-coat system with one or two Houston, TX, USA: NACE
hydrolysis. stripe coats usually is specified. International.
The combination of a very However, for the full chemical
densely crosslinked structure and resistance range, heat curing at 80

Copyright ©1998, Technology Publishing Company


PCE April 1998 51

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