When it rains, it pours. Singapore is one of the countries in Southeast Asia which is greatly affected by torrential rains and flooding in some low-lying areas in its cities. You might probably have noticed those algaes and other microorganisms that are starting to grow from the exterior of your establishment. These are natural phenomena since Singapore is surrounded by a huge body of saltwater at the same time caused by the favorable weather conditions.
However, these elements would impose a great risk in your part particularly to your establishment because being exposed to these harmful elements would result in the deterioration of the materials establishment not only to its exterior but also to its interior.
Did you know you do have a chance to protect your home and properties from these harmful elements with a help of a highly advanced coating and materials that could easily repel almost all kinds of microorganisms at the same time minimizing the effects of corrosion?
We are proud to introduce these called anti-fouling coating and materials.
To understand more about these modern-day wonder products, we must take a quick look back to their origins. Also, learn how it was developed and how it is now applied in most Singaporean establishments.
What Are Anti-fouling Materials?
Throughout history, fouling organisms have pestered under the ships’ hulls.
Although it’s a natural phenomenon, these fouling organisms are causing problems for ship owners, sailors, and captains because not only does it cause the unwanted build up of barnacles and algae on the ship’s exterior but it also weakens the strength of its materials. Thus, it imposes a risk that the water would leak inside of the ship.
Based on a study, the expansion of maritime traffic has increased the use of anti-fouling solutions. The use of heavy metals and copper compounds as anti-fouling agents increased dramatically in the subsequent centuries, particularly in the 19th and 20th centuries.
In 1625, the HMS Alarm was the first ship in the Royal Navy to have a wholly copper hull, which inspired the use of copper on future British Navy ships. However, the copper’s capacity to prevent fouling was soon linked to the fact that it dissolves in water, raising concerns about how long the buckling would last. Due to copper corrosion in metal constructions, the usage of copper cladding decreased when iron ships were introduced in the late 18th century.
Meanwhile, several anti-fouling paints with hazardous chemicals mixed in polymeric materials were developed in the 19th century. These substances, which included resins, shellac-like “hot plastic paint,” and cold plastic paint, included copper oxide, arsenic, and mercury oxide. By extending the dry-docking period to 18 months, these inks demonstrated good efficiency in preventing fouling.
What Are Anti-fouling Coatings?
Nowadays, modern maritime ships’ hulls and propellers are fully coated with anti-fouling paint. They provide a more effective way of minimizing the effects of corrosion to its surface. More than that, they are capable when it comes to eliminating the possible growth of microorganisms. Many industries particularly those in housing and repair see how it could resolve the similar challenges which most homes and other establishments do also have.
Innovations in Anti-fouling Materials
The fast pace of progress in Science and Technology paved a way for the development of highly advanced and efficient anti-fouling materials. As of the moment, there’s a huge demand for these anti-fouling coatings and materials particularly in the housing sector in Singapore.
Interestingly, this progress in anti-fouling coating was made in an article posted by Phys.org. A project called “Green” headed by Swansea scientists developed waterproofing and anti-fouling materials that are said to be less expensive and hazardous. Researchers led by Dr. Shirin Alexander and Professor Andrew Barron shared their findings to the American Chemical Society.
According to the said research, small adjustments to the organic chain allow for the management of surface properties such as wettability, roughness, surface energy, and nanoparticles’ capacity to operate as surface-active agents.
They developed a spray-coated nanomaterial that can provide a superhydrophobic (water-repelling) to a superhydrophilic (water-wetting) surface regardless of its substrate and chemical structure. Moreover, they showed that hydrophobicity may be easily modified depending on the type of chemical functionality. They synthesized aluminium oxide nanoparticles along with hydrocarbon linear and branched carboxylic acids to attain the state of hydrophobicity that is applicable to any given surface.
How Can Anti-fouling Materials Help in the Home’s Interior?
There are some areas in your home or establishment that would take a lot of your effort to clean on a daily basis since they are unreachable like the roof or the interior ceiling. It is why these areas are at all times exposed to numerous kinds of microorganisms and would allow them to grow.
In this case, homeowners are now opting to use anti-fouling materials since it is very versatile to use. Not only it can be used for the purpose of protecting ships but also it can serve as an additional layer of protection for their establishments as it prevents and eliminates any form of microorganism that could possibly grow. One of the best characteristics of anti-fouling – proven based on scientific research- is that it could drastically minimize the effects of corrosion on the materials used in an establishment.
Without a doubt, using anti-fouling materials to your establishment is a win-win situation for the safety of your home but also a win for the environment because it is environmentally-friendly.
M3M: Your Waterproofing Expert
Are you looking for a professional service that can provide you with satisfaction and efficient results when it comes to waterproofing service? Then, M3 Multiservices Pte Ltd is here to help you by not only getting the job done but can instantly provide you with waterproofing service with less hassle to your end.
M3M is one of the leading coating companies based in Singapore which offers their clients professional waterproofing works, such as ceiling waterproofing, roof waterproofing, and painting services including other general contract work for 9 years now.
M3M offers on-site analysis to figure out the solutions that will best suit the needs of your property. If you want M3M for your waterproofing works, contact us.
Having a professional to help you with your waterproofing work would not only guarantee you more efficient results. But, and would be done in a much faster time.