MISSION CRITICAL PROJECT No. 10:
In July 2005, Warren Epoxy was applied to provide Corrosion Protection Rehabilitation to a Third Deck wing wall Ballast Tank. The tank’s inboard bulkhead was the well deck wing wall and the outboard bulkhead was the hull. The tank is located below the Ship’s laundry. There are ballast tanks located below the tank (5-121-1-W and 5-125-1-W). The tank is filled by the ship’s Salt Water Fire Main System and empties by way of a ballast valve.
Warren Epoxy is considered by the US Navy to be a Rapid Cure Single Coat Qualified Product. It has successfully passed the US Navy’s laboratory qualification process and shipboard in-service performance requirements in accordance with military specification MIL-PRF-23236, titled “Performance Specification, Coating Systems for Ship Structures”.
Furthermore, Warren Epoxy is also a Certified Coating Product by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) for application in their ABS approved Ships and Facilities.
PRODUCT APPLICATION:
The coating and surface preparation work took place during a scheduled maintenance and repair availability, also known as a Docked Phased Maintenance Availability (DPMA) at US Navy’s Norfolk, Virginia ship repair yard.
Requirements for the surface preparation work item were in accordance with the appropriate seawater ballast tank and potable water tank preservation requirements of the CORE PPI (rev 16) and NAVSEA Standard Item 009-32.
These requirements included:
- Initial cleaning and pressure wash to remove loose contaminants.
- Dehumidification was maintained throughout the surface preparation and coating application activities.
- Abrasive blasting for the establishment of a sharp angle surface profile, old coating and rust removal, was performed in accordance with Steel Structures Painting Council (SSPC) SP-10, Near White Metal.
- Ensured that conductivity levels were below 30 microSiemens/cm2.
- Removal of Chloride contamination.
After the surface preparation activity was completed, the Warren Epoxy coating was applied with plural component spray equipment; some localized areas were touched-up and stripe coated with brush and roller. All QA/QC inspections and testing were performed during the entire surface preparation and coating application activities.
CONCLUSIONS:
Warren Epoxy met the US Navy’s stringent requirement of a durable, technologically advanced and proven solvent free 100% solid epoxy for improved materials and process aimed at reducing maintenance and operating costs, repairs down time, and extending useful service life.
Furthermore, Warren Epoxy coating was inspected in March 2013 and after 7.5 years of service, it was found to be in Excellent Condition! and on-track for an expected long term service life.
