APC claims that the complex cross-linking of its tank coatings save time in port and reduce the risk of disputes.

Since entering the marine market just 13 years ago, Ohio-based Advanced Polymer Coatings Ltd (APC) has established a strong presence at the premium end of the chemicals tank coating business. Now, demand for its patented MarineLine tank lining systems on board new chemical carriers and in the upgrade of existing ones is such that APC is doubling its US production facilities, thereby enabling it to triple its plant’s output.

“Yes,” says APC Chairman Donald Keehan, “APC is a polymers company first and foremost, and not a paint manufacturer.” He is explaining why the company has a different approach to the protection of tanks used for aggressive chemicals as compared to other coatings producers. The company’s MarineLine is suitable for all IMO cargoes and is proving increasingly popular as a tank coating option both on board newsbuildings and as an upgrade for existing vessels.

The extent to which tank coatings absorb chemicals is largely a function of cross-linking – the higher the degree of cross-linking, the more effective the coating. By way of explanation, Keehan likens traditional epoxies to chicken wire – it won’t stop insects – and MarineLine to mosquito netting – which will.

“If you visually shrink this down to the fine micron size of the coating,” he explains, “you will realize that MarineLine has an extremely tight-knit structure. Also, we’re talking here about screens that are two-dimensional. However, MarineLine is three-dimensional making it even more impermeable.”

A typical epoxy coating has four cross-links as compared with APC’s original MarineLine coating which had 25 cross-links in the same area. Later, the company introduced MarineLine 784, with 784 cross-links. Now it is researching another polymer structure that is already under test. It will have 12,110 cross-links. Says

Keehan: “This new generation of patented polymers will be a major story in the coming years, with their incredible tight-knit structures.”
Keehan has noted that owners are prepared to pay more for coatings that perform as expected and, or course, reduce the risk of costly and time-consuming guarantee and cargo claims. They save on operating costs, he says, by facilitating faster cleaning and reducing the use of cleaning agents thus cutting time in port and potential damage to the environment. “These are all factors that impact bottom line profit,” he says, “plus ship owners don’t need to use stainless steel tanks which can be a tremendous saving on the front end as well.”

Tests designed to compare MarineLine with stainless steel showed that its non-absorption surface clearly demonstrated superior performance. Keehan explains the test results which, he says, surprised the Association for International Trading in Oils, Fats and Oilseeds – FOFSA – which provides contracts for the carriage of cargoes and arbitration services in the event of disputes. The tests started with 90 days’ immersion in separate tanks containing both ethylene dichloride and styrene, followed by a hot salt water wash and then fresh water cleaning. Then the tanks were immersed again, this time in edible oil.

“After testing, the stainless steel showed high levels of contamination,” Keehan says, “while MarineLine had no contamination at all.”

Certainly, APC can claim significant success recently. On the repair side, Keehan points to a major contract with IMC subsidiary, Aurora Tankers. This deal involves the upgrade of existing coatings on board 12 existing 45,000 dwt in the Aurora Tanker fleet, representing an area of some 700,000 m2. The coating upgrades are being carried out as other repair work becomes necessary on board the vessels and is expected to last until 2008.

Meanwhile, the company is providing tank coatings for a growing number of new ships. One major breakthrough was a deal with Maersk. After lengthy discussions with the company’s technical and business groups to demonstrate the properties of MarineLine and its possible benefits to the Danish company’s operating efficiency, Maersk opted to used MarineLine on board a series of six, option three 16,400 dwt under construction at Jiangnan Shipyard in China. MarineLine is being used to coat 14 tanks and two slop tanks.

Earlier, MarineLine had been used at the same yard aboard the Stena Baltic, also of 16,400 dwt, owned by Norway’s Rederiet Stenersen, the first in a series of up to five sister ships to have MarineLine coatings in their tanks. MarineLine was used aboard 46 ships in 2006, with its 100th vessel, the 7,000 dwt Pakri Victory, coated in Turkey at eh Eregli Shipyard on the Black Sea for owner MedMarine.