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Proactive Cleaning, Maintenance and Inspection of Vessel Hulls Via Autonomous Robots

Prevention of corrosion on submerged surfaces, particularly ship’s hulls, is a challenging process. Beyond the corrosive effects of seawater, biofouling will start to accumulate, and if left unchecked, can potentially damage the coating reducing its anti-corrosive properties. In stationery applications, the biofouling may be of little immediate significance, but in the case of vessels, biofouling will greatly increase hull resistance, leading to reduced speed, greater fuel consumption and emissions, as well as enabling the transfer of alien species as the vessels travel the globe.

Product Number: 51323-19315-SG
Author: Karl Lander
Publication Date: 2023
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Corrosion monitoring of submerged surfaces is a challenging task at best. Besides being underwater, these surfaces are often covered in biofouling, preventing simple visual inspection. The biofouling itself, and the removal of the biofouling can damage the protective coatings, increasing the risk of corrosion. This paper will explore how a small autonomous robot can be used to proactively remove early-stage biofouling from a surface, ensuring the coating system remains intact, while simultaneously providing valuable visual inspection data. The paper will include results from the proactive cleaning of multiple vessels, as well as the long-term cleaning of test fixtures in high fouling pressure environments, as well as discuss the multiple benefits of maintaining a clean surface across different applications. Further, the paper will provide an overview of the technology enabling the autonomous capabilities as well as introduce potential future avenues for expansion of the technology throughout the subsea market

Corrosion monitoring of submerged surfaces is a challenging task at best. Besides being underwater, these surfaces are often covered in biofouling, preventing simple visual inspection. The biofouling itself, and the removal of the biofouling can damage the protective coatings, increasing the risk of corrosion. This paper will explore how a small autonomous robot can be used to proactively remove early-stage biofouling from a surface, ensuring the coating system remains intact, while simultaneously providing valuable visual inspection data. The paper will include results from the proactive cleaning of multiple vessels, as well as the long-term cleaning of test fixtures in high fouling pressure environments, as well as discuss the multiple benefits of maintaining a clean surface across different applications. Further, the paper will provide an overview of the technology enabling the autonomous capabilities as well as introduce potential future avenues for expansion of the technology throughout the subsea market