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Marine Epoxy REMOVAL TESTS

We compared the effectiveness of DUSTLESS BLASTING® to traditional sandblasting for marine maintenance & repair.

MARINE CUSTOMER SHIPYARD 2

Overview

The owner of a prominent marine repair shipyard on the Mexican Pacific coast has significant productivity concerns due to the dust production from their current dry blasting processes.

At their request, we embarked on a series of experiments in order to quantify exactly the benefits of upgrading their shipyard's dry sandblasting equipment to DUSTLESS BLASTING® equipment. 

We began by recreating the exact conditions of the marine coatings they employ at our facility in Houston.

MARINE CUSTOMER SHIPYARD 1
SHIPYARD

As the shipyard's parent company mainly operates in the Tuna fishing and processing industry, their critical vessel maintenance operations are performed between October and February (4 months).

MARINE Dusty Work Environment

DUSTY WORK ENVIRONMENT

Problems with dust containment during dry blasting operations forces workers to stop all other activities around the ship and neighboring dry docks and therefore find themselves in a very tight schedule. The chance to significantly decrease dust levels by utilizing wet blasting techniques, while simultaneously allowing for the completion of other tasks, is very important value proposition for them.

Detail of the painting work
The surface of a metal container with a total area of ​​26 square meters was prepared (280 total square feet).
Paint used

A total of 3 coats of Hempel epoxy paint were applied to reach an average coating thickness of 18 mils.

Detail of the thickness measurement of paint applied before the Urethane layer
Measurements were taken after each coating application in order to recreate the exact coating specifications employed by the fleet.
THREE EQUAL SEGMENTS
The total testing area was divided into three equal segments as indicated by green paint.
initial test with 4070 cg
In our first testing area, we were able to confirm that our equipment was performing as expected and were ready to move forward with measurements in the second area.
blasting in progress, 1 sqft tests

Using different combinations of abrasives, nozzles, blast pressures, and abrasive flow configurations, the times required to remove 1 sqft. of coating were measured. 

Final tests of one square meter
In the final section, 6 tests were conducted using wet copper slag, blasting a 1 square meter area with effective working pressures of 125 psi and 150 psi. Our goal in this final area is to compare the coating removal rate of our wet blasting system with the shipyard's current dry blasting system.

DESCRIPTION OF THE EXPERIMENTS

The total area was prepped, treated with marine epoxy paint, and then divided into three segments of 9m2 each for the following tests:

  1. Initial test area to validate the performance of our blast equipment.
  2. Area with 48 squares of 1 sqft. each for tests of different configurations.
  3. Area for final validation of abrasion speed in high speed configuration: 6 squares of 1m2.

The experiments were carried out dry and wet with:

  • 2 types of abrasive (copper slag, medium grit crushed glass).
  • 3 abrasive flow configurations (0.25in, 0.5in, 0.75in).
  • 3 blast pressure levels (100psi, 125psi, 150psi).
  • 3 different nozzles (#5, #6, #6XL).

our results & conclusions

Our main takeaway is that wet blasting with copper slag (their abrasive of choice) is significantly speedier than dry blasting. The tremendous advantage of transitioning their equipment line to dustless blasting cannot be emphasized enough, as it is not only faster, but also suppresses dust, enabling nearby workers to carry on with their tasks uninterrupted.

  • The shipyard's dry blasting average removal rate: 11 square meters per hour
  • DUSTLESS BLASTING® average removal rate: 14.5 square meters per hour 

In this field test, Dustless Blasting provided a 31.82% increase in coating removal speed compared to dry blasting.

 

AREA 3 COATING REMOVAL results 1 square m 2
WET VS DRY MARINE CHART

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Dustless blasting is the easiest way to scale your business

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Bring Dustless Blasting In-house

 

Investing in this versatile machinery will streamline operations and boost profitablility. No longer are you having to waste time and money on outdated methods or outsourcing.

Applications

ADD A NEW SERVICE TO YOUR BUSINESS

 

Whether it's used to restore classic cars, boats, or antiques - the applications for dustless blasting are seemingly endless and can help existing businesses expand their offerings and generate increased income.

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THE DIFFERENCE DUSTLESS BLASTING CAN MAKE

 

Dustless Blasting can strip away unwanted, tough coatings from surfaces. Our machines offer an advantage over traditional sandblasting – significantly less dust and more productivity per pound of abrasive.

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Dustless Blasting 2 40 Metal Boats_Preview blasting 40' metal boats
 

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viking-yacht-1-1 YACHT RESTORATION
 

A swift solution was needed when blisters were discovered on the fiberglass gelcoat of this 54-foot vessel. And that's where Dustless Blasting stepped in as the clear choice.

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