A novel XRF method to measure environmental release of copper and zinc from antifouling paints
Journal article, 2017

The release of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn) from vessels and leisure crafts coated with antifouling paints can pose a threat to water quality in semi-enclosed areas such as harbors and marinas as well as to coastal archipelagos. However, no reliable, practical and low-cost method exists to measure the direct release of metals from antifouling paints. Therefore, the paint industry and regulatory authorities are obliged to use release rate measurements derived from either mathematical models or from laboratory studies. To bridge this gap, we have developed a novel method using a handheld X-Ray Fluorescence spectrometer (XRF) to determine the cumulative release of Cu and Zn from antifouling paints. The results showed a strong linear relationship between XRF K? net intensities and metal concentrations, as determined by ICP-MS. The release of Cu and Zn were determined for coated panels exposed in harbors located in the Baltic Sea and in Kattegat. The field study showed salinity to have a strong impact on the release of Cu, i.e. the release increased with salinity. Contrary, the effect of salinity on Zn was not as evident. As exemplified in this work, the XRF method also makes it possible to identify the governing parameters to the release of Cu and Zn, e.g. salinity and type of paint formulation. Thus, the XRF method can be used to measure environmentally relevant releases of metallic compounds to design more efficient and optimized antifouling coatings. © 2017 The Authors

Author

Erik Ytreberg

Chalmers, Shipping and Marine Technology, Maritime Environmental Sciences

Maria Lagerström

Mechanics and Maritime Sciences (M2)

Albin Holmqvist

SP Sveriges Tekniska Forskningsinstitut AB

B. Eklund

Stockholm University

H. Elwing

University of Gothenburg

Magnus Dahlström

SP Sveriges Tekniska Forskningsinstitut AB

Peter Dahl

University of Gothenburg

Mia Dahlström

SP Sveriges Tekniska Forskningsinstitut AB

Environmental Pollution

0269-7491 (ISSN) 1873-6424 (eISSN)

Vol. 225 490-496

Driving Forces

Sustainable development

Areas of Advance

Transport

Materials Science

Subject Categories

Marine Engineering

DOI

10.1016/j.envpol.2017.03.014

More information

Latest update

9/6/2018 1