ASTM Int'l Issues Biocide Release Rate Standard - ASTM D 6903
October 18, 2007 // Published as a news service by IHS
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Manufacturers of preservatives and antifouling paints will be able to use an ASTM International standard to evaluate the quality of their products by comparing biocide leach rates in one formulation against a competitive product or their own products.
ASTM D 6903 - Test Method for Determination of Organic Biocide Release Rate from Antifouling Coatings in Substitute Ocean Water covers the laboratory determination of the rate at which organic biocides are released from an antifouling coating exposed in substitute ocean water.
The standard was developed by Subcommittee D01.45 on Marine Coatings, which is part of ASTM International Committee D01 on Paint and Related Coatings, Materials and Applications.
The two most widely used biocides in antifouling coatings, tributyl tin (TBT) and cuprous oxide, face increasing environmental restrictions, according to Deepak Doshi, chair of the task group that developed ASTM D 6903 and group leader of the biocides research analytical group of the process chemicals and biocides department at Rohm and Haas.
For example, the use of the biocide TBT was almost entirely banned as a result of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) TBT convention, the International Convention on the Control of Harmful Antifouling Systems on Ships, adopted in 2001 due to its persistence in seawater and the use of cuprous oxide being limited in certain geographical locations.
The use of rapidly biodegradable alternatives to tin and copper is increasing, said ASTM International. Therefore, Committee D01 saw a need to develop a release rate method to quantify their release and approved ASTM D 6903.
ASTM D 6903 is run entirely in the laboratory under controlled conditions of pH, temperature, salinity and hydrodynamics.
ASTM D 6903 is based on the ASTM methods developed to quantify tin and copper release rates ( ASTM D 5108 - Test Method for Organotin Release Rates of Antifouling Coating Systems in Sea Water and ASTM D 6442 - Test Method for Determination of Copper Release Rate from Antifouling Coatings in Substitute Ocean Water).
Similar methods are being developed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) (ISO TC35/SC9/WG27) for biocides not registered for use in the U.S., said ASTM International.
Committee D01 and ISO are working together to harmonize these methods and to avoid duplication of effort.
Subcommittee D01.45 invites participation from regulatory agencies such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Canadian and state government agencies and academia.
Source: ASTM International.