A Method for Evaluating the Efficacy of Antifouling Paints Using Mytilus galloprovincialis in the Laboratory in a Flow-Through System

• Published in: PloS one Vol. 11; no. 12; p. e0168172
• Main Authors: Kojima, Ryuji, Kobayashi, Seiji, Satuito, Cyril Glenn Perez, Katsuyama, Ichiro, Ando, Hirotomo, Seki, Yasuyuki, Senda, Tetsuya
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Public Library of Science 13.12.2016; Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subjects: Analysis; Animals; Antifouling coatings; Antifouling paints; Antifouling substances; Bioassays; Biofouling - prevention & control; Biological Assay; Biological assays; Biology and Life Sciences; Copper - chemistry; Copper oxides; Cylinders; Drum; Earth Sciences; Efficiency; Engineering and Technology; Experiments; Formulations; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Laboratories; Materials Testing; Models, Statistical; Mollusks; Mussels; Mytilus; Mytilus edulis; Mytilus galloprovincialis; Paint - analysis; Paints; Physical Sciences; Polyvinyl Chloride - chemistry; Protective coatings; Reproducibility of Results; Rotating cylinders; Seawater; Water quality bioassay
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0168172

A laboratory test with a flow-through system was designed and its applicability for testing antifouling paints of varying efficacies was investigated. Six different formulations of antifouling paints were prepared to have increasing contents (0 to 40 wt.%) of Cu2O, which is the most commonly used antifouling substance, and each formulation of paint was coated on just one surface of every test plate. The test plates were aged for 45 days by rotating them at a speed of 10 knots inside a cylinder drum. A behavioral test was then conducted using five mussels (Mytilus galloprovincialis) that were pasted onto the coated surface of each aged test plate. The number of the byssus threads produced by each mussel generally decreased with increasing Cu2O content of the paint. The newly designed method was considered valid owing to the high consistency of its results with observations from the field experiment.