High Throughput Screening of Marine Coatings using Biological Assays

Abstract

A combinatorial workflow for developing organic surface coatings has been developed. The workflow is uniquely designed to prepare and evaluate marine coatings that prevent biofouling on the hulls of ships. A critical component of the workflow is the high throughput screening of settlement and ease of removal of marine organisms from coating surfaces. Methods have been developed to directly and indirectly quantify marine bacterial biofilm growth and retention. Correlations have been developed between these high throughput bioassays and results from ocean testing.

Combinatorial and High‐Throughput Methods in Macromolecular Materials Research and Development

“…To screen for anti-fouling properties, assays using marine bacteria have been developed. [144,145] To assess the adhesion of marine organisms to the surface of coatings, and thus determine their fouling-release behavior, assays have been developed that use marine bacteria [144][145][146] and various algae. [147,148] Figure 4 illustrates the application of an array-based screening method for algal adhesion.…”