This is a practical guide to Surface Science for researchers working in the Shipbuilding Industry.
Dans ce tout nouveau guide, vous apprendrez tout sur :
Plongeons dans le vif du sujet.
The shipbuilding industry encompasses both the engineering behind ship development and the industrial sectors responsible for completing and repairing ships. This complex field involves various sectors, including the construction of vessels for commercial shipping, naval defense, and recreational boating. Surface properties such as contact angle, sliding angle, surface tension, and surface energy are crucial for ensuring ships’ integrity, performance, and longevity.
We use the following surface properties to understand the behavior of Shipbuilding products and improve their quality.
Sample Image taken from Droplet Lab Tensiometer.
Young – Méthode Laplace
Méthode polynomiale
Ideally, when we place a drop on a solid surface, a unique angle exists between the liquid and the solid surface. We can calculate the value of this ideal contact angle (the so-called Young’s contact angle) using Young’s equation. In practice, due to surface geometry, roughness, heterogeneity, contamination, and deformation, the contact angle value on a surface is not necessarily a single consistent value but rather falls within a range. The upper and lower limits of this range are known as the advancing and receding contact angles, respectively. The values of advancing and receding contact angles for a solid surface are highly sensitive to many parameters, such as temperature, humidity, homogeneity, and minor contamination of the surface and liquid. For example, the advancing and receding contact angles of a surface can differ at different locations.
Les surfaces et les revêtements pratiques présentent naturellement une hystérésis d’angle de contact, indiquant une gamme de valeurs d’équilibre. Lorsque nous mesurons les angles de contact statiques, nous obtenons une seule valeur dans cette plage. S’appuyer uniquement sur des mesures statiques pose des problèmes, tels qu’une mauvaise répétabilité et une évaluation incomplète de la surface en ce qui concerne l’adhérence, la propreté, la rugosité et l’homogénéité.
In practical applications, we need to understand how easily a liquid spreads (advancing angle) and how easily it is removed (receding angle), such as in painting and cleaning. Measuring advancing and receding angles offers a holistic view of liquid-solid interaction, unlike static measurements, which yield an arbitrary value within the range.
Ces informations sont cruciales pour les surfaces du monde réel avec des variations, une rugosité et une dynamique, aidant des industries telles que les cosmétiques, la science des matériaux et la biotechnologie à concevoir des surfaces efficaces et à optimiser les processus.
Découvrez comment la mesure de l’angle de contact est effectuée sur notre tensiomètre
Pour une compréhension plus complète de la mesure de l’angle de contact, lisez notre mesure de l’angle de contact : le guide définitif
These reference measurements show how deionized water wets four standard substrates measured with the Droplet Lab Dropometer. Use them as visual and numerical benchmarks when you're checking your own sample preparation, treatments, and chemistry.
Full contact angle and surface energy datasets (including additional liquids and statistics) are available on our dataset hub.
The droplet images above are taken from the same benchmark series as our open dataset. For each substrate and probe liquid we report:
● Advancing and receding contact angles (and hysteresis)
● Derived surface energy (SFE) values based on multi-liquid measurements
● Measurement conditions, uncertainties, and sample preparation details
Comparing your own droplet shapes and angles against these references is a fast way to spot contamination, treatment drift, or unexpected changes in wettability.
Cette propriété mesure la force qui agit à la surface d’un liquide, dans le but de minimiser sa surface.
Sample Image taken from Droplet Lab Tensiometer
Tension superficielle dynamique
La tension superficielle dynamique diffère de la tension superficielle statique, qui fait référence à l’énergie de surface par unité de surface (ou à la force agissant par unité de longueur le long du bord d’une surface liquide).
La tension superficielle statique caractérise l’état d’équilibre de l’interface liquide, tandis que la tension superficielle dynamique tient compte de la cinétique des changements à l’interface. Ces changements peuvent impliquer la présence de tensioactifs, d’additifs ou de variations de température, de pression et de composition à l’interface.
Quand utiliser la mesure dynamique de la tension superficielle
Dynamic surface tension is essential for processes that involve rapid changes at the liquid-gas or liquid-liquid interface, such as droplet and bubble formation, coalescence (change in surface area), the behavior of foams, and the drying of paints (change in composition, e.g., evaporation of solvent). It is measured by analyzing the shape of a hanging droplet over time.
La tension superficielle dynamique s’applique à diverses industries, notamment les cosmétiques, les revêtements, les produits pharmaceutiques, la peinture, l’alimentation et les boissons, ainsi que les processus industriels, où la compréhension et le contrôle du comportement des interfaces liquides sont essentiels pour la qualité du produit et l’efficacité des processus.
Apprenez comment la mesure de la tension superficielle est effectuée sur notre tensiomètre
Pour une compréhension plus complète de la mesure de l’énergie de surface, lisez notre mesure de la tension superficielle : le guide définitif
Sample Image taken from Droplet Lab Tensiometer
Découvrez comment la mesure de l’énergie de surface est effectuée sur notre tensiomètre
Pour une compréhension plus complète de la mesure de l’énergie de surface, lisez notre mesure de l’énergie de surface : le guide définitif
For benchmark contact angle and surface energy values on glass, nylon, PMMA, and Teflon, see the Open Benchmark Data panel above or visit our Dataset Hub for full CSV downloads.
L’angle de glissement mesure l’angle auquel un film liquide glisse sur une surface solide. Il est couramment utilisé pour évaluer la résistance au glissement d’une surface.
Sample Image taken from Droplet Lab Tensiometer
Apprenez comment la mesure de l’angle de glissement est effectuée sur notre tensiomètre
Pour une compréhension plus complète de la mesure de l’angle de glissement, lisez notre Mesure de l’angle de glissement : le guide définitif
Within the Shipbuilding industry, several case studies exemplify the advantages of conducting surface property measurements.
Défi: A ship painting company faced uneven surface coatings due to the coating fluid's viscosity, surface tension, and the substrate's contact angle.
Solution: The company’s engineering team discovered that using a coating liquid with a contact angle less than 90° caused a pinning effect, reducing surface unevenness. By adjusting the contact angle to create this effect, they mitigated the impact of uneven coatings, leveraging the interplay between fluid viscosity and the substrate's surface energy.
Défi: The superhydrophobic coatings used in shipbuilding were expensive and complicated to fabricate.
Solution: Researchers developed cost-effective, mechanically stable micro/nano superhydrophobic coatings by combining laser processing with low-surface energy materials. These coatings, exhibiting excellent hydrophobicity through contact angle and sliding angle measurements, provided durable water repellency, simplifying the superhydrophobic coating process.
Défi: Les compagnies de transport de marchandises devaient réduire leur consommation de carburant et leurs émissions.
Solution: Companies adopted innovative hull coatings with low surface energy and sliding angles to minimize friction with seawater. By enhancing hydrodynamic efficiency, these coatings led to significant fuel savings, reduced operational costs, and a lower carbon footprint. Droplet Lab's portable instrument can enable accurate measurement of surface energy and sliding angles, ensuring these coatings' effectiveness in real maritime conditions.
Défi: Aluminum 7075, despite its high strength, suffered from corrosion, limiting its use in subsea industries.
Solution: The research team experimented with bare aluminum and oil-impregnated anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) surfaces. Salt spray and pressure tests revealed that the oil-impregnated AAO maintained a high contact angle, significantly improving corrosion resistance. This modification made Aluminum 7075 viable for subsea applications.
Défi: Slippery deck surfaces posed safety concerns.
Solution: To enhance deck surface hydrophobicity, engineers performed contact angle measurements on various surface treatments. Optimizing these treatments increased hydrophobicity, reducing slip risks in wet conditions and improving safety.
Si vous êtes intéressé par la mise en œuvre de ces applications ou de toute autre application, veuillez nous contacter.
In an industry where precision reigns supreme, how can Shipbuilding manufacturers ensure their products withstand scrutiny? The answer lies in standards and guidelines: the compass that guides them through the complex maze of quality and performance.
A destructive coating-adhesion outcome test: you cut through the cured coating to the substrate, apply pressure-sensitive tape, remove it, and classify how much coating detaches. For a more actionable shipyard workflow, pair D3359 with an upstream wettability gate (e.g., water contact angle at a fixed timestamp and optional surface free energy trend) to detect surface-prep drift before coating.
Use D3359 to confirm the coating system meets the project’s required adhesion class after cure on representative panels/areas.
Use D3359 when ratings trend down, and use contact angle/SFE trending to quickly triage whether the likely issue is surface readiness (cleaning/treatment/contamination) vs coating/cure changes.
D3359 remains the adhesion outcome test; contact angle/SFE are surface-sensitive indicators that help you catch risk early and diagnose drift, but they do not “guarantee” adhesion. Any numeric wettability gates must be calibrated to your specific substrate + pretreatment + coating system by correlating to D3359 outcomes.
We hope this guide showed you how to apply surface science in the Shipbuilding industry.
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