Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2008. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Alberta, 2009. / Title from PDF file main screen (viewed on Nov. 27, 2009). "A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Alberta." Includes bibliographical references.

No description available.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 2007. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xv, 141 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 132-135).

Thesis (M.S.)--Rochester Institute of Technology, 1991. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 89-90).

Thesis (M.S.)--Florida State University, 2004. / Advisor: Dr. Okenwa Okoli, Florida State University, College of Engineering, Dept. of Industrial Engineering. Title and description from dissertation home page (viewed Oct. 27, 2004). Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--West Virginia University, 2003. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xiii, 137 p. : ill. (some col.). Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references (p. 101-103).

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I am deeply indebted to my parents and family for their much needed support and concern about my well being. I wish to thank Dr. Laurence for all of his time, patience, and knowledge which enabled me to complete this research. I would also like to thank Dr. Middleman for his support and advice which were much appreciated. I am grateful for all the advice of Tong and Pradeep and for their interest in the progress of my research. Finally, a special thanks to all my friends for their help in making the last two years a fun filled adventure. This research was funded by the Department of Polymer Science and Engineering at the University of Massachusetts and a grant from the Eastman-Kodak Company.

Biofouling has been an economically and environmentally costly problem to mankind ever since they set sail. Biofouling causes frictional drag leading to slow vessel speeds, and increased fuel costs. Antifouling (AF) coatings containing biocides have been used for decades, however, since some biocides have shown undesired effects towards the environment, a non-toxic solution to combat fouling is desired. Subsequently, fouling release (FR) coatings quickly gained acceptance as a non-toxic approach to contend with biofouling. Unlike AF coatings, FR coatings not necessarily prevent settlement of organisms, they permit weak adhesion which is easily released by water shear or light grooming. The siloxane-polyurethane (SiPU) coatings based on the concept of self-stratification is a non-toxic and durable approach to prepare FR coatings. In this work, several approaches were considered to optimize surface properties of SiPU coatings. Incorporation of phenyl-methyl silicone oils led to improved FR properties towards several marine organisms in laboratory assays and in ocean field immersion. Enhancement in FR properties may be attributed to slowly exuding silicone oil providing surface lubricity, weakening the adhesion of marine organisms. Addition of diphenyldimethyl siloxane in to SiPU coatings at different ratios resulted in micro-scale surface topographical features which negatively affected microfouling-release while several coatings displayed good FR performance towards macrofouling organisms. In another study, decreasing the acid group content helped to improve FR performance towards barnacles, but FR performance towards diatoms were compromised. Novel amphiphilic siloxane-polyurethane (AmSiPU) coatings from polyisocyanate pre-polymers modified with polydimethyl siloxane and polyethylene glycol displayed excellent FR properties towards several marine organisms during laboratory assays. These AmSiPU coatings show promise as contenders to commercial FR standards. Initial development of SiPU coatings with hydrophilic surfaces showed promise, as the coatings showed rapidly rearranging surfaces with comparable FR performance to commercial standards which claim hydrophilic surface properties. During freshwater field immersion trials, SiPU coatings displayed excellent mussel FR performance up to 3 years. Surface analysis suggested that solvent content affected self-stratification and morphology of SiPU coatings. The SiPU coating system is a highly tunable, tough, environmentally friendly, and practical FR solution which can evolve along with non-toxic commercial marine coatings. / Office of Naval Research (Grant number N00014-12-1-0482) / SSPC / Valpar / American Coatings Association / North Dakota State University. College of Science and Mathematics