Marine organisms that fasten to the bottoms of ships have always been a scourge to seafaring. By monitoring how the larvae of acorn barnacles go about finding suitable spots to attach themselves, researchers in Sweden have managed to design surfaces that prevent growths -- without using poisonous chemicals." id="metasummary.Swedish scientists stop acorn barnacles Science News Share Blog Cite Print Email Bookmark Swedish Scientists Stop Acorn Barnacles ScienceDaily (Apr. 29, 2010) Marine organisms that fasten to the bottoms of ships have always been a scourge to seafaring. By monitoring how the larvae of acorn barnacles go about finding suitable spots to attach themselves, researchers at Linkping University in Sweden have managed to design surfaces that prevent growths -- without using poisonous chemicals. See Also: Plants Animals Marine Biology Bacteria Sea Life Matter Energy Nature of Water Materials Science Biochemistry Reference Barnacle Biosensor Tide pool Breaking wave Acorn barnacles, which are animals, are among the most notorious stowaways at sea. A vessel with its hull covered by their hard calcium shells moves more slowly and uses more fuel. The most common method to prevent surface fouling is to apply toxic hull paint. The most effective substance has been tributhyl tin (TBT), which is now totally banned. But until now no really good alternatives to toxic paint have been found. Our strategy, instead, is to design surfaces that the barnacle glue doesn't stick to. The idea is for the larvae to swim off and find another place to fasten themselves for the rest of their lives, says Tobias Ekblad, a doctoral candidate in molecular physics and an associate in the EU project AMBIO. To study how a larva walks around on its 'feet' -- actually the front parts of a couple of antennae -- and leaves micrometer-size footprints, the scientists make use of so-called surface plasmon resonance. This measurement method, based on electromagnetic wave movements in the interface between the surface and sea water, can detect ...
