Port side view of USS Essex (LHD 2) after full application of an NRL-developed 1K polysiloxane topcoat in 2017.

NavalToday is reporting that the Naval Research Laboratory has developed a new topside paint that will last longer and is both cheaper and easy to apply. Now it has had its first large-scale application, USS Essex.

Single-component refers to an all-in-one-can system that does not require the measuring and mixing of two or more components before application, thus providing a “user-friendly” system for Sailors when applying on ships.

“The 1K polysiloxane is easy to use. There is no mixing, surface preparation is easy, and it covers well,” said Lt. j.g. Donald Ham, Essex’s Assistant Deck Department Head. “We painted our entire hull with approximately 320 gallons of the 1K, whereas it would have taken greater quantities of qualified two-component (2K) polysiloxanes. Thus, we not only saved time, but we saved money. The best part is that the 1K polysiloxane rolls-on the ship just like the legacy silicone alkyds.”