Colorability and Colorfastness. The material must be capable of 

 being produced in international orange or high visibility yellow and of 

 resisting discoloration and fading when exposed to the environment or 

 oil products. Visibility is important to prevent damage to the boom 

 from passing ships and also to avoid entanglement of the boom with the 

 ship's propeller. This is especially important for booms containing 

 wire cables or chains. 



The colorfastness of materials can be observed during the tests of 

 the material for resistance to weathering and the resistance to petroleum 

 products. 



Flame Retardancy. The material should not propagate fire when 

 exposed to open flame and should be self-extinguishing when the source 

 of flame is removed. This requirement does not greatly affect the 

 effectiveness of the boom but from a safety point of view is more important 

 during storage than during operational conditions; a fire during an oil 

 spill is an unlikely occurrence unless a highly volatile substance is 

 spilled. 



The flame retardancy of material can be measured using FTMS 191 

 Method 5900 or 5903. 



Resistance to Water Absorption. The material must not absorb 

 moisture when immersed in water for prolonged periods or when subjected 

 to high relative humidity conditions. Resistance to the absorption of 

 water is critical in both the curtain and flotation material. An increase 

 in the weight of the boom makes it more difficult to handle on land and 

 in the water. The extra weight will also reduce the boom's reserve 

 buoyancy and affect its ability to respond to the waves. Also, absorp- 

 tion can cause a more rapid degradation of the material. FTMS 191 

 Method 5500 or 5502 can be used to compare the absorption characteristics 

 of materials. 



Resistance to Marine Growth, Fungus, and Mildew. The material 

 should resist the growth of marine organisms when immersed in saltwater 

 for prolonged periods and should resist fungus attack and mildew growth 

 following exposure to the marine environment or during storage for 

 prolonged periods. 



Resistance to marine growth is especially important for permanent 

 booms that will remain in the water for weeks or months at a time. Such 

 resistance will reduce maintenance requirements. Resistance to marine 

 growth is dependent upon antifouling coatings applied to the material, 

 but these coatings pose a pollution problem themselves as they leach 

 into the marine environment. 



No standard test has been established to measure resistance to 

 marine growth. FTMS 191 Method 576D presents a standard method for 

 measuring the mildew resistance of material. 



Repair ability. The material must be capable of having tears, 

 breaks, and punctures repaired in the field in a relatively short period 

 of time and without excessive tools or manpower. Ideally, repairs to a 



