Fisheries’ body develops nano solutions to prevent biofouling in aquaculture nets
The Indian Council of Agricultural Research’s arm Central Institute of Fisheries Know-how (CIFT) has designed nanotechnology options to reduce the progress of undesirable organisms, also recognised as biofouling, in the polyethylene nets that are employed for aquaculture in the seas.
Biofouling, a recurring challenge, is impacting the aquaculture sector significantly impacting fish production from aquaculture cages, leaving the sector anxious.
Adverse consequences
Biofouling will cause clogging of meshes and decreases the drinking water circulation in cage nets, hence minimising the dimension of mesh opening.
It leads to the blockage of food stuff squander and anoxic disorders inside the cages, thus decreasing the survival amount and the health and fitness of fishes. It is also pointed out that biofouling of aquaculture nets also bring about serious maintenance and operational issues and its management demands about twenty five for each cent of the whole production charge, he claimed.
Nano coating
CIFT’s technologies takes advantage of polyaniline and nano copper oxide. Aquaculture cages are fabricated generally with large-density polyethylene (PE) webbings whose floor is to be coated with polyaniline and nano copper oxide and exposed in the open up sea and estuarine natural environment.
P Muhammed Ashraf, Principal Scientist at CIFT, claimed industry publicity reports ended up conducted at Vishakapatnam (open up sea) for six months by exposing two dealt with webbings. The outcomes confirmed a significant biofouling resistance.
The review concluded that the nano copper oxide existing in the matrix acted as a position source earlier mentioned the electron clouds of polyaniline, avoiding initialisation of biofilm. The outcomes highlighted the likely software of polyaniline to modify the non-polar floor of polyethylene to load lively biocides to reduce fouling in cage aquaculture.
From the industry publicity reports, the outcomes uncovered a great likely for polyaniline with nano copper oxide in opposition to biofouling in aquaculture cage nets. This technologies has to be promoted even more for commercialisation, he added.
CN Ravishankar, Director, CIFT, claimed that India’s fish demand would have risen to 18 million tonnes by 2030 and it demands an additional 7 million tonnes in a 10 years.
With the capture sector plateauing, most of this demand must be satisfied by aquaculture, primarily mariculture, which is envisioned to make a significant contribution in the fish offer in the nation.
Fouling management is a single region where there are not a lot of effortless-to-use technologies. This CIFT technologies would tremendously lessen fouling, which will have a cascading influence on the profitability of mariculture functions, he claimed.
