Sustainability considerations for end-of-life fibre-reinforced plastic boats

Ruadan Geraghty, Jasper Graham-Jones, Richard Pemberton, John Summerscales*, Simon Bray

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

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Abstract

In the 1950s, glass fibre-reinforced polyester resin (GRP, also known as fibreglass or glassfibre) composites replaced wood and metal as the material for small recreational and work boats. The changes resulted from relative ease of manufacture, durability, and low maintenance. New fibres and resins then became available to create a wider range of Fibre-Reinforced Plastics (FRP). Vessels remain serviceable beyond design life: 10 years for inflatables, 20 years for motorboats and 30 years plus for sailboats. Many vessels have now reached end-of-life (EoL) and become Abandoned or Derelict Vessels (ADV). Given that thermosetting resin is not easy to recycle, these boats exist as slowly rotting hulks. There is a growing cohort of stakeholders from various backgrounds becoming concerned about this issue. This review defines sustainability as the balance of Technical, Economic, Environmental Social and Governance (TEESG) and discusses the TEESG considerations for this waste stream.
Original languageEnglish
Article number104054
JournalRegional Studies in Marine Science
Volume83
Early online date31 Jan 2025
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 3 Feb 2025

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Engineering
  • Waste Management and Disposal
  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
  • Aquatic Science
  • Ecology
  • Animal Science and Zoology

Keywords

  • boats
  • disposal
  • end-of-life
  • fibre-reinforced plastic
  • FRP
  • GRP
  • sustainability
  • End-of-life
  • Fibre-reinforced plastic
  • Boats
  • Sustainability
  • Disposal

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