Resistance of Organic Materials and Cable Structures to Marine Biological Attack

As a result of the increasing use of submarine telephone cable, there is a growing demand for information on the performance of organic materials and cable structures under marine conditions. Particularly important is the need for data on the resistance of materials to attack by marine organisms. Although considerable published information exists on the behavior of natural organic materials such as wood, jute, hemp and the like, there is virtually no data on plastics, elastomers, casting resins or similar materials. 1095 2 TIIE BELL SYSTEM TECHNICAL JOURNAL, SEPTEMBER 1957 About three and a half years ago, the Laboratories initiated a program to determine the resistance to marine biological attack of materials which might find application in submarine cable. The program has two primary objectives: (1) acquisition of fundamental information regarding the biological resistance of a wide range of selected organic materials, and (2) accumulation of immediately applicable engineering information on materials. I I . OUTLINE OF PROGRAM