High-density polyethylene marine boom

A marine boom system comprising:

• a plurality of High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) marine booms, each having:
• an elongated generally cylindrical shell including an inner layer and an outer layer, where the inner layer and outer layer are formed from HDPE with the same formulation, with the inner layer further including at least 2% carbon black by mass and the outer layer does not include carbon black and the outer layer further including a colorant with ultraviolet stabilizers and the inner layer does not include the colorant, the inner layer being thicker than the outer layer, where the inner layer and outer layer have been coextruded to form a unitary body, the shell defining a cavity, the shell having first and second ends;
• first and second caps formed from the same material as the outer layer disposed about the first and second ends respectively, each cap including a generally cylindrical main body having an outer diameter and an inner diameter equal to an outer diameter and an inner diameter of the shell, and an end wall extending across one end of the main body, where the other end of the main body of each of the first and second caps are axially aligned with the first and second ends of shell respectively and are fusion welded together across the full thickness and around a full circumference of the first ends and the second ends and forming a watertight seal;
• a floatation billet disposed within the cavity in the shell;
• at least first and second structure rings each disposed about a respective circumference of the shell proximate the first and second ends of the shell respectively, each ring including two generally semicircular arcuate pieces, extending circumferentially along the shell and forming a collar about the shell, each piece terminating at each end with a coupling tab, where the pieces of each ring are fastened together at at least one end with a fastener extending through apertures in the tabs and a spring member disposed outside one of the coupling tabs and disposed therebetween the one of the one of the coupling tabs and a portion the fastener;
• a structure member, where the pieces of each ring are fastened at the other end to the structural member with another fastener extending through apertures of those tabs and through the structural member, and where the structural member is a generally elongate U channel facing upward toward the shell, and having ends that do not extend beyond the end walls of the first and second end caps;
• first and second connectors, each disposed in a respective end of the structural member and attached there to, each connector having at least one lug extending axially away from the HDPE marine boom and beyond its respective end cap;
• where the plurality of marine booms are connected together by the first and second connectors of each marine boom.