Submarine Atmospheres

Abstract

Atmosphere control in submarines has developed to meet the operational requirements. Untilthe end of WWII submarines were primarily semi-submersibles spending most of their time on the surfaceand submerged for periods of 12 h or less. However, rudimentary control of oxygen and carbondioxide was available in some WWI boats. In the latter years of WWII, the requirement for longerdive times increased the demand for atmosphere control and the development of atmosphere monitoringinstrumentation. The introduction of nuclear-powered submarines eliminated the need for air-dependentpropulsion, and initially their dive times were limited only by air quality problems. The solutionof these problems led to long-term (3 months) atmosphere control techniques, real-time air monitoringcapabilities and the establishment of toxicological data for a large number of air contaminants.These developments have also impacted on atmosphere control in conventional diesel-electric submarines.More recently a new generation of submarines with non-nuclear air-independent propulsion hasemerged. Although their dive times are limited to 2–3 weeks, this capability can be best exploitedwith the development of new energy efficient air purification technology.