Liquid Oxygen Recharge System for Submarines

摘要

A common feature in modem conventional submarines is the Air Independent Propulsion(AIP) system that can increase the submerged endurance from days to weeks, and henceremain on patrol significantly longer. All non-nuclear AIP systems available today employLiquid Oxygen (LOX) instead of atmospheric air as an oxidizer in their energy converters. The amount of LOX carried onboard a submarine in cryogenic tanks is limited by theavailable storage. For short range submarines returning to port from the patrol area torecharge the LOX storage tank may only take a couple of days, however for long rangesubmarines it could take weeks, and would therefore reduce operational availability. Theability to recharge a LOX storage tank at sea would enable long range conventionalsubmarines with AIP to remain deployed in the patrol area without the need to transit longdistances to return to base. A submarine with a LOX Recharge System (RS) would onlyrequire a short transit to and from a safe zone where the submarine can snort and rechargeLOX storage tanks. This paper contains a review of current technology for the LOX production and the feasibilityof implementing a LOX RS for future long range conventional submarines. A conceptualdesign has been developed addressing key requirements such as power, volume and safety.