On 10/31/2013 4:20 PM, Keith Henson wrote:
But that is not the only method that has been used. Originally, all US nuclear submarines carried two O2 generators to ensure that a O2 generator failure did not automatically result in a patrol abort. Sometime in the 1960s it was decided that only ballistic missile submarines needed two O2 generators while attack submarines could get by with one plus a cheaper alternative. The alternative was a sodium chlorate candle burner. The submarine I served on (in the 1970s) carried a much larger crew than normal and the single O2 generator could not (as expected) keep pace with O2 consumption. We were forced to burn candles constantly and while the system worked well the expended candles, called clinkers, were much bigger after burning than before, so storing the clinkers became a real problem and created quite a mess after some weeks.Yes. It has been done this way since the first ones.
Jim Davis
