Are carbon submersibles OK?

[throet]

We've debated the merits of carbon frames, wheels, cranks, and bars on the MTB forum, but who would've ever thought that carbon was a good idea on a submersible sent repeatedly to depths exceeding 10,000 ft? I'm no engineer but seems it was just a matter of time before repeated stresses would compromise the integrity of that hull. 

In an interview on ABC News, ocean explorer Robert Ballard, who discovered the wreck of the Titanic in 1985, suggested that Titan’s innovative carbon-fiber pressure hull might have been to blame for the vessel’s loss. “We’ve made thousands and thousands of dives with different vehicles” since 1960, Ballard said, “and we’ve never ever, in the history of these extreme deep diving programs, ever lost a vehicle. So this is a first. So you naturally go to, how does this vehicle differ from the vehicles we’ve been using for many years? And it did have a very experimental hull, and obviously that hull imploded.” 

[St.Bernardo]

We need a government ban on carbon bike frames and submarines. Contact your representatives!

[AntonioGG]

Carbon should be ok as a pressure vessel, but I think tit should be lined with something to prevent damage to the carbon.  I’m puzzled they see the need for carbon and titanium in a deep diving sub though, where weight doesn’t seem like a big concern like on an airplane.

[RedRider3141]

A lot of rocket companies (Firefly, etc.) use Composites/ CF for pressurized fuel canisters. The problem isn't the material. Its the lack of testing, certification and application. 

[AustinBike]

Next we're gonna find out that it wasn't really carbon fiber but just that fiber carbon tape to make it look that way.

Quote

A clip has resurfaced of sub pilot and OceanGate CEO Stockton Rushgiving an interview in 2021, in which he says he's "broken some rules" to make trips to the Titanic possible for his company. The interview was done with vlogger Alan Estrada, who joined him on a trip that year to the Titanic wreck aboard the Titan vessel.

"I'd like to be remembered as an innovator. I think it was General [Douglas] MacArthur who said, 'You're remembered for the rules you break,'" Rush said. "And I've broken some rules to make this. I think I've broken them with logic and good engineering behind me." 

 

[AntonioGG]