by The Chinese manned submersible under construction plans to challenge the submarine to a depth of 10000 meters in 2020.
Recently, the core component of the 10000 meter submersible – the manned ball cabin – has been successfully stamped, laying the foundation for the construction of the submersible.
The successful stamping of the core component, the manned ball cabin, refers to the deformation of a huge titanium alloy plate with a vertical cylinder, transforming it into a “bowl”.
The two “bowls” are clasped together to form the ball cabin of the manned submersible.
It is the activity area for divers to ride and drive the submersible, and also one of the internal main components and core technologies of the entire submersible.
In this huge workshop, the heated board is quickly moved under the column, and with a hammer, the board is pressed into a bowl shape, emitting red light and hot gas.
At this moment, the temperature reaches over 600 degrees Celsius, and there is a risk of bursting at any time.
Scientists are sweating profusely.
After careful inspection, the bowl was reheated and waiting for the second stamping.
More than 10 hours have passed, and the second stamping begins.
The “big bowl” is compressed and shaped by a heavy hammer, forming a perfect semicircle.
The shape, roundness, and wall thickness all meet the requirements for submersible construction, and the manned ball cabin is successfully stamped.
After the successful stamping of the hemisphere, another hemisphere with the same diameter will be manufactured, with two semicircles aligned to form a complete ball chamber.
Subsequent processing, welding, heat treatment, and other work will also be carried out.
The technology content of the ball cabin is very high for deep-sea diving.
The underwater pressure increases with depth, reaching 10000 meters of the seabed.
The pressure borne by the submersible is equivalent to pressing the weight of a car onto the fingernail of the little thumb.
The manned cabin is the heart of the submersible, and to ensure the safety of the three divers in the ball cabin, there are strict requirements for the thickness, size, performance, and even roundness of the ball cabin, which cannot tolerate any carelessness or negligence.
The manned ball cabin has been independently developed and innovated from design to manufacturing, experiencing many unimaginable difficulties and challenges.
Jia Shuanxiao, General Manager of Baoji Titanium Industry Co., Ltd.: When we reach 11000 meters, it is actually a brand new research.
Currently, there is no country in the world that can achieve the level of 11000 meters.
Therefore, we do not have any data to refer to, which is equivalent to being the first to eat crabs, so the challenge is very difficult.
From the selection of titanium alloy materials to the construction, the manned spacecraft has condensed decades of scientists’ hard work, and overcoming the problem of material cracking has wasted some effort
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