RE: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Alternative hull material.

[Tim Reilly <TimR@cclengineering.com>]

I agree with Mike that a kevlar hull would be great, except that kevlar is
really hard to work with and where ever you cut or grind it needs to be
sealed very well.  Kevlar likes to leech along the fabric.  You would also
need to make sure that the resin you use will be compatible with building a
hull that compresses and expands.  Some resins are to brittle and will
craze.  This will leave little cracks in the hull and allow water to
delaminate the material.  Something that might want to be considered is
alternating different materials with the kevlar to make it easier to work
with.

I intend on building my sub out of composite materials.  I also have a lot
of experience with these materials, the only thing is I don't know any of
the engineering stats for different kinds of materials to determine hull
thickness.  I am still researching that.

Sorry about making this so long, I just finally found something that I can
talk knowledgeably about.  Hope this helps.  Also realize that composites
are really easy to work with,  You just have to pay extreme attention to
what you are doing when you laminate.  NO AIR BUBBLES!


Thanks,

Tim R.

-----Original Message-----
From: Michael B Holt [mailto:tlohm@juno.com]
Sent: Sunday, March 16, 2003 8:52 AM
To: personal_submersibles@psubs.org
Subject: [PSUBS-MAILIST] Alternative hull material.


Consider a fabric hull.

Build the frames of the proper steel, then cover the frame with kevlar
cloth.   As long as the cloth is held securely to the frame, it's not
going
to rupture.

No, I'm not going to do this.    But it seems like a reasonable idea, if
all the problems can be solved.


Mike H.


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