Explore the Depths: Submarine Main Ballast Tank Operations Unveiled
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- Опубликовано: 10 июл 2024
- Black Board Series Submarine Main Ballast Tank Operation staring your favorite submarine sailor Leroy.
Dive into the critical world of submarine operations with our latest video, "Submarine Main Ballast Tank Operations Unveiled!" Learn how these engineering marvels manage buoyancy and submerge with precision. Our expert guide provides a step-by-step breakdown of the ballast tank filling and blowing processes, enhanced with stunning hand drawn examples.
Whether you're a naval enthusiast, engineering student, or simply curious about military technology, this video offers a rare glimpse into the mechanics that keep submarines stealthy and effective. Don't miss out on insights into the latest advancements and operational tactics that define modern underwater warfare.
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Feels good to be back.
Leroyyyyyy
I give ALL the Glory to the Lord Jesus Christ Who is God and His Holy Ghost 🙌🏿 ✝️ 🧎🏽
@SubBrief sir love the channel. What software are you using to illustrate your explanations? Thank you
Thank you for brining back the series
We all love Leroy!!!
He's been through some testing times but always good to see him bounce back lol
Thank you for bringing back the series. Sub Brief, I adopted a rescue kitten - it's a ton of work and expense, but now I don't wake up an angry veteran anymore because I wake up to a happy purring cat. Thank you for your educational content which has greatly increased my naval warfare knowledge.
me too =)
Congrats on becoming a cat taker - life is always better with a cat by your side. And thanks for solidarity with Ukraine. United we stand!
Very nice to see you going back to the format that first drew me (pun intended) to your channel. This sort of detailed explanation of how subs actually work simply is not available anywhere else.
*"drew me"*
What? You're Robert not *Leroy!*
He didn't draw Robert.
Honestly, I saw the text "first drew me" and thought maybe you were making a joke about being named Leroy. Apparently I'm not very good at speed reading.
The Captain's Flask. Its control is under the Bunk. And it does NOT have any rum you said? Haha
That's probably why they first went away :( I miss the video on how to track a Borei
I cant get enough of this page. The knowledge of the contributors is top shelf
Aaron, many thanks for serving, and many thanks for bringing back The Leroy Lectures!
Three things in the ballast tanks. 1. Torpedo tubes. 2) VLS tubes. 3) sonar array!
Always interesting!
Absolutely fascinating!
Great show, informative episodes are a treat.
Looking forward to this!😁
Great to see you back.
Really neat information Aaron!! Thanks as always!!
Another great video JT thanks for this bud.
YAY Leroy es back!
You're great at making these videos.
It's obvious you get so much joy making the white.. black board series 😀And they are gooood!
Thanks.
amazing channel
These new videos are incredibly simple yet absolutely full of information to those of us who have never been. Thank you!
I'd love to see more videos like this. They are great.
god i love this series i hope it never leaves i love how it really makes me think leaves me wondering things researching stuff sometimes for hours after the video.
Hmmm. Three things that might be inside a forward ballast tank? Torpedo tubes, sonar dome, forward diving plane hydraulics.
and VLS missile tubes on the newer subs
VLS has been used in the 688I versions sence the 90's.
Spherical array, hull array, SA access tunnel, UWC hydrophone, NMH hydrophones, OA-9070, anchor, SPM, my initials.
@@patstrains7185 That last one - chefs kiss.
Headlight and turn signal access
A USN veteran I worked with told me about the 'trimming parties' they'd have on his attack sub when someone was getting certified as helmsman or setting trim. Basically everyone that could would walk back and forth and side to side in order to 'break in' the new guy. All in good fun and also to make them sweat a little.
great series, things you are super familiar with, few of us now anything about. Leroy included.
Super interesting thanks for making this video. As someone with limited nautical knowledge this is great stuff.
Thank you for this informative vid, Aaron. As a former science teacher, I appreciate it!
Some questions (might be enough for a part 2, if you collect questions for a couple of days):
1. The obvious one first: If those are the "main" ballast tank there are obviously more. Do the others work on the same principle?
2. Are the main ballast tanks (or probably the others?) linked into pitch control?
3. How do you service these "have to be closed to the inside" tanks your life depends on? Is there some screwed close hatch to the inside or the top to do maintenance in port?
4. Good there are backup systems for the valves on the top. I assume there are also backup systems for the hatch on the top?, because if that stays open ...
My guess (for 1 and 2) would be: Main ballast tanks only to get it perfectly balanced at your target depth with all controls zeroed and all the other ballast tanks and control surfaces to angle your boat however you want.
BTW: Thanks for bringing back whi... bla.. whatever colored board. Really liked that series.
Main ballast tanks are only flooded or not flooded. They do the bulk of the work to get the submarine to submerge/surface. Then you have multiple smaller trim tanks around the sub. These trim tanks are used to finetune buoyancy, and balance the pitch/roll. Then additional ballast tanks to compensate for the loss of weight when weapons are launched. As for servicing, I have no Idea, but I would suspect they are only really serviceable in drydock.
On 688's, 637's and 594's you can access the MBT's through the grates on the bottom when you are inport. To do that your ships divers or divers from the repair facility go down and let themselves in. Then they do what ever needs being done in there. This brings up a whole discussion about subs and divers and safety and tagouts. Also I am not saying that the other boats don't have grates. I am saying I never touched a boomer or anything older than the Gato (except to take a tour on a museum ship).
To do maintenance in the MBT's, you have to enter drydock. Once the boat is out of the water, you can open the MBT grates on the keel. Then you go into the darkness of this slimmy tank and do your repairs. Been there, did that. MMC/SS AGANG RET.
I've been trying my hand at designing a autonomous midget drone sub and have been reading a lot of Ulrich Gabler's writing on the subject...he designed the Type XXI sub during the war along with several other types, plus several post war designs...and Mr. Gabler indicates that the top vents should be placed as far back as possible when engineering the ballast tanks, or else the sub can dive at an awkward angle. He goes on to mention those slits at the bottom as a source of eddy currents between the pressure hull and outer hull, the energy creating those currents has to come from somewhere: your propulsion system. So a lot of care is usually taken in their design. Those valves connected to the "captain's flask" I think are shuttle valves...the act like normal hydraulic valves until you add pressurized air on the far side of the valve, which closes of the hydraulic input and shoots compressed air to whatever piston the hydraulic fluid was driving. Combat aircraft back in the day had a similar system in case the hydraulic lines were compromised or the engine driving the hydraulic pump was no longer running. It was a last ditch effort to lower the landing gear and flaps. Usually would result in the entire hydraulic system having to be purged a refilled later...better to have to do that than to write off an expensive plane!
Items in the ballast tank. VLS missle systems, the anchor, torpedo tubes pass through, and my personal favorite (as a nuclear operator) the shaft. Propulsion above all else.
I always wondered how the shaft is sealed against the outside water pressure while being able to rotate? Is there some rubber seal?
So the pipe that feeds compressed air to the ballast tank to allow the sub to surface can get iced up if this "feature" is not controlled. Was that the problem with Thresher?
Great video, learned a lot :) Never would have guessed that a sub was so near zero bouyancy it could be hard getting one to submerge..
A question for you, or anyone who feel inclined to answer:
What if the submarine submerges with say 10% of the ballast still being air, when it gets deeper I'm assuming that airpocket gets smaller and smaller as it gets compresssed, letting more water in and increasing weight. Can this lead to an uncontrolled dive? Or am I fundamentaly wrong?
Excellent video. Would love a follow up that explains how you charge the tanks. For example can you charge while submerged?
Air compressors are a think. They pack air from inside the people tank into the HP Air Banks. Which means when we go up to periscope depth sometimes we ventilate just to put air inside the people tank.
Once ballast is adjusted to submerge, it is mostly propulsion that adjust operating depth. some adjustment of ballast is necessary for trim. when really deep, is there some measurable compression of the sub? requiring ballast adjust?
"Give me three things that run through a ballast tank" probably Leroy - that guy seems to be everywhere
thank you so much for switching to a black background - I couldn't watch the old whiteboard series. I do wish your old content was back online, though.
Fascinating. Subscribed. Do subs have plimsoll lines to ensure the ballast is correct before leaving port? Does the water slosh about in the tanks or is it full to the brim? If it can slosh then do they have baffles to quieten them? Why do they have trim tanks if you could potentially do it all with the main ballast tanks? Is trimming done automatically? Is everything the same in a double skinned sub?
Anchor chain locker
Torpedo tubes and Sonar. I cannot think of a third...
On US boats the tubes are usually run out the side of the boat. But the Sonar dome is there. I am thinking any VLS tubes for missiles. But maybe a towed array system might be external to the pressure hull.
Torpedo tubes he just did a short time ago..
Sonar sphere access tunnel. Several system support piping. Bow planes. VLS launch tubes. Torpedo tubes. MBT vent valves. .fwd O2 banks. Fwd air banks.
Great info! Love to learn the basics of how subs work. I have been reading novels about subs since the 80’s. So I think there are torpedo tubes in there. Perhaps some sonar / listening devises. And of course Tom Clancy’s writing room! Duh!
Sonars, sensors, torps, hatches. Good series. I had forgot this. I will keep this in mind for my models. I wonder if subs experiment with different gas mixtures.
Getting the Daryl disclaimer in right off the start haha, I rate it.
A couple of questions. With the drain grates are how do you keep the grates from making noise when the sun is underway. And you mentioned the ballasting of your boat, if the trim is that sensitive with full forward and aft tanks full, how do you account for the salinity of the water and when you are transitioning from high to low such as going into the Gulf Stream from the Caribbean Sea?
The grates are not loose, they are fastened to the ship so that they don't rattle, but are removable. Salinity changes is most common in the Arctic (ice freezing or melting). Temperature changes are more common (Gulf Stream, or depth). We have what are called Trim tanks that let us bring water in or out and move it around.
Captain's Air Flask. I'd forgotten all about it until you mentioned it. It was a question on my qual board too.
Thanks for the fascinating video.
The grates at the bottom that are permanently open -- don't they create noise via water turbulence?
Trivia!!!
Towed array sonar, torpedo tubes, VLS.
How about a video on buoyancy compensation? Internet needs it. Pumping out when going deeper blows people's minds.
Deep dives on tech/mech get me all hawt.
Very interesting, thanks for making the vid. But this leads to further questions about the compressed air and where it comes from. I assume there are multiple rotary screw compressors on board to replenish the ballast tank air tanks but where does the air come from? One cubic metre at multiple barr pressure inside the ballast air tanks would mean multiple cubic metres of uncompressed air to source the compressed air. Air would be at a premium in a sub I would assume and no one wants to work in a vacuum (literally). Big gulp at the surface?
Things in ballast, torps, diving planes, sonar. Also, maybe trim tanks? Seems like you'd want those far forward and aft to get the most adjustment potential for the least trim ballast. (total guess)
1. Equalizing tube
2. Outer door
3. Muzzle door
Spin up torp!
Also a safety aspect to have grills in the bottom of the ballast tanks. If you have valves there instead and they fail, you can't drain the tank to surface.
Good stuff though. I'm a civilian engineer on submarines and this is all very interesting to watch.
Somewhere, I suspect Silent Service, there was a Depth Charge that exploded not too close but directly under the submarine so that the gasses rose into the grill, displaced the water, and the submarine uncontrollably rose towards the surface.
It makes sense to me that you'd have a fixed opening at the bottom of the ballast tanks rather than a valve. There is no reason you'd ever want them closed. (I guess unless the whole sub is upside down, but I'd say you're already screwed if that's happened!)
Being able to close off the tanks would mean they can be at a different pressure to the exterior which I'm guessing they are not designed to handle and they would either rupture or crush, depending on which direction the pressure differential goes.
torpedo tubes. sonar dome thingy and comm antennas?
VLS, sonar and torpedo tubes?
QUESTION: does the submarine use ballast to control its depth in the water at all? In cold waters i use ballast tanks constantly, is that realistic? Wouldn’t you run out if compressed air if you did use flood and then blow ballast tank constantly.
I feel like this should be sponsored by the us navy. It would be a great recruiting tool for them. As long as they let Aaron create as he liked
4:05: Would your submarine lose a noticeable amount of negative buoyancy through the course a of deployment as munitions and food and other expendable items are consumed?
As you eat through food and throw stuff out the boat does get lighter. They can use the ships Trim system to take care of that.
I had a couple uncles that served on WWII subs. I've been on a couple old subs, not part of the crew. WWII grates had valves. When the valves were left open on the surface they called it riding the vents, It was for faster dives. I wonder if the design change from then to current subs had to do with the Thresher and Scorpion?
With no grate valve, air pressure would have to be maintained on the surface. So what happens during fitting out and overhaul? Or mothballing?
The Thresher and the Scorpion had grates.
The valves at the bottom openings of ballast tanks are called "Kingston valves" in most books I've read on submarines. WWI-era submarines in most navies had them. Friedman's 1994 book "US Submarines Through 1945" writes that Kingston valves were phased out in US submarines mid-WWII.
The bow sonar sphere, the torpedo tubes (except the loading parts), and the VLS Tomahawk tubes (for those that have them).
In some classes, a towed sonar area is stowed in the after ballast tank.
how much pressure in bar is there in those air tanks?
Icbm launch tubes
Sonar, ,torpedotubes and eventually missiletubes for VLS.
Question: How air cylinders are refiled?
No bathing in the ballast tanks Leeroooy!
So many USS Thresher implications.
quick question, does the sub have the ability to repressurize the the blow tanks or are they just filled in port? Thanks.
Can you get rid of the lead weights off the submarine while submerged? The three things:
* Heat exchangers
* Watermaker intake (sort of)
* Antennas
My three choices are Torpedo tubes, missile tubes, and parascopes or other antenna or the snorkel.
Sonar spere / cylindrical array, mooring cleats, and the newer class VLS
Can you charge the ballast air bottles when underway or is this only a dockside job?
Welcome back! Will there be another sonar analysis series as well? 🥹
I assume that the piping is all linked for redundancy. So the aft ballast tanks could be blown by the forward compressed air and vice versa, yes?
The extra lead ballast that was added . Is there a way to drop the extra lead without dropping too much ?
I was wondering about how they solved the freezing problem that doomed the USS Thresher by in the 60s. I do remember a plan of placing a kind of rocket motor that would be used in an emergency to empty the tanks. I doubt if they went thru that at least never heard about it again.
German boats (Type 206, 209) have (had?) a chemical gas generator for emergency blow.
In a way, it is very comforting to know that even with full ballast tanks, the boat would still float.😅
Another idea for a discussion, most subs have forward and stern diveplanes, could you explain when each is used, are they always used in tandom, thx
The bow plane are for main debth control. Stern planes mainly control the bubble or angle of the ship. At higher speeds, stern planes can control debth. Rudder is use to stear the boat and control the coarse.
torpedo tubes and sonar array would have to go through / be in the ballast tank, yes? also the propulsion system / propellor shaft?
with the grates in the bottom, wouldn't this mean if the sub ends up on its back somehow, you can't surface? i guess that would have to have been assessed to be just about impossible, right?
Torpedo tubes, sonar, prop shaft
VLS tubes
@@taco44051 wasn't sure if those would be part of the ballast and they aren't in all subs at the bow which is why I didn't mention them. My parents used to work where they made the sonars. But also with that, not fully sure if it's in a free flood area or would be considered ballast tank
Inside the forward ballast tank...torpedo tubes, anchor locker, forward signal buoy, forward escape hatch?...err, water, bits if that, yeah? Vertical launch tubes? Nemo and Dory, if you're on a Westpac near Australia....
May be a dumb question, but how do you recharge the air tanks? Do you need to surface?
Close eye overwatch on Leroy Jenkins lol
So if the sub is rolled it would lose all the air and sink?
How do you refill the cylinders of high-pressure air? Is it single use once you leave port?
High pressure air compressor
In/through the MBT...
Torpedo tubes
Sonar
Drive shaft
Engine exhaust
...
Icing of the valve that injects HPA into the ballast tank was a factor in the sinking of one of our nuclears subs?
Whats the ballpark safety reserve for the high pressure air for clearing the main ballest tanks ? Ie... 1 clearing charge plus a reserve charge ?
Takes me back to my Part 3 Submarine Qualification in the Royal Navy in 1968. 😉
Torpedo tubes, bow sonar and vertical launch tubes may go through/ be in the ballast tanks.
do the ballast tanks get grungy/ have barnacles from the sea water? how are they cleaned?
I can't speak for now, because now may be different. But Subs go into overhaul (in a drydock) 2 or 3 times over their lives, but also go into drydock every few years for upkeep or repair. When they do this the hull get blasted clean and the tanks also get a good going over.
3:05 Would their ever be a need due to failure or damage to need to dispose of these lead weights in order to serface !? If so. How do you get rid of the lead weights under water ?
1. Torpedo tubes
2. Sonar array
3. VLS?
Did the USS Connecticut lose it's full front ballast compartment when it hit the undersea terrain? Looked like the whole front of the ship ripped off. I assume they were scared for their lives hoping the rear main blow would get them to the surface.
Now to answer your question, torpedo tubes, the main sonar array, and maybe an anchor system? (runner up, some kind of concealed/retractable thruster?)
wasn't the uss conn harrased by chineese asw groups and they "hit" something and they were evading them?
I’m going with the Sonodome, cleats, and the anchor is in there somewhere.
3 things found in main ballast tanks VLS tubes. Sonar Dome. Bow planes.
Sonar, torpedoes, and vls?
When the tanks are blown at great depth (high pressure), are they blown until the water is completely driven from them, or just partially blown, and the air bubble allowed to expand as you go to shallower depth?
Are there soft and hard balist tanks or are they all hard tanks
3 things inside of a ballast tank that are not a part of the ballast system? If it's a 688i or newer then it be Torpedo tubes, Active sonar array, and VLS tubes.