The submersible OceanGate Titan, the first deep-sea vessel with a hull made primarily of carbon fiber, recently imploded in the Atlantic, resulting in the loss of five crew members. Experts, including Arun Bansil, a distinguished physics professor at Northeastern University, are exploring the possibility that the ship’s experimental carbon-fiber hull, built in just six weeks, could have been a key factor in the disaster.
The submersible OceanGate Titan imploded in the Atlantic, killing five crew members. The investigations focus on the experimental carbon fiber hull, a first for deep-sea vessels, as a possible cause. While carbon fiber composites offer advantages such as light weight and high strength, their ability to withstand the pressures of the deep sea has not been adequately explored, highlighting the need for further research and testing for such applications.
With the wreckage of the OceanGate Titan submersible now in authorities’ possession, investigators are working hard to uncover (quite literally) what led to the ship imploding in the Atlantic Ocean more than two weeks ago.
Northeastern Global News has previously spoken to Arun Bansil, a distinguished physics professor at Northeastern University, to try and better understand what exactly might have happened in all those depths below the surface where the five Titan crew members died.
One possible explanation was widely debated: the ship’s experimental carbon fiber hull, which the company reportedly refurbished in just six weeks.
Northeastern Global News reached out to Bansil again for a brief review (and history) of the use of carbon fiber materials in deep sea craft. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Arun Bansil, distinguished university professor of physics, poses for a portrait at the ISEC building. Photo Credit: Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University
There has been a lot of talk about the carbon fiber composition of the titanium submersible. Can you explain why carbon fiber material might not withstand deep sea pressure as well as titanium, aluminum and steel?
For components that require light weight and high strength, carbon fiber-based composites have been successfully developed for use in the aerospace, automotive, sports, medical, and consumer industries.
However, in deep sea applications this is not the case and steel, titanium and aluminum are often used in the manufacture of pressure hulls.
Titan was the first deep-sea craft with a hull made primarily of carbon fiber. The ability of carbon fibers to withstand repeated stress cycles, particularly compressive stress, under deep sea pressures is not well understood, making it difficult to construct safe carbon fiber based hulls.
When assessing the failure of titanium, the damaging effects of water absorption on the epoxy resin that binds the carbon fibers in the composite should also be considered.
Since when has carbon fiber been considered a suitable material for this type of watercraft?
It appears that around 2000 adventurer Steve Fossett began researching the use of carbon fiber for the hull of a one-person submersible to dive to the bottom of the Challenger Deep, the deepest point in the Mariana Trench at about 36,000 feet.
The DeepFlight Challenger submersible, commissioned by Fossett, has not been tested or deployed. Titan was the first deep-sea submersible with a carbon fiber hull.
Why are companies experimenting with these new materials and are there other alternatives that have shown promise?
New materials are the backbone upon which transformative advances in science and technology are made. Carbon fibers offer many advantages over metals such as high strength, low weight and corrosion resistance.
Titan had made several dives to the Titanic shipwreck and we should withhold judgment on the main trigger for its implosion pending the ongoing investigations.
I anticipate that at some point researchers will develop carbon fiber-based materials for deep-sea applications, along with test protocols for the safe operation of the submersibles.
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