Diver Worn Equipment for Diving in Chemical/Biological, Toxic Industrial Chemical and Toxic Industrial Material (TIC/TIM)

Terrorist attacks (e.g. USS Cole, chemical and biological warfare) and accident recovery (e.g. TWA 800, Ehime Maru) can require extensive Navy dive operations in contaminated, hazardous environments. However, current diving equipment was not designed to operate in such conditions, much less protect divers from exposure to contaminants in the water. These environments are so severe that equipment deteriorates to the point of breakthrough and failure in a matter of minutes, threatening the safety of the diver as well as the mission. Divers working in these conditions need robust equipment, such as Paragon’s proposed Regulated Surface Exhaust (RSE) system, that provides reliable protection and isolation from hazardous materials. Phase I results from laboratory tests and analysis of critical components show that the Navy’s dive equipment can be modified to act like a spacesuit, completely isolating the diver from the water. Further, extensive material compatibility and permeability testing conducted by Paragon identified materials that can be used to replace the vulnerable exposed soft parts of the diving system. Existing Navy diving equipment can be cost effectively modified with a field deployable retrofit kit, providing reliable isolation from contaminated, hazardous environments. The Phase II objective is to provide a tested prototype retrofit kit.