Composite Torpedo Components

"The Mk-48 Mod 5 ADCAP is the U.S. Navy's primary submarinelaunched acoustic homing torpedo. The submarine fleet utilizesover 500 Mk-48 Fleet Exercise Torpedoes to provide realisticcombat training. The fleet exercise torpedoes are fired duringtraining exercises and retrieved for refurbishment and reuse.Metallic components such as the fuel tank are exposed toseawater, and subject to continuing corrosion damage thatrequires expensive inspection, repair and replacement of theeffected components. The Navy also has a need to increase therange of the training torpedo to more closely simulate actualtorpedo warshots. Any weight reduction will allow foradditionalfuel, which will increase torpedo range while maintainingpositive buoyancy. Texas Research Institute Austin, Inc.proposesto develop advanced high strength, lightweight, compositematerials and innovative designs that will reduce operationalcosts by replacing corrosion prone metallic torpedo componentswith corrosion resistant components while providing asignificantweight reduction. During Phase II a thorough survey andevaluation of the entire torpedo design will be conducted toidentify potential torpedo replacement components, and acomposite torpedo fuel tank will be designed, fabricated, testedand qualified to demonstrate the benefits of replacing metallictorpedo components with composites.BENEFITS: Development of high performance, lightweight, corrosion resistant composites have i