Low Hydrodynamic Drag Cable for Mine Countermeasures

When ships are at sea food waste can be disposed of by simply dumping it over the side. When they are in port the wastes must be either stored for later disposal or consigned to a commercial waste handler. Both of these options put limitations on theships. The system proposed here will permit the ship to safely dispose of food waste in any location through closed incineration in a molten salt incinerator. An incinerator with a volume of 45 liters is sufficient to dispose of the waste produced by 400sailors in a mess. A molten salt incinerator operates by rapidly heating the waste to a temperature between 700 and 1,000 ¿C in an oxidizing atmosphere through the use of a molten salt bath as a heat transfer agent. The waste is completely mineralized inseconds and the gases are ready to expel. Because the combustion is complete, the exhaust will meet air qual-ity standards in most areas.The development of the proposed molten salt incinerator will not only solve a growing problem for the U. S. Navy, itwill offer an improved waste handling system for many of the 87,000 ships that ply the worlds navigable waters today. The same system that is proposed here for the Navy is suitable for use on cruise ships, permitting them to rapidly and efficientlydispose of food waste, even in environmentally sensitive areas such as Alaska's inland passage.