Scuba-diving record to be set in Barents Sea
Expedition divers will use equipment made by Aviation Equipment Holding
The latest technology from Aviation Equipment Holding, a freeze-proof regulator for scuba diving, is headed on the expedition to the Barents Sea to be used in research on the sea bottom and to help set a diving depth record.
The agreement was reached at a meeting with members of the Antarctica 100 expedition on January 21. Earlier, another development from the company, the LAM-17 device, has successfully endured the harsh conditions of Antarctica. Tehno-divers plunged to a record depth down the mouth of an active volcano with a water temperature of -3 degrees Celsius.
The new LAM-21 pressure regulator and the BP-173 air breathing device, which are component parts of the Morzh (Walrus) (self-contained underwater breathing apparatus (SCUBA)), are intended to be used for even lower temperatures and longer immersion.
The pressure regulator and breathing device, which are component parts of the SCUBA Morzh (developed by NPP Respirator, a member of the Aviation Equipment Holding) are headed on the next expedition to set the dive record. The agreement was reached at a meeting with participants of the Antarctica 100 Project, which was held on January 21, 2015.
The last record dive from a Kazan team was made in Antarctica, and it plans to conduct its next exploratory mission in 2015 in the Barents Sea. In 2016, they will also make an expedition to the White Sea and the Antarctic. In the future, our divers plan, with the help of Russian developments, to establish deep-diving records in all 13 seas, to which the Russian Federation has access.
The newest Morzh aqualung, which comes with a LAM-21 pressure regulator and the world's first springless regulator, the BP-173, keeps the breathing device from freezing in extreme cold conditions and can reliably operate at temperatures down to -4 degrees C for at least two hours. Thanks to this new technology, the pressure regulator has become easier and more reliable than its counterparts or predecessors. In addition, springless technology has reduced the overall weight of the equipment.
The biggest achievement of the device is that there are no existing analogues that can handle such severe freezing temperatures
The main problem for dives at low temperatures is the freezing of the vapor from the diver’s breath – it can shut off the air from the oxygen cylinder. This problem was solved by NPP Respirator Holding, and the enterprise’s scuba gear can be successfully used by professional divers, rescue workers, techno-divers, and especially amateur divers diving under the ice. Production and testing of diving equipment was conducted by NPP Respirator under extremely harsh military and civilian requirements for product quality and safety.
“It should be noted that the aqualung with low temperature upgrades is required primarily for the study of the Arctic shelf, and it can also be used by the Russian Emergencies Ministry to conduct underwater operations related to the monitoring of conditions, removing or localizing the potential hazards caused by certain dangerous underwater objects in order to protect the population and off-shore areas from emergency cases, said the Deputy Chief of the GPS MES St. Petersburg University of Russia for Science Denis Minkin. “The main advantage of this apparatus is that the temperature conditions the equipment provides has no analogues, and therefore, it will be used for the most demanding conditions.’’
Currently, the possibility of using the Morzh aqualung to rescue officers in Yakutia, the Murmansk region, and other regions is under consideration. In addition, the use of Morzh aqualungs in Arctic expeditions, under the patronage of the famous explorer of the Arctic and Antarctic Artur Chilingarov, is being discussed as well.