Susan Swithenbank from the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) confirms that she is indeed involved in 'The Hunt for Red October'.
The 1990 Sean Connery film featured a Soviet submarine - Red October - with a near-silent propulsion system, making detection extremely hard.
Thirty years on from the movie, Darpa is developing an aquatic propulsion system akin to the "caterpillar drive" mentioned in the film.
The MHD drive, which contains no moving parts, is powered solely by magnets and electric current.
This works by generating a magnetic field perpendicular to an electric current. This produces the Lorentz force, which in turn acts on the sea water and drives the vessel forward.
Without the need for propellers or a drive shaft stirring the liquid, a MHD drive in operation could offer rapid journey times with total quietness.
Engineers have been trying to develop MHD drives for some time, the initial idea having originated in the 1960s.
In 1992, the Japanese Ship and Ocean Foundation constructed Yamato-1, a craft measuring 30m in length designed to analyze the efficiency of a MHD drive.
Despite the strenuous effort, the Yamato-1 was only able to creep at a rate of 6.6 knots. This required a large expenditure of energy.
Researchers assert that the project revealed that a drive is operable and yielded valuable information.
Hiromitsu Kitagawa, who is a visiting research fellow at the Ocean Policy Research Institute (which is part of the Japanese Ship and Ocean Foundation), states that authentic data about flaws and shortcomings, as well as what should be done for the next Yamato-2, should be gathered.
It was demonstrated by the Yamato project that stronger magnets and tougher electrodes - those components that interact with the water - would be required.
Ms Swithenbank believes that the first issue can potentially be resolved in the present, thanks to the nuclear fusion industry's new set of magnets.
The reaction that provides power to stars is known as fusion. On earth, in order to initiate it, extremely powerful magnets are used to contain the heated plasma that is being swirled about.
The pressure created by these new magnets has been said to be equivalent to that of twice the depth of the deepest ocean trench.
Despite the presence of more potent magnets, the issue of protecting the electrodes has yet to be resolved.
When seawater and an electrical current are present, metal can corrode quicker than usual. Additionally, there are specific types of magnetic field that have the same result.
Analysis on the Yamato-1 revealed that the electrodes were diminishing by approximately 3% annually.
Jeffrey Long, a chemist at the US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) specialising in batteries, is planning to join colleague Zachary Neale in the Darpa programme.
He points out that if you've ever put paper clips in a container of salt water connected to a 9-volt battery, then you'd be aware that the liquid changes colour due to the metal corroding.
Essentially, we need electrodes that will remain intact despite the high electrical current density needed for them to function properly.
In recent years, improvements in coatings from fuel cell and battery industries have made it possible to solve this issue.
In spite of these advancements, other issues persist.
When a current is run through seawater, the bond between hydrogen and oxygen is broken, leading to the production of gas bubbles on the electrodes. The resulting resistance reduces the efficiency of the MHD.
The fuel cell industry's gas-diffusing electrodes must be tested to see if they are viable solutions. Additionally, other methods must also be explored to prevent the build-up of bubbles.
In conclusion, Ms Swithenbank reminds us that corrosion due to collapsing bubbles resulting in pitting is like having sandpaper on the electrode. Fortunately, advancements from other industries offer encouraging signs.
Businesses are utilizing more technology than ever before. Companies are finding new and innovative ways to use technology to improve their operations and increase profitability. From cloud computing and data analytics to artificial intelligence and machine learning, businesses are discovering new methods of enhancing their operations with the help of technology.
The Darpa team will be able to reap immense benefits if they are able to solve the issues.
MHD drives, with no moving parts, should necessitate significantly less maintenance when compared to present propulsion systems.
Ms Swithenbank points out the primary motivation for the public's enthusiasm is the fact that, due to the absence of moving parts, the product is much more tranquil. This feature has shown to be a great asset for military purposes.
A more tranquil system, with no hazardous propellers in motion, might be advantageous to wildlife too.
Starting in the springtime, a two-year effort to create electrode materials will launch the project. This will be followed by 18 months allocated to create, construct, and trial the drive.
The goal is to create a MHD drive prototype that is capable of powering a small ship, but that has the potential to be enlarged in order to power a container ship or a military vessel.
The drive would need to show that it is as energy efficient as existing propeller systems.
Ms Swithenbank does not anticipate that this will be employed in commercial vessels within the next five years, although she is of the opinion that it could eventually be viable in the future.
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