Videos from the US Coast Guard support my published opinion that the Titan viewport at the front of the submarine shattered to cause a series of shock waves to obliterate the submarine. I do not accept, and the facts do not support, the incorrect analysis that an implosion alone destroyed the Titan submarine.
Once the viewport cracked, a surge of water entered, and a shock wave from the impacted aft hemisphere, or rear bulkhead, then blasted the hemispherical titanium nose, or bow, and most of the carbon fiber hull away from the submarine (Figure 1). Then, when the hull was ruptured, the extreme forces from the water pressure blasted some portions of the hull back into the vessel. See "The Titan Explosion - The Press Crushes Scientific Research" for a simplified explanation of estimated pressures. The Press continues to incorrectly mold public opinion concerning the Titan submarine implosion by claiming that an implosion of the hull occurred into the submarine.
Conclusions From Photographic Data
Titan photos are slowly being released to the public, and these photos conclude that an implosion of the viewport caused internal pressures to explode the shell of the Titan. Although I disagree with the conclusions of other published articles, those articles provide excellent videos and drawings of the Titan ("OceanGate Titan Sub Debris Video Shows How It Imploded", https://www.youtube.com/live/cFQGJKsN-Pg; and "Titan Submersible and how it Imploded... parts of submersible recovered 1600 feet from the Titanic", .youtube.com/live/2N2cCCeenZk).
The unpressurized aft section, or tail cone, of the Titan clearly exploded outward, and most of the pressurized forward hull section was completely blown away from the body of the submarine. Facts continue to support the conclusion that the viewport implosion and resultant explosion blew the Titan apart.
For clarification, consider Figure 2, which was withheld from us for more than a year by the Coast Guard. The aft section is shown to have expanded due to an explosion inside the hull as water near-instantaneously filled the hull. There is a metal hemisphere installed at each end of the hull, which forms the forward section of the submarine. The forward hemisphere, or nose, was blasted away from the Titan hull due to an internal explosion. Part of the forward hull section is shown with the rear hemisphere, or aft dome, still attached. Some hull debris is shown, blasted into this aft hemisphere along with residual equipment from the submarine. Inductive reasoning proves that an implosion alone could not have destroyed the Titan.
Figure 2. Titan Submarine damages observed on the ocean floor..
(Image by US Coast Guard) Details DMCA
A Flawed Implosion Conclusion
If the 5-inch-thick hull had compressed inward during an implosion due to an initial fatigue crack of the hull, the imploding hull could have possibly increased the internal hull pressure to blast-off the forward hemisphere and obliterate the viewport. At the same time, this increasing pressure could have slammed the aft hemisphere into the aft section of the Titan to cause the damage shown in Figure 2. Also, sections of the ruptured hull could have bounced off the sub to leave some of the residual hull material near the submarine. More importantly, part of the hull construction is bent outward (shown at the bottom of Figure 2); an inward compressive force cannot explain this bending in the opposite direction of the applied pressure on the outside of the hull, and the assumption of an implosion is fundamentally flawed.
An Improved Implosion - Explosion - Implosion Conclusion
An explosive shock wave induced by the crashing viewport explains the required pressures to bend part of the hull section outward. All of the other damages are explained by this shock wave as well, e.g. the forward hemisphere blown away, the aft hemisphere driven into the aft section to force a split at the very back, or after end, of the Titan, and the fact that most of the hull was blown away.
The facts are clear:
1) A fatigue crack obliterated the viewport.
2) High-pressure water slammed into the back of the pressurized hull section to pass that force into the aft section to spit the aft section along its length.
3. A reflected pressure wave from the aft bulkhead, or back hemisphere, and other surfaces exploded outward.
4) Due to the physics of reflected shock waves, these newly created outward-going shock waves were much higher than the external underwater pressure near the Titan.
5) These shock waves blew off the front hemisphere and blew out the hull. This hemisphere landed close to the forward section of the exploded hull, where the hemispheres were attached to the carbon hull during construction with an adhesive (Figure 3).
6) As the hull explosively expanded the pressure of the water may have pushed some of the hull back into the submarine.
7) This action could have captured some of the hull before it was blasted away from the submarine, but seats and occupants could have been blasted toward the aft hemisphere. This item cannot be confirmed since the Coast Guard withholds pertinent information from the public.
8) The Titan debris was spread over more than 1000 feet by 400 feet of the ocean floor, which is consistent with an explosion ("CG-103 Titan Debris Field Chart_Redacted.Pdf").
9) Earlier pressure calculations my be significantly underestimated, where water hammer theory is expected to have major effects on hull pressures. A detailed Fluent/Ansys/Autodyne model is recommended to actually understand what happened to the Titan. Models to date are inadequate and the assumed initial hull implosion is incorrect.
Figure 3. Titan nose and passenger section settled near ech other on the ocena floor, t where the hemispheres were attached to the hull with an adhesive.
(Image by US Coast Guard) Details DMCA
Letters to Assist the Coast Guard Investigation
The US Coast Guard did not answer the following letter.
"The Titan Explosion - The Press Crushes Scientific Research", 10/15/2023
Dear Sirs;
As an expert in fluid dynamics, shock waves, and structural dynamics, I have conclusions that vary from the current theory published by the Press to explain the Titan explosion. The plastic viewport imploded to explode the Titan hull outwards. Please consider this alternative research as your investigation progresses. See "The Titan Explosion - The Press Crushes Scientific Research".
Even though my recommendations were previously unanswered by the Coast Guard, these new findings bear consideration. Assuming that I am correct, plastic shards from the viewport will be found within the debris at the aft hemisphere. A release of information from the Coast Guard with respect to debris at the aft hemisphere is required for confirmation. If I am wrong, then one of the many other theories about the Titan fatalities will be proven possible.
The following letter was sent to the Marine Board when this article was published.
The Titan Submarine - A Viewport Implosion, A Hull Explosion, And Then A Hull Implosion , 9/27/2024
My independent research concludes that the current theory of a carbon fiber hull implosion, by itself, is incorrect. Please consider the OpEd News articles, "The Titan Submarine - A Viewport Implosion, A Hull Explosion, And Then A Hull Implosion - Not Just a Hull Implosion", and "The Titan Explosion - The Press Crushes Scientific Research".
Also, further release of Titan Disaster facts by the Coast Guard would permit a more complete evaluation. Specifically, information about the debris contents located at the aft hemisphere of the Titan confirms or denies theory presented here.
(Article changed on Oct 01, 2024 at 12:23 AM EDT)
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