Toray to provide prepreg carbon fiber for OceanGate submersibles

 

OceanGate Inc. (Everett, Wash., U.S.) a provider of manned submersible services reported on March 23 that it has selected Toray Composite Materials America Inc. (CMA, Tacoma, Wash., U.S.), as the preferred provider of aerospace-grade prepreg carbon fiber material for use in the manufacturing of new carbon fiber pressure vessels for use in deep-sea manned submersibles.

Production of the new pressure vessels is scheduled to begin later this year.

“CMA has been a long-time trusted supplier to the aerospace industry and is a world-leader in the development and innovation of prepreg composite materials. Their experienced team and extensive knowledge of composite materials will play a critical role as we develop the next generation of manned submersible, to usher in a new era of exploration using aerospace quality composites,” says Stockton Rush, OceanGate CEO.

“In order to provide the most effective solutions to build equipment for new markets … we must use high-performance composite materials in equipment designs that can withstand extremely high external pressures, target depth will be 4,500 meters below sea level, where the hull will withstand pressures of 6,600 psi. This project with OceanGate is one that not only allows us to use our materials in a new way, but to also provide technology that will help advance the understanding of our planet and the vast unexplored regions below the surface of Earth’s oceans,” says Philip Schell, CMA vice president of industrial sales.

On Feb. 26, OceanGate announced that it is collaborating with NASA on the manufacture of carbon fiber pressure vessels for its submersibles.