Study on the Implosion of Composite Pressure-Resistant Structure Under Different External Conditions

Abstract Submersibles, as key technological equipment for deep-sea exploration, face the risk of implosion in their pressure-resistant structures under high-pressure working environments. Therefore, it is necessary to conduct relevant implosion protection research. In our previous studies, a ceramic pressure-resistant structure with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) was proposed, and the superior performance of this structure compared to that of a single ceramic sphere was demonstrated in terms of lightweight and implosion protection effects. Based on this composite pressure-resistant structure, this work has carried out further simulation calculations and parameter discussions, aiming to study the influence of environmental pressure and inductive conditions on the fluid-structure interaction response of implosion. Firstly, the 3D Hashin criterion and the maximum principal stress criterion are used to describe the failure of CFRP and ceramic respectively, and the arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) method is adopted to simulate the fluid-structure interaction process. The accuracy of the simulation method is verified by comparison with experiments. Subsequently, to better simulate the implosion response under different working sea depths, the environmental pressure is changed. The flow field response results and structural failure modes under different environmental pressures are summarized. Furthermore, we discuss the influence of inductive conditions on the implosion response results and compare the response differences of the structure under unilateral impact and bilateral impact at the same environmental pressure. In summary, this work can provide a reference for implosion protection design and promote the application of composite pressure-resistant structures in practical engineering.