Suit Stories 2 - The Nuclear Balloon Suit (1481 hits)
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Submitted by skrapmetal (View user info) at 2005-12-23 07:32:17 EST
Suit Stories 1 - The Poopy Suit http://www.ubersite.com/m/81238
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This too is a true story.
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A Balloon Suit is an airtight plastic suit with gloves, boots, and hood. It has an attachment for a low-pressure filtered air supply so the wearer is able to breathe in the suit. The air supply is actually a fitting that is alternately connected and disconnected from a series of air hoses laid out as needed to allow the wearer to move around. There is a small valve at the base of the front of the hood to allow air out. It is called a "Balloon Suit" because the valve maintains a slight positive pressure inside the suit. A Nuclear Balloon Suit is a suit of the same design save that the plastic is much thicker and impregnated with additional radiation-absorbing materials. The Nuclear Balloon Suit is yellow in color with a clear-fronted hood. Inside either version a headset radio may be worn for communication.
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Reactor Compartments are not for the slightly claustrophobic
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Some years ago I served in the US Navy, as a Machinist's Mate. As it happens I had qualified to go through Naval Nuclear Power School, so I did. Passed. Went on to Nuclear Prototype training. Passed that, too.
After being trained in Nuclear Physics and Mechanical Engineering Technology (there is a substantial difference between education and training that I may explore in another post) to the extent that I was deemed able to operate the mechanical portion of a nuclear reactor at sea, I was assigned to a ship.
I worked in the #1 propulsion and generation plant, RM Division. "RM" stands for "Reactor Mechanical" - that means I know how to operate the 'hot' side systems where 'hot' means 'potentially radioactive' in addition to all the usual steam-driven propulsion and generation equipment. My bud Ralph, also in an RM division, was assigned to #4 plant. We didn't work together often since we were assigned to different plants but when there was serious work to be done all the plants worked together. This snippet of life takes place during one of these "all the plants work together" instances.
Fission in nuclear fuel generates a lot of heat. That heat is carried off by pumped, pressurized water to a heat exchanger. It is pumped through the inside of tubes in this heat exchanger. Outside these tubes is water at a lower pressure. It boils, generating steam to drive turbines for propulsion or driving electrical generators or launching planes or heating shower water or whatever. The advantage in this design is that the steam contains no water vapor that has been exposed to nuclear radiation inside a reactor.
The 'hot' side of the heat exchanger is filled with water that has been exposed to nuclear radiation inside a reactor. On rare occasions there's wiping to be done there, too (here's a tease: part of the difference between education and training is the amount of wiping you have to do). It's not as easy as donning a Poopy Suit and diving in, however.
While in port for an extended period of time, a cleaning of the 'hot side' of the heat exchangers was scheduled. Ralph and I and many others were assigned to do the actual cleaning. Cleaning involved donning a protective Nuclear Balloon Suit, entering the Reactor Compartment, and using clean, dry, lint-free nuclear-grade rags (yes, there is such a thing as a nuclear-grade rag; there's such a thing as nuclear-grade duct tape too, but that is yet another post) to wipe the inside of the Heat Exchangers (arms and hands only, please) for a short period of time.
A flexible hose supplies water used for cleaning. The water, once used, is evacuated by a suction device that operates on compressed air, like a bigger version of the drool sucker at the dentist's office. These water and air lines are routed to the cleaning area along the floor of a temporarily-installed plastic tunnel between the prep area (where we all put on our Nuclear Balloon Suits) and the heat exchanger we were to be wiping out. Also through that tunnel, though along the overhead, ran the low-pressure breathing air supply with the air drops spaced frequently along the way.
I did my bit inside, wiping for the prescribed time. I radioed that I was on my way out. Ralph was next in line, and he went in to do his wiping. Ralph is slightly claustrophobic. A few minutes later, Ralph radioed that he was on his way out. The tunnel is not long, but it curves around equipment such that the exit is not visible from the Heat Exchanger.
Ralph was a bit panicky after being in the Nuclear Balloon Suit and wedged into an access to a Heat Exchanger for even that short time. He unplugged his air hose and began making toward the exit. I guess he got a bit turned around, and he radioed that he couldn't find a breathing air hose to which he could reconnect his air supply. We all laughed because the exit was only about 20 feet away. The staging area leader told Ralph, via the radio, to just come out. Ralph yelled "There's no air! I can't breathe! I can't breathe!" into the radio. We could see the plastic walls of the tunnel moving as Ralph staggered around. Finally he staggered into view of the exit and all of us. He was facing the wrong way. He again yelled "There's no air!" and then he looked down. He saw an air fitting, grabbed it, and tried to connect to his breathing air hose. He said "I've got it! I'm OK!"
Breathing air fittings are small and carry low pressure. Tool air fittings are large and carry high pressure. They do not fit together.
Ralph began to panic even more as the fittings would not connect. He turned around, saying "I can't get it! I can't..." He apparently made them start to fit together to some extent, because with a very audible FOOP! the Nuclear Balloon Suit inflated like a Macy's Parade display. The pressure made the arms and legs of the Suit immediately fully extend with Ralph's arms and legs in them, so he looked like a big yellow Gingerbread Man. This also caused him to flick the tool air hose away.
His face had a look of shock and surprise. Our faces were convulsed with laughter. The valve near the hood was allowing the pressure out slowly and in a few seconds Ralph was able to move again. I have never heard such cursing (and I was in the Navy, mind you) as Ralph emitted as he was exiting and going through the long process of doffing the Nuclear Balloon Suit.
Two years later when Ralph was leaving the ship for the last time so he could go be a Civilian again, several of us who had witnessed the event and many more who had heard the story (and mercilessly chided Ralph about it since) gathered on the Hangar Bay. He walked, smiling and redfaced, past 20 or so fellow RM types with our arms held wide apart, cheeks filled with air, eyes wide in a look of surprise.
Happy [your holiday- or vacation period-specific name here], y'all.
Nuclear Balloon Suit (sketch)
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User Reviews
Submitted by BobSandwich (user info) at 2008-07-30 12:38:38 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Brdn_Nkd (user info) at 2007-12-19 13:02:55 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by The_Last_Prophet (user info) at 2006-01-10 22:36:34 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
No Comment
Submitted by MrSparkle847 (user info) at 2005-12-23 12:58:01 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
FOOP!
Submitted by LadyPlural (user info) at 2005-12-23 12:35:11 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
And, Lord, we're especially thankful for nuclear power, the cleanest,
safest energy source there is, except for solar, which is just a pipe
dream.
-- Homer Simpson
Bart vs. Thanksgiving
Submitted by LadyPlural (user info) at 2005-12-23 11:22:59 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Heh. Heh. You said 'impregnate'.
Heh.
Submitted by HighVoltage900 (user info) at 2005-12-23 10:05:07 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
If you hook me up with one of the suits I will AUTO +2 everything you do from now on till infinity.
Submitted by freebie (user info) at 2005-12-23 09:33:35 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
good one.
Submitted by matnotharry (user info) at 2005-12-23 08:46:04 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
plus two for you
Submitted by BLITZKREIG_BOB (user info) at 2005-12-23 08:40:26 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by FartSmeller (user info) at 2005-12-23 08:38:55 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Great story. I'm assuming you're going to be doing CBR suits here shortly?
Submitted by Nellypaal (user info) at 2005-12-23 08:03:15 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
I want a pic of the inflated Ralph!
I slated suit story 1 but loved this.