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Grains Of Salty Truth


Flashermac
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The Navy does use evaporators, ships like, USNS Yano, USNS Shughart, USNS Stockham, USNS Watson (the entire Watson class, all ships built in San Diego where I worked on the new builds for three years, 8 ships in total for this class)...I was on all these ships plus many more.

 

 

No idea about the 80's but on the four I was on for some time in the 2000's and also talking the the Navy people here, evaporators went the way of the dinosaurs in the 90s due to energy use and maintenance.. and yes, size. Like you said, a ROPU is essentially a filter and a high pressure pump. USMC's portable ROPUS are about the size of a VW Beetle and produce about 5000 g/day. I was told the ones on the air craft carriers make 500,000..!

 

There are several ideas about drinking the "correct" pH of water. I don't have a pH meter, so no idea

the pH of the RO water that I drink.

 

I actually like things a bit sour, lime is great for many drinks! the Chinese black vinegar goes nice with

some Thai dishes that might be a bit oily.

 

It should be close to 7 - 8 at the source. And remember, homeostasis will change every thing you ingest to the correct ph for your body in your gut or expel it. (We called that a case of the Mexican Ass in the teams.)

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The Watson Class ships, were new builds, built in the last 90's and early 2000's.

 

NAVSEA specs all the ships so it was their decision for the evaporators.

 

As for economy, often the exhaust from the ships engines powered the evaporators, so zero cost as far a power for the evaporators. This was a very common design for ships even in to the 2000's.

For maintenance, I would often see the 3rd engineer or the QMEDs chipping away on the evaporators, not fun, but mindless

work, no special talents needed.

 

Also for economy, the older ships, USNS Yano, etc were powered by slow turn diesels (~100 RPM, max) and the Navy loved them as the heavy oil they burned was much cheaper then the jet fuel used by the newer, Watson Class. We pulled in to Rotterdam and filled up, 3,000,000 gallons of jet fuel...someone had a gold visa card!

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Ok I was wrong. My SrChief (retired last year and joined us) corrected me.

 

Many of the US ACs laid down in the 90s do still have some 'vaporators on them, but are slowly being converted to ropu as they come in for re-fits. All subs now have ropu on them as does anything laid down in after about 2000.

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The ACs are a class of their own. Many are nukes now. Before they were gas turbines (jet aircraft engines) and I won't

date myself (lol) with what they were before the GTs. 555555555555555

 

I would expect the subs to go with ROPU as so as possible as the subs are a completely different world. Power is such

a premium not to mention air to breathe!

 

I have seen the small plastic packet that you can throw into the most nasty water and it will filter and store potable water!

Amazing items are out there, to be sure!!!

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I have seen the small plastic packet that you can throw into the most nasty water and it will filter and store potable water!

 

Unless you are talking about a Solar Still (In which case you need to define "nasty.") I've never heard of it. What is it called? How does that work?

 

(There was a thing called "life straw" or something like that a few years ago. Did ok for biologics but proved seriously useless in testing as it did nothing for virus or non-biologic waste. And did nothing for salt water.)

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The demo video showed a plastic pack, about the size of a 1 qt zip lock bag. They threw it into a puddle of muddy water

and later showed the clean drinking water.

 

Looked interesting but no data if it took out nasties (bacteria, mold, fungus, virus, etc). Maybe used in Africa? maybe the US

military is / has used them?

 

If it works as such, nifty invention!

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Australia used to sell a lot of micro-membrane/UV filtration units to the USA, I remember a scene from severe flooding and Mississippi broken the banks, no drinking water, so someone flew this machine in, sucks up Mississippi mud and out comes a litres of pure water the other end, the speed was pretty amazing

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I am pretty sure someone from the VFW sent me some info on that...call it a "suck bag" for now...I see "Squeeze" bags but this

one, the person just threw it into a muddy puddle and soon enough he had clean drinking water...

 

Good thing I have a photographic memory...only the recall sucks... :dunno:

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