[Heiwa]

@Lark 24 Dec 23:35. What types of ionizing radiation, alpha, beta, gamma, and x-rays, did you record with your meter? And what doses did you measure?
How much radiation have you received 2011?

[Lark]

The meter I used on the pipes will detect gamma and beta radiation, but mostly gamma because the betas inside the pipe will not penetrate it I am told. I use another one on people and equipment that detects mostly beta radiation.

I cannot say how radioactive the pipes were that I surveyed, that is classified. But it was low. I have about 140 millirem for 2011.

[Lark]

Interesting time today. I was observing maintenance on a motor that operates control rods of one of the reactors here. The radiation levels were higher than anything I have seen before. The metal was still shiny and new looking. I was told that the metal itself was radioactive due to the neutron flux and not contamination from the coolant. Special pieces of shielding were used to protect the people working on the motor so we did not get much radiation exposure.

It looks like I may get out of the paint shop for good. I am not able to get into the monitoring division yet, but I was told I have a good chance of transferring to the nuclear machine shop.

[Lark]

A few months ago I admitted to having doubts about nuclear powered ships, but from what I have seen, I am convinced that they really do run on nuclear power. It really is kind of impressive that they can put so much stuff into a small space on a submarine. One sailer I talked to said being out to sea on a sub was like being in an apartment all the time with the curtains shut, but hotter and noisier. Going out to sea is not the life for me that is for sure.

[FirstClassSkeptic]

You haven't convinced me, Lark. Telling me that there's diesel engines and batteries on the sub hasn't helped any to convince me.

[Lark]

I was just saying I was convinced. Those subs are kind of amazing, so I am not expecting others to just believe they do what the navy says they can do. Looking at how it is all put together, it makes sense how things work on it. At first it was very complicated, but I can see now that the steam plant is just an alternative to diesel engines that does not need an air supply.

[Lark]

The thing is that the diesel engine and the battery power small electric motors that are much smaller than the steam engines. There is no way a sub could go much faster than a walk unless the steam engines were turning the shaft. It has to be the turbines that do it. The turbines are powered by steam and the reactor heats the water to make the steam.

[Lark]

Myself and some other guys helped carry some lead shielding into one of the reactor compartments on the USS Reagan carrier today. We have to move in a total of about 30 tons I was told. We will be lining the decks and pipes with the lead sheets and blankets to reduce the radiation levels where people are working. It is lots of work but some of the radiation levels really go down alot when the lead is put in place.

[Exorcist]

I found a book on submarine recycling in the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard. It has lots of info on cutting up submarines and it is unclassified. If anyone wants to know more about turning submarines into razor blades, please let me know.

It has always been my life's ambition to know more about turning submarines into razor blades. Please educate me and provide a link to the ISBN number so I can order one from Amazon.

[rerevisionist]

A quick Google gives quite a bit online about nuclear submarine recycling, e.g.
http://armscontrol.ru/subs/disposal/proe1210.htm
I doubt if any of it is reliable. It looks as though the things are left untouched for quite long periods of time, nominally to let the radiation reduce; or something. However, with budgets in the billions or trillions I doubt whether there would be any urgency about anything. What I'd like to see is actual evidence of the things being dismantled, or the boiler area being thoroughly checked; and something tells me this won't be forthcoming.

[Lark]

The parts of the article that talk about the American subs seems to be accurate but I have no idea about the Russian subs. I did not see anything that was wrong compared to what I read about or heard from other people in the shipyard.

The USS Triton sat around since the 1960's before it was cut up. It had forward and aft reactor compartments that shared a common wall and the rules say that a reactor compartment is always posted or gaurded as a high radiation area no matter what the radiation levels are. The radiation levels were really low but they still had to get special permission to depost the high radiation area so they could cut the two compartments apart. After this was done they welded caps on the ends of each hull section and put them on barges. I was able to watch one of the caps being welded on and saw another compartment being lifted onto a barge in the drydock.

I will look for a book on cutting up subs that is like the one we have here in the shipyard.

[Lark]

I found this on Amazon.com I have not read it so I have no idea if it is reliable.

http://www.amazon.com/United-States-Nav ... 69&sr=8-16