Xinhua News Agency, "Deep Sea No. 1", October 28th, Title: Behind the "Jiaolong" dive

Xinhua News Agency reporters Ye Haoming and Li Xin

In the high seas of the Pacific Ocean, darkness covers the sea, but the lights on the "Deep Sea No. 1" ship are bright. Recently, after the "Jiaolong" manned submersible completed a dive operation, the "Jiaolong" operation and maintenance support team was performing maintenance and repairs on the submersible in the submersible hangar on the stern of the ship.

On October 11, Wang Guirong, a surface support staff member of the "Jiaolong", operated the A-frame of the "Deep Sea No. 1" ship to deploy the "Jiaolong" into the sea. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xin

On the left side of the "Jiaolong", electrical engineer Qi Haibin, who is the head of the operation and maintenance support team, holds two test leads on a multimeter and constantly touches the watertight connector in the submersible's acoustic junction box with the test leads, but the number "0" on the meter never changes.

"The voltage value of the watertight connector is 0, indicating that there is no power supply. The acoustic junction box is responsible for the acoustic communication guarantee function of the 'Jiaolong'. If the hidden danger is not dealt with in time, it will have a very large impact on subsequent diving operations." Qi Haibin told reporters.

Using a test pen to further confirm the power supply of the watertight connector, and checking step by step along the line, Qi Haibin finally determined the hidden danger: a fuse in the distribution box in the "Jiaolong" manned cabin was burned out. He skillfully replaced the fuse with a new one and tested it again with the test leads. The number on the multimeter changes to "24", the instrument is powered normally, and a hidden danger is eliminated.

On October 10, the surface support personnel of the "Jiaolong" hung the main hoisting cable for the "Jiaolong" and prepared for deployment. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xin

If the electrical equipment is the "nerve" and "brain" of the "Jiaolong", responsible for collecting and processing signal parameters such as depth and temperature, then the hydraulic system is the "muscle" of the "Jiaolong", providing powerful mechanical power for the operation of the equipment on the "Jiaolong".

On the maintenance platform on the second floor, Liu Kun, a mechanical hydraulic engineer, concentrated on observing the compensation liquid level indication on the hydraulic source of the "Jiaolong" and inspecting each hydraulic connection pipe.

"The hydraulic system is one of the core systems of the Jiaolong's underwater operations. It can provide power for manipulator operation, ballast iron abandonment, etc. If a problem occurs, the Jiaolong will not be able to carry out sampling operations." Liu Kun said that every time the Jiaolong completes a dive operation, he must check the compensation amount, pipelines, valve groups, etc. of the hydraulic system to ensure that the compensation amount is within a reasonable range, the pipelines have no leakage damage, and the valve groups are working normally.

On October 11, the frogman team of the "Deep Sea No. 1" ship hung the main hoisting cable for the "Jiaolong" for recovery. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xin

Dive into the deep sea thousands of meters deep, "every move" of the "Jiaolong" is under huge water pressure. "On the one hand, the hydraulic compensation system can balance the pressure difference between the inside and outside of the pipeline and prevent the equipment from being extruded and deformed; on the other hand, a set of hydraulic sources can drive multiple actuators at the same time. Compared with motor drive, it requires less power and cables, has a lower probability of power failure, and is safer to work in a high-pressure environment." Liu Kun said.

On the right side of the "Jiaolong", electrical engineer Xiu Keshun removed the buoyancy block on the surface of the submersible, reached inside, pulled out the computer tank, the core component, and then used a feeler gauge to measure the gap between the pressure rings at both ends of the computer tank. Looking at the numbers on the feeler gauge, Xiu Keshun nodded with satisfaction.

"There are very strict standards for the pressure ring gap. It must be 1.6 mm, and there is no difference." Xiu Keshun explained to the reporter that if the gap is greater than 1.6 mm, it means that the pressure rings at both ends of the tank are loose, the sealing performance is reduced, and seawater may penetrate under high pressure; if it is less than 1.6 mm, the sealing ring of the tank may be over-squeezed, thereby damaging the sealing ring. "Both situations may cause damage to the computer tank and affect the Jiaolong's dive operations."

Researcher Cheng Fei checked the drawings of electrical equipment while conducting technical analysis with team members; engineer Wang Xiangxin listened attentively to the sound of the acoustic system transducer; engineer Shi Xinwei constantly monitored the charging parameters of the "Jiaolong"; engineer Jiang Sheng used lubricants to maintain equipment such as manipulators... Until midnight, there were still many active figures in this team. They are the "deep-sea doctors" of the "Jiaolong". They stand firm in the shaky hangar, tighten every bolt, calibrate every set of data, and eliminate all possible hidden dangers before the "Jiaolong" enters the sea.

On October 12, Wang Fengji, the first officer of the "Shenhai No. 1" ship, adjusted the ship's direction and speed to cooperate with the deployment of the "Jiaolong" into the sea. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xin

The submersible operation is a systematic project that cannot be separated from everyone on board the "Deep Sea No. 1": Captain Zhao Xin led first mate Wang Fengji, second mate Wang Lianchao and other pilots to control the ship's position to follow up, and promptly adjusted the horizontal distance between the ship and the "Jiaolong" based on parameters such as seawater flow and velocity, wind direction and speed on the day of the submersible operation; Wang Gui, director of the Experiment Department Ronghe, Chen Shuai, Yan Tao and other members of the experimental department, worked skillfully with Song Siliang, Wang Mengmeng and other "frogman" team members to ensure that each deployment and recovery process of the "Jiaolong" was smooth and safe; chef Cai E and ship doctor Xue Xiaobao and others fully completed the logistics support work to ensure that the submersible operators were energetic, traveled lightly, and devoted themselves to deep-sea scientific research...

Since the "Jiaolong" manned submersible completed its first sea trial on August 18, 2009, this manned submersible designed and independently developed by China has completed 473 dive operations. Behind every dive, there are deep-sea workers who stick to their posts. They used practical actions to build an excellent guarantee system to ensure that the "Jiaolong" dive operation was completed safely and smoothly.

Deep-sea scientific research knows no national boundaries. Adhering to the concept of open cooperation and carefully guarded by everyone, the "Jiaolong" will carry more scientists to dive together, share data, practice the concept of a community with a shared future for the ocean, and promote the continuous expansion of global deep-sea knowledge.

On October 8, "Jiaolong" submarine pilot Tang Jialing repaired the "Jiaolong" manipulator. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xin

On October 10, "Jiaolong" submersibles Qi Haibin (right) and Cheng Fei monitored the submersible status of the "Jiaolong" at the submersible operation monitoring center and communicated with the submersible operators. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ye Haoming

On October 13, Xu Yang, chief engineer of the Marine Engineering Department, inspected the high-pressure oil pump of the main generator. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xin

On October 13, Chen Baoliang, from the engine department of the "Shenhai No. 1" ship, was recording the engine log. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ye Haoming

On October 11, Jiang Sheng (left), a member of the "Jiaolong" operation and maintenance support team, applied sealing silicone grease to the hatch cover seal of the "Jiaolong". Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xin

On October 10, "Jiaolong" surface support personnel Wang Guirong (left), Chen Shuai (middle), and Zhu Qisen removed rust from the transport rail car. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xin

On October 9, Liu Kun, a member of the "Jiaolong" operation and maintenance team, tested the compensation amount of the "Jiaolong" propeller. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ye Haoming

On October 9, members of the "Jiaolong" operation and maintenance support team and scientific expedition team members installed sampling tools for the "Jiaolong". Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ye Haoming

On September 26, Cheng Fei (left) and Wang Xiangxin, members of the "Jiaolong" operation and maintenance support team, repaired parts of the "Jiaolong" hydrophone winch. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Xin

On September 26, Chen Xinxing, a member of the "Jiaolong" operation and maintenance team, adjusted the position of the "Jiaolong" underwater lighting. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ye Haoming

On October 23, chefs Cai E (right), Tan Jilin (middle), and Mou Jisheng prepare lunch for people on board. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ye Haoming