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General Science / How many G-forces could you withstand submerged in a water tank?
« on: 05/11/2008 18:04:26 »
Some research has been done into this area. Complete immersion into a water chamber evenly distributes the accelerating force throughout the body. The main problem would be the air cavities in the body, namely its respiratory system. As mentioned in an earlier post, the pressure gradients can cause the surrounding structures to collapse.
However there is a solution- liquid breathing. An oxygen-rich carrier liquid (usually a perfluocarbon) was used as the chemical exchange medium in place of air. It's not as outrageous as it sounds. Partial Liquid Ventillation (PLV) has been tried on humans for medical reasons, and full LV has been tried on mice.
If liquid breathing is perfected, very high accelerations will be possible. Fully immersed in liquid and with no air cavities to collapse,organ damage from deformation is minimal up to very high accelerations due to the complete immersion in a similarly dense liquid. Where the body tries to deform, the water pushes back. Little damage results- there is little pressure differential.
However there is a solution- liquid breathing. An oxygen-rich carrier liquid (usually a perfluocarbon) was used as the chemical exchange medium in place of air. It's not as outrageous as it sounds. Partial Liquid Ventillation (PLV) has been tried on humans for medical reasons, and full LV has been tried on mice.
If liquid breathing is perfected, very high accelerations will be possible. Fully immersed in liquid and with no air cavities to collapse,organ damage from deformation is minimal up to very high accelerations due to the complete immersion in a similarly dense liquid. Where the body tries to deform, the water pushes back. Little damage results- there is little pressure differential.