Originally written for Under Pressure.
Filling a diver's lungs with high-pressure gas in order to allow him to breathe at any depth in the ocean can cause many problems, as the alert reader will now be aware. Ideally, a "filler" gas used with a breathable level of oxygen should be completely inert in the diver's body at any depth. Unfortunately, no such gas exists. However, there is a group of liquids that are both biologically inert and capable of carrying sufficient oxygen to support life. These are the fluorohalides, of which "perfluoride" or perfluorooctylbromide is sometimes used at TL8 to support the lungs of premature babies.
Use of such a liquid allows a diver to avoid all the problems associated with high-pressure gaseous breathing mixtures, and will allow arbitrarily rapid descents and ascents without decompression.
It is significantly harder to breath a liquid -- even with mechanical aid merely resting should be treated as mild exertion -- and speaking and subvocalisation are impossible. Use requires the Scuba skill; unfamiliar users must make a Fright Check at -3 to suppress the drowning reflex when first filling the lungs and another at no penalty when beginning any serious exertion. Emptying the lungs after a dive tends to be messy and painful.
This is a fluid breathing system. The system warms the fluorohalide, gently assists in moving the dense fluid in and out of the lungs, cleans and sterilizes it, removes CO2, adds surfactants and recharges with oxygen. The respirator includes a PD4 DR20 "hard-hat", a specialised dive computer, and a buddy pipe to allow the system to support another fluid-breathing diver in an emergency. A wetsuit customised to mate with the hard-hat is a necessary purchase; a combined keyboard and sonocoder is also considered a handy optional item.
The fully-charged respirator includes 4 x 2-hour oxygen tanks (p. TS152), 5 gallons of fluorohalide (85 lbs, $250), 1-gallon tank of surfactant and sterilizing chemicals good for eight hours (20 lbs, $100), and a C cell.
Total system: $3500, 120 lbs, 1 C.
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This page updated Tues, Sept 05, 2006 around about 24:00 ish (BST)