The Nuclear Hazards of The Recovery of The Nuclear Powered Submarine Kursk
The Nuclear Hazards of The Recovery of The Nuclear Powered Submarine Kursk
ABSTRACT
The Russian Federation nuclear powered submarine Kursk sank in August 2000 with the loss of
all 118 lives on board. In May 2001 the Russian Federation entered into a contract with the
Dutch consortium Mammoet-Smit for the recovery of the Kursk on the condition that it had to be
completed within that year. The consortium prepared for this World-first salvage of a nuclear
powered and conventionally armed submarine that was very substantially damaged lying at 110m
in the icy waters of the Barents Sea. Working at sometimes breathtaking pace, Mammoet-Smit
prepared, lifted and transported the wreckage of the Kursk delivering her to a floating dock at
Rosljakovo, about 200km south of the foundering site, in just over six months from the contract
date. This paper tracks how the nuclear and other hazards of the Kursk, its nuclear reactors and
weaponry were assessed and monitored throughout the recovery and salvage program, and it
provides an insight into the reasons why the Kursk sank.
THE FOUNDERING OF THE KURSK and elsewhere realized that this second
On Saturday, 12 August 2000 and exactly explosion marked the death knell of an
at 7.29.50 GMT a small and relatively advanced nuclear powered submarine in the
insignificant seismic disturbance was recorded Barents Sea.
by a Norwegian seismological station. It was During the morning of 14 August the
followed one hundred and thirty five seconds rescue centre at Bodø in northern Norway
later with a much more significant event, received rumor of an accident on board a then
equivalent to about 3 to 3.5 Richter scale. unknown Russian submarine somewhere
None of those at the recording stations in north of Murmansk. This was the first inkling
Norway, Finland, Scotland, Canada, Alaska in the West of a very serious situation, the
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details of which were to unfurl over the The damage sustained from this first
following hours when it became apparent, and explosion, which alone the Kursk could have
was subsequently confirmed by the Russian withstood, can be pieced together from the
Federation (RF) Northern Fleet headquarters first of the two seabed debris fields. The
in Severomorsk, that a submarine had debris included plates from the outer (flood)
foundered. At about 16.30 that day the casing and, significantly, components of the
Norwegian Moscow embassy was notified by port hydroplane hydraulic mechanism and the
the Russian Federation authorities that there forward ballast and trim tanks. At the time of
had been an accident to a submarine - that the first explosion, Kursk was positioned for
boat was the OSCAR II (RF PLARK class), torpedo firing, at periscope depth in the sub
cruise missile armed and nuclear powered surface layer where to assist with depth
submarine Kursk. control and, to avoid porpoising, she would
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subsequently collapsing under the hydrostatic individuals survived the two explosions and
flood loading. No 5, the forward reactor sought refuge in the stern most No 9
compartment bulkhead, and the remaining compartment surviving for, it is believed, two
bulkheads through to the ninth compartment to three hours in very cramped conditions on
remained intact. existing oxygen supplies and oxygen
The bow damage showing failure of both flood and pressure hulls- internally the damage extended into the boat,
collapsing lateral bulkheads into through to No 5 Compartment- the red cylinders are gas bottles
The second seabed debris field (at 69°36,99N, breathing apparatus canisters. Whether they
37°34,50E) provides clues to the remaining perished by hypothermia, nitrogen narcosis or
split seconds of the Kursk and for all those simply lack of oxygen is not known.
crew present in the forward five What is known is that a number of the
compartments. The Kursk came to rest crew members subsequently recovered from
relatively upright lying on the seabed, with the No 9 compartment had sustained quite
the stem buffered against a sediment bank at severe body burns and the water-filled
an angle of 2o bow down and with the hull compartment was strewn with dust and ash -
pitched to the port side by 1.5o. The major the surviving crew had closed the
part of the second debris field lay 20 to 30m compartment hatch thereby isolating
starboard of the wreck, whereas the pressure themselves in this final refuge. The source of
hull damage indicates that the major blast the fire has not been established, although a
direction was upwards and to the port side. survivor trying to recharge an oxygen
A most telling clue to the dying moments regenerator plate in the compartment could
of the Kursk was the final position of a 4 by have sparked it.
2m section of forward section casing (the
outer flood hull) on the seabed to starboard of CONDITION OF THE KURSK
the stern, having traveled the 154m length of Two expeditions to the Kursk site were
the hull to its final resting place. This casing undertaken jointly between the Russian
plate must have ‘swum’ from the point of the Federation Navy and the Norwegian
second explosion through the water down to Radiation Protection Authority. The first of
the seabed; thereafter she drifted down and these expeditions was in August, immediately
settled on the seabed at a depth of 110m. following the sinking, and the second in
Analysis of this gives the Kursk at 30-35m October 2000 during which twelve of the
above the seabed at the instance of the plate twenty-three casualties in the stern
detachment. compartment were recovered.
When operating submerged, twenty-three These two expeditions, particularly the
crewmembers of the Kursk would be latter, established the radiological regime in
positioned aft of the reactor compartment. and around the Kursk. Air, sediment and
These crewmembers attended to the steam seawater samples were taken and analyzed,
raising and electricity generating plant and water samples within the submarine, from
generally dispersed about compartments No 7, compartments No 3, 4 and 7, were collected
8 and 9. At all times whilst the reactors are and sealed in cans for subsequent gamma
operational there are two crew members spectrometry. Similarly, the remote operated
present in the reactor control room which is vehicles (ROV) and the diving personnel were
located at the higher deck level immediately rigged to monitor dose rates at various
aft of the reactor compartment. All of these locations about the casing of the submarine
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(Amundsen Ingar, 2001).
The preliminary results from these two
expeditions did not indicate the presence of
radionuclides that may have been released
from the submarine reactors or, potentially,
from any nuclear weapons carried on board.
The presence of nuclear weapons on
board the Kursk at time of the sinking was of
particular concern. In 1989, another Russian
Northern Fleet submarine, Komsomolets,
which was lost in the Barents Sea at about
1,700m was leaking from both its single
reactor and from two nuclear tipped torpedoes
loaded in the bow tubes at the time of the
foundering. For the Kursk, the Russian
Federation Northern Fleet confirmed that at
the time of the foundering no nuclear
weapons were on board. The External Acoustic Layer, showing Noise/Sonar
At this stage, no attempt was made to Attenuation Voids revealed by the cutting of the lifting
sockets
sample within the sealed reactor
compartment, nor was any significant The power plant comprised two,
monitoring undertaken of any thermal integrated type pressurized water reactors
gradients in the flood hull in the vicinity of (OK 650b) each of ~200MW thermal output
the reactor compartment. located in the sealed reactor compartment No
6. The reactors were arranged in line, in fore-
RF NORTHERN FLEET SUBMARINE aft fashion, each in its own pressure sealed
KURSK K141 - TYPE, CONSTRUCTION sub-compartment. Each reactor pressure
& WEAPONRY vessel was housed within a sealed 25m3
The Kursk is a SSGN (cruise missile capacity water shield tank that was resiliently
armed, nuclear powered) submarine, mounted to absorb shock from the operational
designated by NATO as an OSCAR II class, submarine when in battle situations. The
commissioned from Sevmash shipyard, steam generators were clustered immediately
Severodvinsk in 1995. around the RPV with the main circulating
Designed by RUBIN, The Russian State pumps above with just over 1m head to assist
Marine Engineering Design Bureau in St in natural circulation in the event of pump
Petersburg, the Kursk was 154 m long and failure. Fuel comprised annular elements of
18m beam over the casing or flood hull, with uranium-aluminum cermet or dispersion type
a 11m diameter internal pressure hull, and of fuel clad in zircaloy, zoned between 20 to
submerged displacement 24,000 tons (surface 45% (core equivalent 30%) enriched U-235 of
11,500t). The submarine structure was of 48 assemblies, totaling about 200kg U-235
double hull construction with nine per reactor core. Gadolinium burnable poison
interconnected watertight compartments, all was integrated within the fuel and control was
being normally accessible except for the via boron/hafnium absorbers.
reactor compartment No 6 which is passed Nuclear plant emergency shut down was
through via a radiation shield corridor. The via control rod injection by spring and
outer hull casing comprised 8mm steel plates pneumatic drive and core cooling was via a
supported off the pressure hull by webs and relatively conventional ECS with a
struts. The inner pressure hull was an supplementary bubble tank. As an ultimate
externally ribbed cylindrical form fabricated safeguard the entire reactor compartment was
from 50mm thick high yield steel plate. The capable of being flooded with seawater via
void between the casing and pressure hull valves set into the pressure hull.
varied from 1 to 4m within which was located The Kursk submarine had an armament
ship’s equipment, sonar and the cruise missile capacity for 24 ship-to-ship cruise missiles
silos. The entire outer hull and conning tower (SN-19-GRANIT - NATO Shipwreck) armed
was clad with 40 to 80mm thick synthetic with 760kg main charge conventional
rubber tiles serving to both attenuate explosive but nuclear capable for low yield
machinery noise and reduce the reflective warheads. The missiles were housed in
echo from incoming sonar signals. individual pressure sealed silos, pitched
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forward at 40o arranged in two rows of to comply with the promise of President Putin
twelve, each covered by six hatches on each to the relatives of the crew. The first
side of the sail (conning tower). consortium formed, Smit-Heerema-
Halliburton, withdrew because Halliburton
believed the end of the year recovery deadline
could not be safely achieved. In mid May
2001, the Russian Federation and RUBIN,
jointly contracted Mammoet-Smit (M-S) to
recover the Kursk within the year deadline.
Although the salvage plan was to be produced
by M-S the Russian Federation Navy was to
provide a floating dock where the submarine
was to be finally berthed.
The M-S strategy was to effect the
recovery in three phases, these being:
Phase 1: Preparatory activities,
including surveying, radiation monitoring of
the submarine, removal of silt around the area
of the intended hull cutting operation, and
cutting of the hull just forward of the No 1
bulkhead to sever the most damaged part of
the submarine. Then, to give a stable and
predictable lift and to mount the rigs, to cut 26
holes through the casing and pressure hull
either side of the vertical centerline of the
main hull for the subsequent insertion and
clamping of the lifting fittings. The positions
Starboard Missile Bank
Forward Silo Hatches Open of these holes were selected by the RF to
minimize hull bending during the lift and
Torpedo munitions comprised 24 none were positioned in the reactor
torpedoes held in open rack magazines, compartment. This also included the
potentially including torpedoes of nuclear modification of the Giant 4 barge by
capability, firing from 2x650mm and preparing 26 tubes through the barge hull so
4x533mm torpedo tubes in the bow (No 1) that the strand jack system, used to lift the
compartment. The armaments could also submarine, could be fitted.
include ASW Harpoon-type rockets and Phase 2: Installation of the 26 lifting
seabed mines also deployed from the forward fittings, the lowering through the pre-inserted
torpedo tubes. tubes in the barge hull and connecting of 26
Kursk was the latest and most modern sets of lifting cables, each comprising 54
attack submarine of the Russian Federation strands of seven twisted wires each 6mm
Navy, being assigned to the Northern Fleet diameter and the raising of the Kursk using
operating out of the Northern Kola voyaging Mammoet’s strand jack system. The cables
into the Barents Sea and beyond. With would then hold the Kursk against a pre-fitted
49,000 shp through the two 7-blade inverted cradle under the barge during transit
propellers, she could make 28+ knots when to a floating dock near Murmansk.
running deep and 15 knots on the surface, Phase 3: The fitting of two large
being capable of full operations at 600m pontoons, one under each side of the barge, to
depth. lift it entirely out of the water to give
sufficient clearance of the underslung Kursk
MAMMOET-SMIT RECOVERY PLANS over the cradles when entering the floating
From about January 2001, the Russian dock, the lowering of the Kursk onto the
Federation Navy and the Kursk designers, cradles, followed by demobilization and
RUBIN, jointly asked a consortium of withdrawal of all M-S equipment and
companies from the West to tender for the personnel.
entire recovery of the wreck (with the Severing the remains of No 1
exception of the totally devastated forward compartment deployed a heavy cable carrying
compartment) and, specifically to complete thick-walled tubular sections coated with a
the salvage within the year. This was in order very coarse (~25mm) abrasive. Reciprocating
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motion was to be provided by two 30 tonne with respect to radiation and nuclear safety
hydraulic rams attached by suction anchors to issues. On the basis of this information,
the seabed. Large & Associates was instructed to form
and head up the Nuclear Coordinating Group
(NCG).
The NCG was headed by John Large of
Large & Associates with members Peter
Davidson of the UK National Nuclear
Corporation (NNC) and Commander Huw
Jones of the Royal Navy’s Naval Nuclear
Regulatory Panel. Later Alan Martin of Alan
Marin Associates was seconded onto the NCG
to organize the radiological management
regime for the recovery spread (the salvage
boats). The NCG had direct access to other
The cable cutting rig trials on Giant 4 consultants in the explosive, weapons and
suction anchors (top) acting against an opposite set salvage fields. John Large also represented
actual underwater cutting ( inset) and negotiated with the insurers on behalf of
Mammoet-Smit for personnel and equipment
The strand jack system relies on two cover that was ticketed across a number of
collets on each strand, the upper collets being underwriters at Lloyds, the United States and
hydraulically lifted/lowered as a cable group. Russia.
Additional hydraulics activate the collets The role of the NCG was to review and
under computer control, the timing of the evaluate all relevant aspects of nuclear and
collet activation determining whether the radiological safety arising from the M-S
strands are raised or lowered. Each cable recovery operations for all stages of the
lifting system was to be supported by four recovery.
pneumatic cylinders with 4m strokes and with The first task was to ascertain what parts
a large nitrogen gas reservoir, the pressure of a nuclear safety case were already in place
being matched to the cable load so that large and evaluate them. It quickly became
movements due to swell (within the cylinder apparent that there was no structured case in
stroke limits) would have minimal effect on existence on which to build.
the cable loads.
THE RF APPROACH
The RF approach to safety was essentially
deterministic. Any probabilistic treatment was
limited to confirming that sequences outside
the design basis (which was itself not
comprehensively defined) were sufficiently
unlikely (e.g. with an annual probability of less
than 10-7). There seems to have been no
overall integration of the diverse range of
technologies covering nuclear propulsion,
weapons systems, life support systems and
operational systems, to cover the full spectrum
of potential interactions between them.
Instead, the strategy seemed to consider
deliberately each area in isolation with a
The strand jack (inset) mounted within the cable reel
definition for each area of a worst-case
platform with the swell compensator rams underneath accident that the other areas must withstand.
The engineering of the Kursk was similarly
NUCLEAR & RADIOLOGICAL SAFETY compartmentalized. This was possibly to
In early June, Large & Associates were minimize the need for detailed interface
engaged by M-S to complete a preliminary coverage between the various design bureaus.
assessment of the nuclear hazard and held a The flaw in this approach was that there could
number of meetings with RUBIN to discuss never have been a full recognition of the wide
and determine the information and data likely range of potential challenges, failure modes
to be made available from the RF authorities and consequences (including interactions)
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arising from internal plant failures and on the other hand, its engineers and
external hazards. technicians were enthusiastically responsive
to any demands placed upon them by the
THE NCG STRATEGY NCG, often responding in detail once trust
The NCG’s overall strategy was framed had been established, and explaining their
to suit the RF approach by: sometimes brilliantly simple solutions to
problems, as they were identified.
• Establishing the datum condition of the
In the light of this, the NCG had to
Kursk taking into account the effects of
conclude that it was not in a position to
the explosions and the degradation over a
provide a traditional assessment or review
year of submersion.
but, instead, had to weigh these RF statements
• Examining the stability and residual
to assess whether, when put together, they
strength of the datum condition,
provided a sufficiently coherent and
including the degree of defense in depth
persuasive safety demonstration. In doing
that might remain available for the
this, the NCG had to rely largely on its own
essential reactor safety functions.
judgment and experience.
• Framing limits and conditions for the M-
S operations to ensure that the residual
ESTABLISHING DATUM CONDITION
strength and stability criteria could not be
OF THE REACTOR PLANT AND
exceeded, nor the defense in depth totally
SAFEGUARDS
undermined, together with allowance for
unwanted interactions. The NCG’s strategy required a detailed
• Ensuring that there was an adequate assessment of the potential damage to the
radiological safety management regime in containment, fuel and nuclear shutdown/hold
place to protect the M-S employees and down components of the two nuclear reactor
contractors. systems.
The determinant of a safe and complete
In light of this, the NCG set out to work
shutdown was, primarily, the ability of each
with teams of RF specialists to check how
reactor’s fuel and shut down systems to
each system had been and could be affected
function adequately during or immediately
by events and thus establish the limits and
following the high levels of impulse loading
conditions that had to be maintained during
from the torpedo explosions. Each reactor is
the M-S recovery operations. The actual and
supported in a resilient cradle providing shock
potential interactions of the many systems
absorption to cater for an impulse well in
involved warranted a strong probabilistic
excess of 50g, defined by military operations
evaluation but this was not favored nor,
of the boat. To determine the actual loading
indeed, practiced by the RF for its own
in the immediate aftermath of the explosions,
assessment. Instead, the approach of RF
forensic examination was undertaken on two
analysts and engineers was, predominantly,
of the casualties recovered from the stern
underpinned by reliance upon passive
section, these being identified as the reactor
safeguards (eg containment, dormancy, etc)
control room operators. These casualties had
for which probabilistic treatment is anyway
sustained skeletal damage indicative of body
not usually necessary. However, this reliance
shock loading of just over 50g. This provided
required, first, an accurate and reliable
a degree of reassurance that the reactor
assessment of each ‘safeguard’, particularly
resilient mounts, being below or about the
the extent to which it may have sustained
design limit, had not been damaged and that
damage as a result of the original explosions
the reactors could have closed down
and, then, an account of the degradation that it
automatically as intended after power supplies
may have suffered over the year or more that
had been lost
it was submerged in the Barents Sea. Of
Other factors relating to the condition of
particular concern to the NCG was the
the reactor systems included:
possibility of the M-S operations triggering a
further explosion (of a torpedo or missile), i) The shock level (~50g) would have also
and the potential consequences to the reactor temporarily disoriented the reactor
plant and safeguards. control personnel who would not have
On one hand, all that the RF could offer been expected to recover for several
was its assertion and confidence that the M-S minutes by which time most, if not all, of
salvage of the Kursk could be undertaken the power required for operator
within the RF’s sometimes rather qualitatively intervention would have been lost;
defined limits of each of the ‘safeguards’ but, ii) the shock would have caused opening of
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electrical circuit breakers leading to loss On this basis, the NCG’s criterion that at
of power, eg to the main coolant pumps; least two of the reactor containments be in
iii) automatic reactor shutdown sequences place was satisfied.
would have been initiated probably by the
above power loss - this sequence causes ESTABLISHING DATUM CONDITIONS
the insertion under gravity, with spring FOR THE MUNITIONS
and pneumatic assistance, of two diverse Torpedoes: At the time of sailing the Kursk
means of neutron absorption which then was carrying 24 torpedoes, two with dummy
lock into place, and the initiation of decay warheads, the remainder with conventional
heat removal which makes use of the explosives, and all stored within No 1
large thermal capacity of the water in the compartment. Analysis of the acoustic data
shield tank - this sequence cannot easily from the cruiser Pyotr Veliky suggested that
be interrupted by the operator and it was around seven torpedo rounds were destroyed
unlikely that its essentially passive role as a series of explosions in rapid succession.
was impeded by the shock loading; The survey of the second debris field revealed
iv) the reactor shutdown and decay heat a number of torpedo components but these,
removal equipment had a design basis for collectively, did not account for the remaining
an inclination of the submarine in excess 15 or so armed rounds.
of 45o for forced cooling during pump
spin down, and thereafter a lesser angle
of inclination for heat dissipation by
natural circulation - the depth of water
(108m) in conjunction with the
submarine’s length (155m) precluded a
larger inclination - in view of the
perceived accident sequence it is
probable that the maximum trim angle
was much less than 45º, although this
may have been exceeded for a few
seconds or more when the hull responded
to the expansion of the explosive gas
products; and
v) the design provides four barriers to the
escape of fission products (or
particulates) from the nuclear fuel. These Port Torpedo Loading on Kursk
comprise the fuel assembly cladding, the
These missing rounds could have been
reactor primary circuits, and the reactor
hidden within the hull, particularly in the
shield boundaries.
mangled wreckage of what remained of the
To confirm the state of the reactor the RF bow compartment and some could have been
deployed gamma spectroscopy in the range 4 thrown into the wreckage of the second
to 8 MeV (characteristic of reactor operation) compartment (which was subsequently shown
in the lower regions outside the pressure hull to be the case when the internals of the wreck
and the thermal gradient in the flood hull was dried out and inspected at Rosljakovo).
space was profiled to detect any thermal input. Some or all of the rounds could have burnt
Negative results suggested that: during the explosions, some might have
i) the reactors remained shutdown; fragmented, and others might remain intact
ii) there was effectively no contamination and hidden under the submarine hull.
(eg fuel particulate) in the shield tank, Such was the uncertainty surrounding the
suggesting that the reactor primary circuit presence, state and stability of these missing
containment is complete; torpedo rounds that an explosion from this
iii) there is no contamination between the source had to be considered a credible fault
shield tank and the pressure hull, condition at any time during the lift
suggesting that the shield tank operations. Factors in mitigation were:
containment is complete; and i) the dispersion of the remaining torpedoes
iv) the lack of any thermal gradient indicated and fragments of torpedoes, made a
that no significant heat was being sympathetic detonation less likely;
generated in either of the reactor ii) detonation would be unconfined and not
compartments. directed through the hull towards the
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reactor compartment (compared to the firing system (AFS) comprised five
original explosion that was initially independent degrees of protection or
confined by the pressure hull); latches;
iii) the design basis capability of the reactor iii) each missile was held within shock
plant to withstand shock remained mountings within the silo, which itself
available (to an undeclared amount); and had the same material characteristics and
iv) any fragment revealed during silt strength as the submarine pressure hull;
clearance etc, be removed by the RF, and
using remotely operated equipment to at iv) the missile could be launched only after
least 70m from the submarine - torpedoes the silo cap had been opened, which
and fragments within the cut zone would required hydraulic actuation that was no
also be removed. longer available.
v) the silt clearing equipment was unlikely
to cause detonation of a torpedo or Unlike a torpedo round explosion, which
explosive fragment. was considered to be credible and tolerable,
full detonation of a single 760kg missile
The NCG nominated a fault condition warhead could not be tolerated at any stage of
whereby the equivalent of two torpedo rounds the lift, conveyance from the wreck site and
(~450kg TNT in total) simultaneously transfer to the floating dock because this
detonated during the bow separation operation would have imperiled all of those personnel
or the lifting operation. The NCG sought manning the salvage vessels and had the
assurance, with explanations, from the RF of potential to result in a release of radioactivity
each reactor’s capability to withstand such an to the marine environment and hence to the
explosion. In addition, an analysis of the M-S personnel. Thus, it was absolutely
effect of the explosion gave the strength essential to determine the most unstable
requirements of the hull plating of the condition for the missile systems and the main
attending barges and the length limitation for fill and ejection charges and if any of the five
smaller vessels attending the barges, a AFS latches had been enabled by the
requirement that these be larger that the sea foundering explosions and the subsequent M-
surface bulk cavitation and gas bubble S recovery operations.
diameters that would put smaller vessels at This was determined by a series of trials
risk of sinking. Also, the analysis provided in which fully assembled missiles were
the minimum lashing requirements for the subject to a range of conditions simulating the
heavy equipment operating on the barge impulse and vibration environments.
decks, particularly the two 60t crawler cranes Particular regard was given to the vibration
working on the Giant 4 lifting barge, in spectra that was to be generated by the M-S
account that these could topple into the sea cutting technique deployed to sever the bow
and descend onto the Kursk in the reactor section, since there was a possibility that a
compartment area or onto the cruise missile sympathetic vibration could not only result in
silos. the release of the cap of the first starboard
Missiles: At the time of loss, the Kursk side missile silo which had been damaged
was armed with 23 SS-N-19 GRANIT cruise during the original explosion, but it could also
missiles with conventional explosives. These override one of the acceleration/deceleration
missiles were located in forward slanting silo sensitive latches of the weapon firing system.
tubes, 12 either side of the submarine, the first
being just behind No 1 compartment and ESTABLISHING THE POTENTIAL
within 3m of the cut line that was to isolate FAULT CONDITIONS DURING M-S
the bow wreckage, and the last two missiles OPERATIONS
being some 30m ahead of the reactor Pressure Hull Lifting Sockets: Lifting
compartment. of the Kursk to be secured to the underside of
Relevant features of the SS-N-19 missiles the Giant 4 lifting barge required the cutting
are: of 26 holes (each ~1m diameter) through the
i) the propellant fuel is kerosene, with a outer hull casing, the removal of any
small (7 Kg TNT equivalent) powder equipment and ship’s services in the flood
charge for ejection from the silo to the hull space, and cutting through the structure
turbojet firing altitude above the sea of the pressure hull, thereafter clearing to a
surface depth within the pressure hull to allow for the
ii) the launching ‘trigger’ or arming and insertion and fixing of the lifting clamps.
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The potential fault scenarios primarily lift would have to be abandoned and the
related to cutting through the submarine Kursk lowered back to the seabed.
ship’s services occupying the cavity between Second, during the transit phase when the
the casing and pressure hull. Although Kursk was held against the under hull saddles
engineering drawing details had been of the Giant 4 and making way for port to
provided and location trials had been dock with the floating dock, excessive sea
conducted on the sister boat Orel (K226), the state could result in slapping and pounding of
as-built Kursk services installations were the upper casing hull against the saddles and
found to be markedly differ from the ‘design’ high forces being transmitted into barge
and/or from the actual installations on the frame. In these circumstances, either the
Orel. Giant 4 would have to make for sheltered
waters or the Kursk would have to be lowered
to the seabed until clemency resumed. For
one particular spell of the open sea transit,
over a period of 3 to 4 hours, the distance to
the coast and the sea depth precluded both of
these options.
Other factors that had to be accounted for
included excessive suction binding the Kursk
to the seabed.
The local seabed at the Kursk site
comprised silty clays for which M-S had
calculated a suction or hold down force of
between zero and 11,000 tonnes. To break
suction, the plan was to apply a steady but
Saturation Diver Clearing Boat Services Located
between Inner and Outer Hulls
disproportionately higher lift tension to the
stern group of lifting cables allowing, over
Difficulties for the saturation divers time, this to overcome the suction. This
undertaking these tasks (surveying the required demonstration that the damaged
locations and setting up the robotic, high pressure hull could absorb the bending
pressure grit cutting equipment) included moment being applied, particularly at
encountering pockets of explosive gases discontinuities in the hull form where the
(three relatively small gas burns/explosions forward bulkheads had been blasted through.
were experienced), and contamination by, In reserve, if the stern lift failed to break
particularly, hydraulic gels and asbestos suction, a line tethered to two tugs was to be
products used in the acoustic tiling bonding passed under the stern of the Kursk with the
system to the outer casing. Procedures had to tugs operating in a seesaw fashion to work the
be introduced for the divers to decontaminate hawser towards the stem. The risks
themselves of oils and fibers before entering associated with this method included
the saturation chambers on board the diving detonation of any torpedo munitions trapped
ship Mayo for shift breaks over each diver’s under the hull or, in the event of a hawser
spell of two to four weeks under a full failure, whip lashing against the exposed
saturation environment. cruise missile silo on the forward starboard
Lift, Sea, State and Other Factors: side.
Limits on sea state had to be imposed during In the event, there was no suction, the
the lift and transit phases of the recovery first movement of the Kursk being lateral as
operation. the lifting forces allowed her to slip sideways
First, lifting operations could not proceed impelled by the tidal stream.
at sea state swell (peak to peak) heights
greater than 2.5m because of the limit ram BARGE AND DIVING SUPPORT
stroke of swell compensation system acting VESSEL ACTIVITIES - RADIATION
on the strand jacks - this system maintained a RISK
uniform cable tension during the lift. The As well as the pre-prepared arrangements
entire 110m lift was scheduled for at a for response to a serious mishap to the Kursk
minimum period of 10 hours so a fair weather during recovery (ie torpedo explosion, falling
window of at least this was necessary to equipment, etc), the barge and support vessel
ensure safety throughout the lift. If weather crews had to work under a strict radiological
conditions deteriorated during the lift then the management regime. This regime was
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administered by a radiation adviser To mitigate these risks and those from
overseeing shifts of health physics monitors uncontrolled criticality, discharge of
surveying and managing contamination, dose radioactivity or direct radiation resulting in
receipt and recording, sheltering and other unacceptable levels of exposure, emergency
dose mitigation countermeasures. arrangements to protect personnel, including
evacuation by the RF Northern Fleet vessels
and aircraft, were agreed with the RF
Northern Fleet. These actions, triggered by
an emergency reference level (ERL) protocol,
applied to all personnel present on board M-S
vessels.
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processes introduces additional risk, generate and evaluate a conventional post-
preferably tried and tested technology incident nuclear safety case, members of the
should applied. Nuclear Coordinating Group had to arrive at
• ALARP: the risk should be reduced to judgments drawn from their experience in
As Low As is Reasonably Practical. nuclear safety, weaponry and engineering.
• Radiological Management Regime: Moreover, in doing so they had to cross the
Radiation doses to those personnel divide between East and West, accounting not
involved in the recovery operation should just for the different approaches to nuclear
be controlled below the limits for Class B and engineering technologies, but also how
radiation workers (as defined for the the safety reasoning of the original designs
UK). could be integrated into the salvage scheme.
• In Contingency: Contingency plans This demanding and unique approach
should exist in the unlikely event of a was shown to be sound because there was no
significant radiological release, radiological release or significant radiation
particularly for mitigating the impact hazard to any of the M-S personnel or
upon the marine environment. contactors during any part of the recovery
Mammoet-Smit had contracted to raise operations.
the Kursk in May 2001 and in just six short
months, on 23 October, the Kursk was REFERENCES AND NOTES
lowered from Giant 4 onto the cradles of the AMUNDSEN Ingar, et al, The Kursk Accident,
floating dry dock at Rosljakovo - a quite Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority,
remarkable and World-first achievement. StrålevernRapport 2001:5
NUCLEAR COODINATING GROUP, 1st, 2nd and
A SUCCESSFUL RECOVERY 3rd Stage Reports of the Nuclear Coordinating
The recovery of the Kursk was a success Group, Report Ref No R3065-1B/C/D,
that derived from a tragedy. The successful throughout 2001
and almost trouble free recovery of the PRINZ C A, Kursk Submarine Sinking - An
sunken nuclear powered submarine Kursk was Assessment of Potential Hazards, Kursk
completed by a group of commercial Foundation, July 2001
organizations and not by its military operator.
This was because the Russian Federation
itself did not possess the resources and
expertise to do this and, moreover, it had
never planned to do so.
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