As expected in my December 2014 On Line Opinion article Australia's Abbott Government has announced Japan's Soryu as Australia's future submarine following the result of Japanese December 14, 2014 election. That election which confirmed the supremacy of the non-pacifist Abe Govenment which is in favour of exporting the Soryu to Australia. Yesterday [see BACKGROUND below for SBS-AAP Article] Japan offered to assist Australia in making steel for an Australian purchase of Japan’s Soryu. The Soryu deal might be finalised by the end of this year (2015).
As will be demonstrated below the flow of steel-making knowledge may not be one-way, Japan to Australia, but there may be Australian submarine steel advances amounting to a reverse flow of technological knowledge (Australia to Japan).
According to http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/japan/2900ton.htm“The [Soryu 1] hull is HY-80 alloy (the same as the USN's Los Angeles class SSN)” On what “HY-80” and “HY-100” mean see BACKGROUND below.
In comparison the Collins class “hull is constructed from a high-tensile micro-alloy steel, developed by Swedish steel manufacturer SSAB, and improved by BHP of Australia, which was lighter and easier to weld than the HY-80 or HY-100 nickel-alloy steel used in contemporary submarine construction projects, while providing better results in explosion bulge testing [see Yule & Woolner, The Collins Class Submarine Story, pp. 165–174].
So Japan’s (and perhaps Australia’s) future Soryu 2s may benefit from Swedish-Australian developed submarine steel used for the Collins class. This steel is apparently beyond the capabilities of HY-80 or HY-100.
It is likely that an Australian steel maker will only contribute a portion of the steel tonnage to a pre-existing stockpile in Japan of submarine grade steel. It is highly unlikely that Japan would rely on Australia to be the sole/only source of submarine grade steel for the Soryu.
Australian companies approached by Japan may include BHP-Billiton and BlueScope Steel. However the main company Japan approaches is likely to be current naval steelmaker Bisalloy Steels Pty Ltdbased in Port Kembla-Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia.
Bisalloy Steels Pty Ltd (company website) has connections in Indonesia (PT Bima Bisalloy), Thailand (Bisalloy Thailand) and from July 2011 and China the investment in the Chinese CJV - Bisalloy Jigang (Shandong) Steel Plate Co. Ltd.
In the 1980s-1990s Bisalloy supplied 8,000 tonnes of hardened steel for the Collins submarine program with research and development involvement of BHP and the Defence Scientific and Technology Organisation (DSTO).
The DSTO connection is interesting because in July 2014 it was announced that Australia and Japan had agreed to jointly carry out submarine related defence research under an Agreement on the Transfer of Defence Equipment and Technology.
An items in that Agreement may have involved submarine steel and the DSTO Maritime Division. See DSTO Maritime Division Naval Architecture Project: “Structural materials and fabrication systems - Our Structural Materials and Fabrication Systems group encompasses the performance and assessment of structural materials and fabrication methodologies that may be used in naval structures or critical components within a naval platform. This includes metallurgical assessments and material assessment technologies for both initial selection as well as ensuring through life performance for fatigue.”
BACKGROUND
SBS-AAP ARTICLE "Japan offers to build Aust submarines" - Australia may accept a Japanese offer to jointly-build a fleet of new submarines by the end of 2015, media reports say. Source: AAP
5 JAN 2015 - 6:06 PM : http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2015/01/05/japan-offers-build-aust-submarines
“Australia has reportedly welcomed a Japanese offer to jointly-build a fleet of new submarines, with a possible deal by the end of the year.
Japan has proposed to help build the submarines instead of exporting a new fleet following concerns in Canberra over the effect on the local shipbuilding industry, media reports said.
Under the proposal, Japan's defence ministry is to co-operate with Australia in developing special steel and other materials for its new submarines, while Tokyo will be in charge of assembling them, the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper said.
The Australian side has taken "a positive stance" on the proposal, the report said, adding the two countries may strike a deal by the end of 2015.
Australia needs to replace its fleet of diesel and electric-powered subs, which date from the 1990s, and Japan's high-tech ship-building industry is thought to be well-placed to win the contract.
But the federal opposition and industry groups protest that losing the contract could deal a potentially fatal blow to naval shipbuilding at home, with a knock-on effect for associated industries.
However, critics point out that Japan may be able to supply the fleet for as little as half of the cost of making it at home.
Mr Andrews was unavailable for comment while overseas accompanying Prime Minister Tony Abbott in Iraq.
The Department of Defence is expected to issue a statement on Tuesday.
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WHAT DO “HY-80” AND “HY-100” MEAN?
"A submarine's hull is normally constructed of steel, or exceptionally of titanium. Special High Yield [HY] steel alloys have been developed to increase the diving depth of submarines, although the improved depth performance of these alloys imposes a price of increased fabrication challenges. These special steels are denominated by their yield stress in thousands of pounds per square inch -- thus HY-80 steel has a yield stress of 80,000 pounds per square inch [corresponding to a depth of 1,800 feet], HY-100 a a yield stress of 100,000 pounds per square inch [corresponding to a depth of 2,250 feet], and so on.
During World War II, American fleet submarines normally operated at a depth of 200 feet, though in emergencies they would dive to a depth of 400 feet.
Post-War American submarines, both conventional and nuclear, had improved designs and were constructed of improved materials [the equivalent of "HY-42"]. These boats had normal operating depths of some 700 feet, and a crush depth of 1100 feet.
The Thresher, the first American submarine constructed of HY-80 steel, reportedly had a normal operating depth of 1,300 feet, roughly two-thirds the crush depth limit imposed by the HY-80 steel.
The Seawolf, the first American submarine constructed of HY-100 steel, is officially claimed by the Navy to have a normal operating depth of "greater than 800 feet," but based on the reported operating depth of the Thresher, it may be assumed that the normaly operating depth of the Seawolf is roughly double the official figure.
The Soviet Alfa submarines, constructed of titanium, reportedly had an operating depth of nearly 4,000 feet.”
Pete