Abstract Atmosphere control in submarines has developed to meet the operational requirements. Until the end of WWII submarines were primarily semi-submersibles spending most of their time on the surface and submerged for periods of 12 h or less. However, rudimentary control of oxygen and carbon dioxide was available in some WWI boats. In the latter years of WWII, the requirement for longer dive times increased the demand for atmosphere control and the development of atmosphere monitoring instrumentation. The introduction of nuclear-powered submarines eliminated the need for air-dependent propulsion, and initially their dive times were limited only by air quality problems. The solution of these problems led to long-term (3 months) atmosphere control techniques, real-time air monitoring capabilities and the establishment of toxicological data for a large number of air contaminants. These developments have also impacted on atmosphere control in conventional diesel-electric submarines. More recently a new generation of submarines with non-nuclear air-independent propulsion has emerged. Although their dive times are limited to 2--3 weeks, this capability can be best exploited with the development of new energy efficient air purification technology.


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