Is the inside of the tank hot? The soldiers are miserable, the 99A is already air-conditioned

tank is a giant steel beast on the land. On the surface, tank soldiers are the most prestigious. They can sit in the tank regardless of training or battle. Compared with infantry in the army, it is comfortable and safe. But in fact, tank soldiers are a heavy-duty, high-temperature, and highly-polluting army. Usually tank soldiers have to be trained to carry dozens of kilograms of shells to ensure the loading speed in wartime. In addition, they have to stay in the sealed and hot iron bumps for a long time. Winter is better. , Summer is miserable, often the outside is more than 30 degrees, the inside has risen to more than 50 degrees, and there is still heavy mechanical exhaust. Although being a soldier is not for enjoyment, people always have physical limits. Therefore, to solve this problem that affects combat effectiveness, it is necessary to solve the problem of temperature control in the tank for the tank. The good news is that my country’s 99A main battle tanks have been installed with air conditioning.

According to "Red Star" report, in a fast cross-country training, the Russian army allowed some infantry who had opinions on tank soldiers to exchange roles with tank soldiers. In just 20 minutes, these infantrymen Either the soul was gone, or it was so boring that he couldn't even climb out of the tank, and could only be pulled out in the end. It can be seen that it is really not so easy to become a qualified tank soldier. Without a strong body and tough nerves, it is impossible to do it. The installation of air conditioners for tanks is not a new topic. After all, tanks were born during World War I, but it was not until the 8/90s of last century that hope was seen. Prior to this, the air-conditioning technology was not mature, and only local cooling methods could be adopted, such as using semiconductor patches to cool the heat-generating parts, while tank soldiers wore liquid-cooled vests. It was only after the successful research and development of rare earth motors that this problem was completely solved. However, my country only made a breakthrough in 2014 due to the strict sealing technology of the West for a long time.

Some military fans once said that the tank does not install air conditioners to reduce the heat source. This understanding cannot be said to be unreasonable, but the heat output of the air conditioning port is relative to the overall heat output of the tank. It’s just a part of it. In fact, there is no big difference in the face of modern infrared detection equipment. Unless it is an ambush and there is a need for concealment, in general, land combat is a battle within the line of sight. The strength of the tank infrared signal is not for both parties. Affect the final outcome. Take the Middle East as an example. Due to the hot climate and the oil countries are not short of money, when purchasing tanks, armored vehicles and self-propelled artillery equipment, they all actively require the installation of air conditioners. For example, in 1997, Kuwait bid for 2 A battalion of 155mm self-propelled artillery. At that time, the United States forced Kuwait to purchase its M109A6 artillery, but in the end Kuwait also purchased China’s PLZ-45 self-propelled howitzer under pressure. One of the winning factors was the installation of a much more powerful gun than the United States. air conditioning.

The design of modern tanks generally must meet the "three defenses" requirements, that is, nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons. Before air conditioning is installed, it is ventilated through a special filter device. The air conditioner will destroy the overall protection power due to direct communication with the outside air. Moreover, ordinary car air conditioners are air conditioners refrigerated by refrigerants, which are not only large in size, but also have potential safety hazards. In an environment with frequent bumps and large vibrations, it is easy to leak flammable and toxic freon. Of course, it is possible to consider the use of compressed air cooling air conditioners. This is an air conditioner that directly compresses air to achieve heat exchange through the mechanical drive of the tank engine, but this requires the tank engine to output a very high speed. It is reported that this type of air conditioner requires a speed of 5,000 to 80,000 revolutions per minute, while the speed of a tank diesel engine is only 2,000 to 3,000 revolutions.

American M1A2 tanks and former Soviet Union T-80U tanks can be the first to be equipped with air conditioners, mainly using gas turbines as power, and the high speed of gas turbines can meet the working requirements of air compression refrigeration settings. The installation of air conditioners on China’s 99A tanks is inseparable from the research and development of rare earth permanent magnet motors. The rare earth engines are small in size, light in weight and large in power, which fully meets the high requirements of tanks, and the speed of tens of thousands of revolutions per minute also meets the requirements. The requirements for compressed air refrigeration and air-conditioning are very remarkable. It is not only as simple as installing air-conditioning on the tank, but also represents a qualitative change in tank engine technology.