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I have been thinking on how to proceed. The submarine would need a substantial range on schnorkel or surfaced to be able to threaten Tiawan or other areas such as dealing with Australia whose Collins class are the current size champs at 3000 tons submerged. I am researching still and using Combat Fleets for info which so far suggests a schnorkel speed of 10 knots and a radius of several thousand miles to cover that area of the Pacific.

I need to consult some maps. I did come across material from Australia on the Web which discussed a Collins class successor as needing great operating radius to get to it's assigned area and patrol for the needed time.

The German class 212A features a fuel cell setup capable of moving around 1600 tons submerged displacement at 8 knots and employs sodium sulfur batteries which presumably greatly outperform lead acid types. A speed of 21-22 knots submerged for a couple of hours seems possible. Lead acid batteries put out 25 watt/hours per kilogram at one hour discharge rate and 55 watt/hours per kilogram at the 100 hour discharge rate. Nicad, silver zinc and lithium batteries offer better performance and presumably sodium sulfur still more with a hopefully better lifespan than silver zinc batteries.

Meanwhile my research continues but I come to conclusion for a large AIP submarine you need to show cost effectiveness and be substantially cheaper than nuclear plants. Stirling cycle and closed circuit diesel seem easier to handle than the hydrogen/oxygen combo fuel cells which weigh alot for power produced referencing the Case fo Mars by Dr. Robert Zubrin, the aerospace engineer who invented Mars Direct and founded the Mars Society.

Producibility would interest China I think if these AIP subs could be procured in greater quantities with fewer specialized personnel than the nuclear plants.

Oh, well, it's back to the research as I try and answer the questions put to me.