Amphibio: Development of a physical gill to enable humans to breathe underwater for longer (extension)

纵观历史，人类已经突破了可能性的界限。值得注意的是，去年，法国发明家弗兰奇·萨帕塔实现了个人飞行的梦想，他乘坐一个装满煤油的背包驱动的飞行板穿越了英吉利海峡。然而，当谈到水下呼吸时，如果没有笨重而昂贵的生命维持设备，大多数人只能存活几分钟。自含式水下呼吸器（SCUBA）从高压压缩空气罐提供呼吸空气/氧气，并将呼出的空气（通过调节器）排出到周围的海水中（作为嘈杂和可见的气泡）。与SCUBA系统相比，再呼吸器通过再循环呼出的空气，去除二氧化碳，并从罐中补充呼吸气体/氧气，提供更长的潜水时间（在任何深度）。再呼吸器提供无声、无气泡的潜水，主要用于专业潜水;例如，在科学研究和军事应用中。二氧化碳去除是再呼吸器的关键步骤，依赖于含有碱石灰的罐，称为洗涤器。苏打石灰从呼出的空气中吸收二氧化碳，但需要定期更换，大约每2-3小时潜水一次。如果水与碱石灰接触，就会形成一种高度腐蚀性的液体，称为“苛性鸡尾酒”。这可能会对潜水员的面部和呼吸道造成严重伤害，甚至致命。鳃已经被证明是一种灵感，希望通过从海水中提取溶解氧来克服现有水下呼吸设备的局限性。但是，人类面临的挑战是开发一种能够从海水中提取足够氧气以支持呼吸的鳃。尽管如此，鳃的概念有可能彻底改变现有的水下呼吸装置。发明者Jun Kamei是一名设计师和材料科学家，他开发了一种鳃的概念，使人类能够在水下呼吸更长时间，灵感来自于呼吸空气的潜水昆虫和蜘蛛用于支持水下呼吸的物理鳃。他的初创公司Amphibio已获得皇家艺术学院和国防与安全加速器的资助，以完成初步设计工作和实验室研究，验证了他正在申请专利的可穿戴鳃方法的潜力。在Innovate UK的资助下，Amphibio将开发一种鳃，可以通过更换呼吸器潜水系统中的二氧化碳洗涤器来延长潜水时间，同时用从海水中提取的溶解氧补充氧气罐供应。Amphibio的新方法有可能彻底改变人类的水下生活。

Throughout history, humans have pushed the boundaries of possibility. Notably, last year, the dream of personal flight was achieved by French inventor Franky Zapata, who crossed the English Channel on a flyboard powered by a kerosene-filled backpack.Yet, when it comes to breathing underwater, most people can only survive for a few minutes without bulky and expensive life support equipment. Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus (SCUBA) provides breathing air/oxygen from high-pressure compressed air tank(s) and expels exhaled air (through a regulator) into the surrounding seawater (as noisy and visible bubbles). Compared to SCUBA systems, rebreathers offer longer dive times (at any depth) by recirculating the exhaled air, removing the carbon dioxide, and replenishing the air with breathing gas/oxygen from a tank. Rebreathers provide silent, bubble-free diving and are predominantly used in professional diving; for example, in scientific research and military applications.Carbon dioxide removal is a critical step for rebreathers and relies on a canister containing soda lime, known as a scrubber. The soda lime absorbs carbon dioxide from the exhaled air, but requires regular replacement, approximately every 2-3 hours of diving time. If water comes into contact with the soda lime, a highly corrosive liquid is formed, known as a "caustic cocktail". This can cause significant injuries to a diver's face and airways and even prove fatal.Gills have proved an inspiration to inventors hoping to overcome the limitations of existing underwater breathing equipment by extracting dissolved oxygen from seawater. But, the challenge for humans is to develop a gill that is able to extract sufficient oxygen from seawater to support breathing.Nevertheless, the gill concept has the potential to revolutionise existing underwater breathing apparatus. Inventor Jun Kamei, a designer and material scientist, has developed a concept for a gill that will enable humans to breathe underwater for longer, inspired by the physical gills used to support underwater respiration by air-breathing diving insects and spiders. His start-up, Amphibio, has received funding from the Royal College of Art and the Defence and Security Accelerator to complete the initial design work and laboratory study, validating the potential of his patent-pending wearable gill approach.With funding from Innovate UK, Amphibio will develop a gill that can extend dive times by replacing the carbon dioxide scrubber in rebreather diving systems, while supplementing the oxygen-tank supply with dissolved oxygen extracted from seawater. Amphibio's novel approach has the potential to revolutionise human life underwater.