Experiment of nitrox saturation diving with trimix excursion.

Depth limitations to diving operation with air as the breathing gas are well known: air density, oxygen toxicity, nitrogen narcosis and requirement for decompression. The main objectives of our experiment were to assess the decompression, counterdiffusion and performance aspect of helium-nitrogen-oxygen excursions from nitrox saturation. The experiment was carried out in a wet diving stimulator with "igloo" attached to a 2-lock living chamber. Four subjects of two teams of 2 divers were saturated at 25 msw simulated depth in a nitrogen oxygen chamber environment for 8 days, during which period they performed 32 divers-excursions to 60 or 80 msw pressure. Excursion gas mix was trimix of 14.6% oxygen, 50% helium and 35.4% nitrogen, which gave a bottom oxygen partial pressure of 1.0 bars at 60 msw and 1.3 at 80 msw. Excursions were for 70 min at 60 msw with three 10-min work periods and 40 min at 80 msw with two 10-min work periods. Work was on a bicycle ergometer at a moderate level. We calculated the excursion decompression with M-Values based on methods of Hamilton (Hamilton et al., 1990). Staged decompression took 70 min for the 60 msw excursion and 98 min for 80 msw, with stops beginning at 34 or 43 msw respectively. After the second dive day bubbles were heard mainly in one diver but in three divers overall, to Spencer Grade III some times. No symptoms were reported. Saturation decompression using the Repex procedures began at 40 msw and was uneventful: Grade II and sometimes III bubbles persisted in 2 of the four divers until 24 hr after surfacing. We conclude that excursions with mixture rich in helium can be performed effectively to as deep as 80 msw using these procedures.