Top Ten Tanks

[seabolt]

"the HEAT jet will dissipate faster in diesel than in air".

I saw that the first time. My skepticism was only increased by its hand-waving nature. "Don't worry your head about it soldier! It's science! Those four-eyes in the lab coats know their business!"

I guess the cans could just as well be filled with water

I'd hazard that water may do the job better, actually. Water can be compressed into superhot ice in far less time than the ~0.0001 seconds we're dealing with here. That might be a more disruptive effect than the Hollywood pyrotechnics that diesel would generate.

The S-tank was designed in the 50s, built during the 60s and phased out in the 90s. In the mid-80s the tank received a major upgrade (strv103C) and it was then the cans were added.

Ah, OK, no TC rounds in that period IIRC. This probably is a straight up spaced armor concept. I still think it's a hazardous rationalization to deal with fuel tankage issues in a convenient fashion for planners who don't envision being the guy actually sitting between twin walls of potentially flaming hell in a firefight ...