I agree on aluminum tape being available and used by professionals. However, plenty of the old duct tape is sold and promoted by home improvement centers. Non-metallic tape manufacturers still promote their products as being intended for sealing ducts.
Tape would never have been intentionally installed to be a seal, particularly on the interior. I don't mean to keep beating the dead horse, but just provide more information. It would not have been considered for an emergency repairs. Sea trials involve controlled excursions to depth, probably remaining at a particular depth for 30 minutes (standard for hydrostatic testing). So, under normal operations, the tape would have never lasted.
I don't believe that surface ship damage control would be effective due to space configuration, cylindrical hulls, and hull thickness. In any case, there are no damage control lockers with sealing and bracing materials. Most submarine sailors do not go through submarine school. Attendance is usually by the lower ranks without specialized electronics or nuclear training. I would say that submarines rely mostly on hull closures in combination with testing and certification for any materials and parts to keep water out of the boat. These days, there is not much that can be done without surfacing the ship. In the past, submarines were compartmentalized, but some modern submarines have or had only one watertight door separating forward and aft.
Again, grain of salt time: I was retired for several years before joining AppleNova, so that dates my information.
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