CA1041443A - High pressure hose composed of elastomers and embedded reinforcements - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT
A method for continuous production of reinforced, elastomeric high pressure hose having an inside diameter greater than 50 mm comprising extruding the hose onto a stationary mandrel over which the hose rollingly or slidingly passes in a continuous man-ner. Wire reinforcing is wrapped around the extruded hose as it is passing over the mandrel. Apparatus for carrying out this method is disclosed where the stationary mandrel may be the type having a plurality of roller barrels, a hydrostatic or aerostatic mandrel, or a mandrel having a plurality of endless flexible bands. Antirotational means is provided on the mandrel to pre-vent twisting of the extruded hose and the inaccurate laying of the wire reinforcing around the hose. The method provides a continuous length of high pressure hosing which can withstand hydrostatic pressures on the ocean floor. The apparatus is com-pact so that production of the hose can be carried out aboard ship when laying lose on the ocean floor.

Description

The invention relates to high pressure hoses made of elasto-mers and reinforcements with an inside diameter greater than 50 mm. a continuous longitudinal construction, and any desired length The invention furthermore concerns methods of manufac-turing such high pressure hoses.
-~ It is known to manufacture high pressure hose lines of great length by coupling together a large number of individual lengths. -~
These lengths, however, are short, and the large number of fittings used to assemble them constitute an unacceptable point of weakness 10 and interfere with the cleaning of the line.
In exploration for natural gas and oil in coasta]. regions conduits are re~uired for the transport of the oil or gas from points of discovery in the ocean to points of use, such conduits ' consisting normally of steël pipe. In cases where great depths ~'! 15 and greatly fissured ocean bottoms are involved, the use of steel pipe is subject to limitations. The flexibility and resilience -of steel pipe are inadequate where differences in level are steep ^~
or;~abrupt. In addition, the assembly of steel pipeIines in the ., .
case of great ocean depths is made difficult by the finite length 20 of the individual steel pipes of 12 to 18 meters on account of the large numbers of annular welds required. At great ocean depths there is also the danger that the great hydrostatic pres-sure may permanently defo~m the steel pipes precisely while they are being laid. The wall thicknesses must therefore b~ propor-i~ 25 tioned accordingly. A very great volume of freight space must be ava1lable for the transportation of the steel pipes to the places j where they are to be làid. It i5 for these reasons that steel -j~ pipelines have hitherto been laid only in relatively shallow ^~ waters to depths o about 200 metersO
,~ 30 Large tubes made of elastomers and constructed in a manner similar to high pressure hoses are suitable for spanning yreak ;~ ocean depths. Tubes of this kind are used in the high pressure art for the accommodation of high internal pressures at rela-tively small diameters and short lengths, The technical require- ~
5 ments which must be met by a submarine pipeline at great depths, ;
I however, cannot be fulfilled by the hose designs which have been known hitherto. First, of course, materials must be selected for the "pipe design" which are resistant to sea water. The external surfaces o~ the tubes must not be attacked by sea water even after years of use. In addition, the sur~ace must be so i prepared as to inhibit incrustation by sea animals insofar as -possible. To span irregular shoals it is necessary to provide lengths o~ many kilometers, even when the diameters of the tubes are great, and they may be o~ the order of 300 to 1000 millimeters.
It is very important to use the greatest possible individual lengths 1 of tubing in order to reduce the number of welds between the ends ;' of the tubes, insofar as is technically possible.
~, This goal can be attained, however, only if the transporta-tion problems which occur where large diameters and long trans-portation hauls are involved are simultaneously solved. A "tube"
, in the above-named diameter range cannot be transported in the straight condition, with an individual length of, for example, 100 m, by conventional meansO It must therefore be wouhd~llike a hose in a known manner. At the large hose diameters desirèd, the drum dLameter required for the hose designs known heretofore would also become too large to be transportable~
The known methods of manufacturing high-pressure hoses of ~ laminated materials with a resilient supporting material can be ` ' `~ ~ divided basically into the mandrel processes and the mandrel-less '~ 30 processes.

- 2 -~v~
In mandrel manufacturing processes the individual components of the hose, such as the core, the reinforcement and the covering, for example, are applied individually to a mandrel of finite length serving as a mold core. The mandrel length is limited ;
for reasons of easier "strippability," and amounts as a rule to from 20 to 40 meters. In discontinuous manufacturing, a solid steel mandrel is usually used for small hose diameters, and an .
aluminum tube is used in the case of larger diameters on account of greater ease in handling (German Pat. 521,226).
~ 10 The mandrel-less processes are the only ones which heæetofore ; have permitted the continuous production of hose in any desired because the limitation of length due to the necessity of stripping ~
~ the hose from the mandrel is eliminated. The construction of the ;, hose in the assembly phase is performed in this case on a slightly i~ 15 compressed fluid, which is air as a rule. The establishment of the hose dimensions is achieved in these processes through the 1 outside diameter in that, prior to the heating, a lead jacket is ¦ applied, for example, and is continuously removed again after the ~ -

3 heating. In contradistinction to the mandrel process, the accur-acy of the inside diameter in this case depends very greatly on the material and machinery parameters. Furthermore, the mandrel-~;~; less~processes known today are economically applicable only where 3,~ ~ large quantities o~ hose and small hose diameters are involved ~ (periodical "Kautschuk and Gummi", February 1963, DK 678.06:
i 25 621.643.3).
~; For the manufacture of high pressure hoses of great and very ~ great dimensions, the mandrel process has been used exclusively ¦ ~ hitherto. The reason for this is not so much the required con-stancy~of the inside diameter, but essentially two facts: The ; 30 metal or textile reinforcement necessary for the construction of ;~
~, .: .. .
~ - 3 -the hose must be applied under tension, which in the case of the mandrel-less process would resLllt in an unacceptable constriction of the core. An increase of the supporting air pressure is not possible in such cases, since this would likewise result in a 5 deformation of the core, even though it would be in the opposite direction. On the other hand, jacketing with lead during the heating would result in manufacturing costs which would not be economically acceptable.
The invention is addressed to the problem of making a~ailable . . ..
great lengths of high pressure hose produced from laminated materials with a resilient supporting material. A special object is the production of large-size flexible tubes which can be laid as resilient pipelines in a technically simple manner by means of `l apparatus such as can be contained in ships, for e~ample.
These problems are solved in accordance with the invention . .' ,.
by high pressure hoses composed of elastomers and reinforcements and having inside diameters in excess of 50 mm, which are charac-:.i . .. . .
`~ terized by continuous construction in any desired length of at least 100 meters, ;
The high pressure hoses of the invention may have a rein-, . . . . ..
forcement to maintain their stability of shape under high external pressure. According to a preferred embodiment, they are reversi-~ ~ bly collapsible under external pressure, deforming their cross -`
3~ section to a flat oval and more.
The high pressure hoses of the invention, if not of circular cross section, may have a principle axis of inertia whereby they ~.j .. ... .
i are given a definite plane of collapse and twisting is prevented.
-i . - .,, :.
~The high pressure hoses of the invention may have one or .1 ` . ' '::
¦more tension supports extending longitudinally for the accommoda-:, ~ . ..
~'I30 tion of the longitudinal forces. These are located preferably on ~ ;

_ ~

the principal axis of inertia. In the area of the thickening located on the principal axis of inertia the high pressure hose of the invention, in a preferred embodiment, has r~cesses at intervals.
According to another preferred embodiment, the hose extremi-ties have material thickenings for the fastening of terminal fittings without impairing strength. The high pressure hose of ~i the invention is preferably so constructed that the permeability of the material used in its construction to harmful components of ` 10 the matter being pumped through it increases from the inside to -' :
the outside. -The method of the invention for the continuous production of high pressure hoses is characterized by the Eact that the hose is built up on a stationary mandrel over which the house is pulled rollingly or slidingly in the direction of production.
.',~ . . .
According to a preferred embodiment, the stationary mandrel is composed wholly or partially of a roller mandrel rotating about its long axis. In another variant of the method of the ... .
invention, the stationary mandrel is made wholly or partially in ~ . :
' 20 the form of a hydrostatic or aerostatic bearing. The stationary .
mandrel used in the method of the invention may bear on its entire `

,l surface one or more endless bands of heat-resistant, flexurally l , : ., resilient material revolving under an external drive or driven by 11~ the movement of the hose in the direction of production. Addi-, ::
25 tional preferred embodiments will ba understood from the following ~ ~

':
i description.

In the process of the invention the hose is made on a sta~
tionary mandrel whose surface is driven along in the direction of prodnction ~ith the least possible friction by the hose being .. .
~ 30 built upon it. Such a mandrel is a fixed component of the actual .:
i - 5 - ~
.

hose machine and thus is present only at the beginning of -the ~ production area and extends as far as the heating zone if any, It may consi.st of one or more partial sections, depending on the particular embodiment, such that the mandrel segments, as seen in , the direction of production, are fixedly joined to one another and are present only where the application of a new layer of material on the hose, especially a layer of wound cord or the heating coil, produces a pressure directed towards the interior of the hose has to be counter-balanced in order to prevent defor-mation of the circular cross section, Brief Description of the Drawinqs ..
. Figure 1 is a sectional view of a roller mandrel according to one preferred embodiment of the invention.
.l Figure 2 is a sectional view of a hydrostakic or aerostatic ~ 15 mandrel according to another preferred embodiment o the :1 invention, .... ,~
. , -,~ Figure 3 is a sectional view of a stationary mandrel accor-,~~ ding to a further preferred embodiment of the invention, Figure 4 is:a sectional view of an alternative form of the ' stationary mandrel of Fi.gure 4, Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines A-B

; of Figure 4, :

; Figure:6 is:an alternative.form of the structure shown in - :.;

: : Figur~ 5.

:d ~ ~
Yl 25; F.igure 7 is a partial view of another alternative form of the ; structure of Figure 5. :. :

Figure 8 lS an elevated view showing a preferred method ,1 : : .
of making hose core according to this inventionO ..

~ Figure 9 shows an end view of a system used to counteract ,~ ~30 torque experienced by a hose made according to this invention, ,,~ ; 6 ~

Figure 9A shows a representative cross-sectional v.iew of ~ a hose shown in Figure 9.
- . Figure 10 is a side vi.ew of an alternative construction of - a hose according to this invention.
5 Figure 10A is a cross-sectional view of the hose shown in Figure 10.
The process of the invention may be performed in three prin-, ~ .
cipal variants:
~, a) With a roller mandrel as in Fi~re lo .'`~ .
The hose core (2) leaving the extruder (1) is kept circular by a sliyht air pressure in its interior (3) and is cooled as -' greatly as possible before the next procedure. At a constant ':I speed v it reaches the first hose wrapping maching (4) where it .: :
,'I is wrapped with a layer of corded or braided yarn or wire, These layers must be made in an extremely precise and repeatable manner in a high pressure hose, and therefore any construction of the ~ soft and unstable core must be prèvented under all circumstances. ; .
J'~ This can be achieved in accordance with the invention by .-.

~'l means of a circular array of rollers (5) which will revolve ad~
~, 20 vantageously in the opposite direction from that of the.cording ;~.
. ~ or bralding machine (4), The roller array (5) consists of the ~:
.f~ larg.est possible number of slightly rounded rollers (6) whose - ~
~ . :
: axis of rotation will slant to a variable degree in relation to ...
the center line of the hose,, For a given slant of the rollers 25~ (6) and a given hose extrusLon speed v the rotatory speed n of ~ khe roller array (5) is adjusted such that the rollers (6) w~
''I . - . . .

., .

~j~ 30 ;.ji 6a . ' ~ ' roll helically against the inside surface o~ the hose (2).
, . ,.., .,~, The diameter of the roller arran (Dl) is also variable so as to be able to be able to produce the greatest possible number of - types of hose with the same roller mandrel. In addition, the inside diameter of the hose (D2) can also be corrected in this manner during production.
If a supporting mandrel is also required in the second ~ cording or braiding machine (7), one can be made to rotate con-; trary to the first one through a flexible driveshaft (8).
, 10 After the application of two layers of textile yarn or wire, .-; .
the hose under construction is usually so resistant to pressure ~ ! , - . ',; ' Al that a pressure of several atmospheres inits interior (9) will ! su~Eice for any further support. It would be advantageous for ,.~ . . .
~ this pressure medium to have the temperature required for the `i 15 later heating of the hose.
To provide a seal between sections (3) and (9) of the hose interior, a sliding seal (10) is rotatably fastened to the last roller array (5). -In cases where the torque transmitted to the hose (2) by the :) ,. . .
l 20 winder (4~`~ or (7) is not counterbalanced by an equal torque pro-,:
vided by the roller mandrel (5~, an anti-rotational means (11) mu~t be provided in order to prevent twisting of the hose (2) and the inaccurake laying of the reinforcement wrappingO This anti-rotational means is advantageously a junction of inkerlocking . .
form between the hose surface and a plurality of edges cutting into same or grooved rollers rolling thereonO The point of en-gagement of the antirotational means is to be as close as possible ; to the point at which the wrapping is laid onO

i b) With a hydrostatic or aerostatic mandrel as represented in ,.
~ 30 Fiqure 2 .~ .

The extruded and cooled hose core (2) is prote~ted against collapse at one or more points of action of external forces by a supporting mandrel (13) of fixed location which may be made to rotate on its axis. To prevent contact between the hose core (2) 5 and the mandrel surface a gap (15) filled with a supporting medium (14) must be maintained This supporting medium flows under presssure through an infeed tube (15a) and capillaries (16) into a plurality of air pockets (173 and expands from there through the r,~ annular gap (15) into the interior (3) of the house whence it .
10 returns through return bores (18) back to the compressor.
As in the method described in a), in all cases where the -~
hose cross section does not have sufficient stability of shape, s an additional external supporting means (19) must be used. This ~ can advantageOUsly be in the form of an aerostatic bearing, since ,J .: . .
15 a film of liquid between the core (2) and the reinforcement (20) is incompatible with hops quality. In this manner the hose (2) will glide with low friction and at a constant speed v between ,. .. . .
the two stationary bearings (13) and (19). The external bearing `
(19) is advantageously part of the coil holder (12) o~ the hose ,. . .
wrapping machine (4) and (7) and has at its forward side guiding , bores (21) for admission of the wrapping. In this manner a sup-port~can be provided which will fully envelop the exterior of the -~' ,,'.' ~ hose~except for the point at which the wrapping is laid on.
d, ~ C) With a stationary mandrel (23) actinq as a ~auqe~ as illus-¦ 25 trated in Fiqure 3, on whose surface a plurality of endless ;
flexible bands (24) glide with low friction, driven in the dire~tion of production by the hose (2)o To this end it i5 re-,~ . : . .
quired that the friction between the inner side of the core (2) and the outside of the bands (24) is considerably greake:r than the friction between the bands (24) and the mandrel (23)o If~
1~ ,. .
. .
. ., ',. ~ ,', .', :' .. .
. .

`- nevertheless, the sliding friction under certain circumstances of production is too high, the bands may additionally be driven by a means (25) at the hose movement speed v. Particularly in the case ;
of the smaller hose inside diameters it is difficult to provide a suitable driving means in the interior of the mandrel, for reasons ; of space limitation. In these cases the drive means (25) can be ,-i . .
located on the exterior (see Figure 4). Such an arrangement is also advantageous when the hose core is not extruded but is wound . ~ ~ , . . -from strips (26), The construction of the endless bands (24) is various and will depend on the degree to which the hose core must be free of `
fluting (Figs. 5,6,7). Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-B through the mandrel in Figure 3 or Figure 4. The mandrel sur~ace (23) bears a plurality of endless bands which are ¦ 15 stiff longitudinally, but are flexible about their renter line such that they easily conform to the curvature of the mandrel.
The bands are shaped at their lateral meeting edges (27) such that they are pressed tightly together by the action of an exter- ;
nal pressure. On their bottom sides they have r~Qngitudinal ;~ 20 guiding beads (29) which mate with correspondingly shaped recesses in the surface of the mandrel (23) for the purpose of preventing lateral displacement ofi the bands under the action of a torque Mt.~Likewise, the recesses 31 [Fig. 7] may also be located on the undeFside of the bands and run on corresponding guiding ~25 ridges (32) on the mandrel surface (Fig. 7). To reduce the fric-tion between bands (24) and mandrel (23)~ lubricant can be fed -; through bores.
In the case of nonmetallic bands (24) it is advantageous to ~;-provide one or more tension supports (28), of steel cord ~or example, extending longitudinally within the cross sectionO

_ g ~
., .

In cases in which the hose is surrounded after production with a heating coil, it is possible, for the purpose of exerting an external pressure on the hose cross section during the heating for the achievement of better quality, to increase this pressure still further by filling the interior (33) of the bands (24) with . .~ ,: .
gas or liquid. In this case the bands must be made of a resilient ~- material which permits the desired increase in the thickness of the band through thermal expansion of the filling substance. ~i i ~o matter how well the bands (24) meet at the edges (27), ~
.j . .. .
i 10 these edgesswill inevitably leavé some impression in the form of . . .
a line on the inside of the finished hose, However, to reduce `~
the number of such lines and hence the resistance to flow when the hose is in uqe, the number of bands moving on the surface o the mandrel must be kept as small as possible, and in the extreme -lS case there will be only one (Figs. 6 and 7). To facilitate the return of the endless belt at the ends of the mandrel (23) the band can have either entirely (Figure 6) or only partially (Fig-.,, , ;.. . :
~;1 ure 7) a small thickness, so that its cross section which is cir- -cular at the sur~ace of the mandrel can easily be pleated to- -1 20 gether at the end of the mandrel and thus return through the in-terior of the mandrel, as shown at (34).
}n order to hold the entire mandrel system ~23) in its place in the direction of hose movement, the mandrel must be joined by arosspieces (35) to a mandrel mounting support (22). Since on 25~ itsiway through the interior of the mandrel the band t24) must i~: :: : : . : ,.
pass around these cross~ pieces~ its circular cross section is ~ interrupted at least at one point (36). This could be eliminated i~ ~ if it;is possible to hold the mandrel (23) in its axial position, ;~
!~ `
~ ; not mechanically (22~ 35), but by a strong magnetic field acting ~`

-~ 3~0 on it from the~inslde (36) and/~o~ from the outside (37) (Fig. 6).

A hose made in this manner would be absolutely free of ridges on its interior and could not be distinguished in this regard from `, a conventionally made mandrel hose.
An axial fixation of the mandrel without a mandrel mounting J . ., support (22) is also necessary in cases in which the hose core - (27) is made in a separate procedure (Fig. 8). The core (2) ~ being fed from a drum (39) passes through the fabricating zone ~5 , , '., .
(40) and the heating zone (41). The finished hose is cooled and then wound on the drum (42).
In order to be able to operate a quasi-continuous manufacture "mandrellessly" in this case, too, the tube section (23) bearing -the endless bands (24) must be able to be locked to the hose ~;
~l machine in the axial direction without screw fastening. This can be accomplished magnetically in accordance with Figure 6 or hy-draulically (Figure 8) in a positive manner. In the case of hy-draulic mandrel locking, the e~ds of the mandrel bear, on the ~-crosspieces (35) and the mounting (21), piston faces Ao and A
(43), which seal the hose interiors (44) and (45) from one '~ another. The gas or liquid pressures in these interiors are con-nected to one another through a controlling means such that the force PlAl - PoAo resulting from the producks of pressure and piston area preserves at all times an equilibrium with the fric-tion force~R acting between the bands ~24~ and the mandrel (23).
¦;~ The axial posltion of the mandrel (23) can be verified by the 25 known methods of nondestructive material testing--by x-rays for ;~
example-- and ~an be corrected by means of the differential -pressure control described above. ~ ~;
¦~ Since the unprotected core ~2) is not able to withstand any great internal pressure in section 44 without unaccaptable defor-30 matior, the internal pressure 11so can be made equal to the ~ ~ ~

: -t3 atmospheric pressure, thereby eliminating the :Eront piston face ~ Ao~
In many cases it may be quite advantageous to combine the : above-described methods a), b) and c). For example, in the case of a hose whose first reinforcing layer has been applied by method . c), the ~ose cross-section is already so stable that, in the . course of production the rest of the layers can be laid by method ..
b) or, under certain circumstances, with the use of a gaseous or liquid filling in the interior of the tube,.this can easily be : ~.
10. accomplished if the media are kept separate by means of one or more suitable seals (10). :
In any of methods a) to c) it is impossible that, despite the :
I measures describe~, an excessive torque may be applied to the - hose cross-section, especially by the application of the various ;
reinforcements and the concomitan-t action of external forces in a `.l direction tangential to the outside diameter of the hose. It is .
.. , ~
!`f the purpose of the system represen-ted in Figure 9 to counteract ;1 : this torque to the greatest possible degree with an approximately .
,f equal torque in the opposite direction, and to transform the ~ - .
unwanted external forces into internal ones.
: This is achieved substantially by the fact that an adjacent endless and flexible belt or an e.ndless and flexible belt (48~
., ~
being wound about the hose in the same direction and simultane- ~.
'~ ously with the strand or with a set (47) consisting of a . ~
! 25 plurality of reinforcing wires or cords acts by friction to .

f¦~ counterbalance a certain portion of the reinforcement wrapplng .
tension.~ This effect is made possible by a rough surface on . :
the belt (48) on the one hand, and by the speed difference between ~:~
. ~ .
f ~ (47) and (48) on the basis of the difference in their wrapping .
diameter on the hose t2). A$ represented in Figure 9A, the ~s . :
1~ 12 : .

endless belt 48 revolving at the speed w produces a ~orce Sl which -engages the tube (2) as a tangential tension force and exerts a torque Mtl on the tube. When by the driving or braking of the pulley system (49-52) the unwinding force S~ of the belt 48 is kept equal to the winding force Sl, then the tor~ue Mt2 produced thereby will also be equal to Mtl, and the external forces applied by the belt will result in a constriction of the portion (5S) of the belt spiralled onto the hose and in a static force R which produces no torque This static reaction force R is counterbal-anced by the stationary mandrel of methods a) to c) When large pipes o~ high polymers are used in deep sea reg-, ions, the assembly of the lines is performed at no pressure. The pressure used in the pumping of natural gas and oil, which is approximately 55 to 75 atmospheres gauge pressure cannot be i applied until after the entire pipeline is completed. Up to the l time of start-up, the hydrostatic pressure of the water is applied ;' to the full extent. The parts of the pipeline therefore assume the flat oval shape used in transporting it. The circular shape is not attained until the desired final pressure has been achie-ved at the desired depth in the ocean. To prevent the hose from twisting while it is compressed, the hose may have a cross sec-~' tion differing from the circular (Figure 10)~ By means of thick-j ened portions (57), a principal axis of inertia x-x can be vul-canized in, which will give the hose a defined plane of collapse -when it is compressed. The longitudinal tension reinforcements (56) are advantagèously located in this plane.
When such a pipeline is laid floatingly at great ocean depths, the buoyancy of the hose must be compensated by counterweights.
For the application of these counterweights or to prevent their displacement longitudinally, the hose has recesses (58) at .: :

intervals. ~ 3 When the above-described flexible pipelines are laid at great ocean depths, it is more economical to design the cross section of the pipeline not on the basis of the desired absolute internal operating pressure, but to design it only for the prevailing dif-ferential pressure. Thus, for example, a hose having a nominal pressure rating of at least 20 kp/cm will suffice for use at an internal working pressure of 70 kp/cm in that portion of the ;
pipeline that is laid deeper than 500 meters in the ocean. The hydrostatic water pressure of about 50 kp/cm will all the more `1 severely deforml~lthe hose designed for only 20 kp/cm when it is ;~ laid in the unpressurized state, and thus must be taken into ,. ::
accoUnt in designing it; on the other hand, however, greater in-dividual lengths can be transported on the same drum to the work-site.
In accordance with the invention, the steel wire or other reinforcements are so embedded in rubber, for example~ that the ;;~
individual reinforcing elements will not be permanently deformed by the above-described changes of shape from the flat oval to the circular shape and ~ice versa.
For this purpose the wall thickness of the hose core must be made so thick that even under extreme deformations of its cross section it will not be bent beyond the acceptable bending radius , . . .
i of the reinforcing elements used .--By the method of the invent;on, khe advantages of the mandrel ,~
process, especially the accommodation of great deforming forces during manufacture, the precise establishment of the inside dia-meter~ the economical and flexible production even of small lots are combined with the advantages of the mandrelless process, ;~
especially the production of any desired hose lengths.
_ ,.::~',.';; .

By the method of the invention it i5 now possible to produce a high pressure hose of any desired constnuc-tion, having a mainly circular but not necessarily cir- -cular cross section, continuously in large quantities, and at the same time to achieve the same quality charac-teristics of a hose produced on a mandrel.
By the invention, however, it can also be brought about that the hoses will be able to be wound in a flat oval shape, that is, in a drive-belt-like shape, on drums without permanently deforming thier inner struc-ture, especially their steel wire reinforcement. This permits the rational transportation of high pressure hoses in very great individual lengths.

, . .
~ .

.. ~ :. .

: J~
~J -.

, .

,7 j ' ~ : ' 'i ~ - 15 -.:
,

Claims (18)

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE
PROPERTY OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:

1. High pressure hose made of elastomers and reinforcing inserts selected from the group consisting of steel wire and textile material reinforcements, said reinforcing inserts being applied under pressure and embedded in said hose, said hose having an inside diameter greater than 50 mm and being characterized by a unit construction in the longitudinal direction and a length of at least 100 m.

2. High pressure hose as claimed in claim 1 including additional reinforcement for maintaining its shape under high external pressure.

3. High pressure hose of claim 1, characterized in that it is reversibily collapsible under external pressure such that its cross section is deformable to a flat oval and more.

4. High pressure hose of claim 3, characterized by a noncircular hose cross section having a principal axis of inertia whereby said hose has a defined plane of collapse upon compression and torsions are avoided.

5. High pressure hose of claim 1, characterized by one or more tension carriers extending longitudinally to accommo-date longitudinal forces.

6. High pressure hose of claim 5, characterized in that the tension carriers are located on the principal axis of inertia.

7. High pressure hose of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that the hose has recesses at intervals in the area of the thickened portions lying on the principal axis of inertia.

8. High pressure hose of claim 1, characterized in that the hose ends have material thickenings for the fastening of connection fittings without impairing strength.

9. High pressure hose of claim 8, characterized in that the permeability of the materials used in the structure, in relation to the components of the substance being pumped through it which are harmful to it, increases from the inside out.

10. High pressure hose of claim 9, characterized in that its nominal pressure resistance for buoyant laying at great ocean depths corresponds at least to the prevailing pressure difference between hydrostatic external pressure and the work-ing internal pressure.

11. A high pressure hose, having an inside diameter of more than 50 mm, a length of more than 100 m, a compressive strength of at least 20 atmospheres, and a curvilinear, inter-nal cross section, the said hose being reversibly compressible, whereupon the internal cross section is converted into a flat oval cross section, and the said hose consisting of an elastomer core, a corded or braided reinforcing insert selected from the group of reinforcing inserts consisting of metallic inserts and textile material inserts and produced under tension, and an elastomer cover, the thickness of the said core being such that the smallest permissible beinding radii of the reinforcing inserts used is not exceeded even under maximal deformation of the hose.

12. A high pressure hose according to claim 11, the cross section of the said hose having a main axis of inertia which imparts thereto a preferred buckling plane.

13. A high pressure hose according to claim 11, characterized by a circular internal and an oval external cross section.

14. A high pressure hose according to claim 11, characterized by one or more tension carriers.

15. A high pressure hose according to claim 14, characterized in that the tension carriers are embedded into the material of the hose cover and lie along the main axis of inertia of the cross section.

16. A high pressure hose according to claim 15, provided with spaced recesses in the vicinity of the thickened areas lying along the main axis of inertia.

17. A high pressure hose according to one of claims 11, 12 or 13, characterized in that the permeability of the mater-ials in the construction of the hose to the components of the materials transported which are harmful thereto increases from the inside to the outside.

18. A high pressure hose as claimed in claim 11 when used as an ocean pipeline having a circular internal cross-section and an inside diameter of between 300 and 1,000 mm.