EP0548707B1 - Method and device to increase the water depth of a watercourse - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to a device for increasing the water depth of a body of water, which has a high-pressure jet device with at least one high-pressure nozzle for forming at least one high-pressure water jet that can be directed against the bottom of the water, and a high-pressure pump for supplying water to the high-pressure jet device, and preferably an additional whirling device, for acting on the base material of the water bed - And / or suction device, wherein the device is preferably provided for equipping a watercraft.

Devices of the type mentioned are known or have already been proposed. A corresponding proposal can be found, for example, in patent application DE-A-41 17 441.0. The device proposed there has both a whirling device or rinsing device and a suction device.

A device of the type mentioned is already known from DE-C-29 195. The device shown there, which is arranged on a watercraft, also has a high-pressure jet device in order to plow away the base material of a body of water with high-pressure jets. In addition, the device shown there also has, at least optionally, a whirling device.

A generic device can also be found in EP-A-0029469. The high-pressure jet device known there should even be suitable and intended to be able to process a particularly resistant body of water.

EP-A-0075358 discloses a suction device which would be suitable as a generic supplementary device for the device mentioned.

FR-A-1399762 also shows a suitable swirling and / or suction device for a generic device.

US-A-2956354 generally discloses a high pressure water jet device with high pressure nozzles.

A generic device works particularly well in relatively softer water, for example as found on the North Sea coast, e.g. is about removing mud, mud or other sludge deposits in order to increase the water depth.

On the other hand, such devices have difficulties in a body of water that is relatively harder and offers greater resistance, for example if the body of water has clay, sandstone or other rock, as can be the case, for example, in the Baltic Sea region.

It is already shown in the cited EP-A-0029469 that particularly difficult base materials require special treatments. The device mentioned in this publication, however, should not be suitable for really hard base material.

The invention is therefore based on the object of demonstrating a generic device in which it is ensured on the or each high-pressure nozzle that the high-pressure jet can still act with as much force as possible on the base material, that is, the jet in the ambient water between the nozzle and the bottom not so quickly diverges or swirls.

The object is achieved in that coaxially an outer tubular jacket is arranged to the high-pressure nozzle, such that a jacket-water jet enveloping the high-pressure jet can emerge from the annular intermediate space between the tubular jacket and the high-pressure nozzle.

US-A-3572839 has already disclosed an enveloping jacket jet for a high-pressure water jet. However, this jacket jet is an air jacket jet, which in practice cannot give satisfactory results.

According to the invention, relatively hard water base material, which resists the conventional devices, is thus advantageously pre-processed and thereby weakened.

Such a weakening is brought about in that the base material is cut or cut with the high pressure jet or the high pressure jets.

The weakening or cutting or cutting of the material according to the invention is carried out specifically in the method according to the invention. This enables the use of the otherwise known devices of the type mentioned at the outset. Resisting material is only weakened to the extent that the conventional methods are otherwise applicable.

Although methods of a different type are known to remove harder base material by doing this with heavy equipment, the harder base material being excavated or, if necessary, crushed beforehand, for example bucket chain excavators can be used, but such devices require an enormous amount of time and money, which is advantageously avoided according to the invention.

According to the invention, the water with a high pressure is preferred of about 10 - 200 MPa (100 - 2000 atm), preferably about 25 MPa (250 atm). With such a high pressure, the clay base, possibly also the stone base, can be weakened in such a way that further removal can be carried out using conventional methods.

The high-pressure nozzle is positioned or guided as close as possible to the base material to be weakened, preferably at most about 10 cm.

At a distance of about 10 cm from the bottom of the water, a weakening of the high pressure jet by about 25% is to be expected, so that, especially when stones are to be pre-processed, the distance to the bottom of the water should not be greater. It is even better to run the corresponding high pressure nozzle directly above the bottom of the water so that the distance is practically zero, or a maximum of about 5 cm.

The device according to the invention is preferably part of a watercraft, so that a large area of water can be treated with the watercraft. To enlarge the water depth of a body of water, conventionally designed water vehicles essentially only need to be equipped with a high-pressure pump, a high-pressure line and one or more high-pressure nozzles for the conversion according to the invention. Such a conversion is therefore relatively simple and inexpensive to perform with advantage.

The high-pressure nozzle is preferably protected, for example by being surrounded by mudguards, so that only the nozzle opening remains free for the exit of the nozzle jet, while the nozzle itself is protected against mechanical damage which could occur when moving the nozzle over the ground.

A further development of the invention provides that the Device according to the invention has a group of high-pressure nozzles. According to a further development, these are preferably movable relative to the base. On the one hand, this movement can take place solely in that they are arranged on a movable watercraft. However, additional mobility can also be provided, in which the nozzles also move relative to the watercraft or the device. For example, a group of high-pressure nozzles can be arranged in a row, which can be moved back and forth overall, preferably transversely to the longitudinal axis of a watercraft, so that a respective high-pressure nozzle describes a meandering path above the water bed when such a watercraft is moving, and a resisting base material meanders accordingly - or cuts.

Another embodiment of the device according to the invention provides that a group of high-pressure nozzles is arranged in a circle and is arranged axially rotatable or pivotable on this circular arc in the circle.

Due to this special arrangement, especially when the device according to the invention is also arranged on a moving watercraft, the bottom of the body of water is very small, practically chopped up by the high-pressure jets, so that further removal of the weakened base material is easily possible using conventional methods . The circularly arranged group of high-pressure nozzles, which rotates and is moved forward as a whole by a watercraft, acts comparatively like a blender stick of a kitchen machine when it is used to crush harder pieces of fruit, vegetables or nuts, the device according to the invention having the advantage that this is done by High-pressure blasting is carried out smoothly and without contact.

A further development of the invention provides that the high-pressure jet device with a whirling device and / or suction device is combined or the high-pressure jet device is integrated in these other devices. In this case, the high-pressure jet device according to the invention supports the conventional devices, which otherwise operate in a conventional, proven manner.

In the direction of travel of a watercraft, the high-pressure jet device is preferably (somewhat) arranged upstream of the conventional devices mentioned.

A further development of the device according to the invention provides that the suction device comprises a preferably rectangular suction opening, in front of which high-pressure nozzles, preferably approximately three to four high-pressure nozzles, are arranged in a row parallel to the front side of the suction opening.

The high-pressure nozzles use their high-pressure jets to break up or weaken the base to be extracted immediately before the suction opening. The suction opening can, for example, have a width of approximately 1 m to 1.20 m and suck off base material along a correspondingly wide path. In front of this suction opening, three to four high-pressure nozzles can be arranged at a distance of about 30 cm from one another. The nozzle openings can be round or slit-shaped, e.g. with a diameter of 2.6 mm.

Another development of the invention provides that the angle of the high-pressure nozzle is adjustable in the longitudinal direction of the watercraft. The high-pressure nozzle is preferably set at an angle of approximately 15 ° to the vertical in the direction of travel of the watercraft (obliquely). Experience shows that the weakening effect of the base material is greatest with such an inclination of the high-pressure nozzle in the direction of travel. In particular, the high-pressure jet then has a force component in the vertical but also a force component in the horizontal, so that a plow effect arises that processed base material looks like plowed after the action of the high pressure jet. If there are several high-pressure nozzles, these are preferably adjustable independently of one another.

To form the jacket jet, there may be at least one opening in the tube jacket for the suction or entry of ambient medium (ambient water). Only due to the suction effect of the high-pressure jet, the surrounding medium then enters the intermediate space between the shells and a jacket jet is formed which, surrounded by the high-pressure jet, is entrained by this high-pressure jet and protects the high-pressure jet.

Alternatively, however, it can also be provided that the jacket intermediate space can be pressurized with a jacket jet medium under pressure, preferably with about 0.6 MPa (6 atm). A jacket jet around the high pressure jet is then generated with its own pressure source. The pressure preferably used in this case corresponds to the pressure which is used for the flushing medium in the swirling or flushing device which is generally present anyway, so that the intermediate space between the shells only has to be connected to the pressure source which is present anyway.

Since the nozzle opening of the high-pressure nozzle can generally be very small in diameter, that is to say usually has a size of a few millimeters, it is provided that when the ambient medium is used as the high-pressure jet medium, a device for cleaning the medium is present, that is to say in the broadest sense Filter system to prevent jamming and damage to the nozzle and also the high pressure pump. This should also avoid maintenance intervals of the high-pressure device that are too short, so that the device according to the invention can also operate unexpectedly over a longer period of time.

Fig. 1

eine Seitenansicht eines Hopperbaggers mit einer heckseitigen Spüleinrichtung und eine bugseitigen Saugeinrichtung,

Fig. 2

einen Abschnitt der Spülleitung des Baggers gemäß Fig. 1,

Fig. 3

einen Querschnitt durch die Spülleitung gemäß Fig. 2,

Fig. 4

den Endabschnitt der Saugleitung des Baggers gemäß Fig. 1,

Fig. 5

eine Unteransicht der Saugöffnung der Saugleitung gemäß Fig. 4,

Fig. 6

einen Querschnitt durch ein Hochdruckdüsengehäuse,

Fig. 7

einen Längsschnitt durch das Hochdruckdüsengehäuse gemäß Fig. 6 entlang der in Fig. 8 mit A bis F gekennzeichneten strichpunktierten Linie,

Fig. 8

eine teilweise geschnittene Draufsicht auf das Gehäuse gemäß den Fig. 6 und 7,

Fig. 9

einen Längsschnitt durch eine Hochdruckdüse zum Einsatz in ein Gehäuse gemäß den Fig. 6 bis 8 in vergrößertem Maßstab,

Fig. 10

eine Seitenansicht eines zweiten Ausführungsbeispieles einer Saugöffnung mit Hochdruckdüsenanordnung entsprechend etwa der Fig. 4 und

Fig. 11

eine Unteransicht der Anordnung gemäß Fig. 10 entsprechend etwa der Fig. 5.

Exemplary embodiments from which further inventive features result are shown in the drawing. Show it:

Fig. 1

a side view of a hopper excavator with a rear-side flushing device and a bow-side suction device,

Fig. 2

1 shows a section of the flushing line of the excavator according to FIG. 1,

Fig. 3

3 shows a cross section through the flushing line according to FIG. 2,

Fig. 4

the end section of the suction line of the excavator according to FIG. 1,

Fig. 5

3 shows a bottom view of the suction opening of the suction line according to FIG. 4,

Fig. 6

a cross section through a high pressure nozzle housing,

Fig. 7

6 shows a longitudinal section through the high-pressure nozzle housing according to FIG. 6 along the dash-dotted line marked A to F in FIG. 8,

Fig. 8

6 shows a partially sectioned top view of the housing according to FIGS. 6 and 7,

Fig. 9

6 shows a longitudinal section through a high-pressure nozzle for use in a housing according to FIGS. 6 to 8 on an enlarged scale,

Fig. 10

a side view of a second embodiment of a suction opening with high pressure nozzle arrangement corresponding approximately to FIGS. 4 and

Fig. 11

10 shows a bottom view of the arrangement according to FIG. 10 corresponding approximately to FIG. 5.

1 shows a side view of a hopper excavator with a suction device on the bow side and a flushing or swirling device on the rear. The suction device includes a suction line 2 which can be pivoted against the water bed 1 and has a suction opening 3.

The flushing device includes a U-shaped flushing line 4 which can be pivoted against the bottom of the body of water 4. A flushing medium is passed through the flushing line under pressure and sprayed against the bottom of the body of water with nozzles in jet mode. These jet nozzles are arranged in series along the base line section of the U-bracket shape of the flushing line 4.

FIG. 2 schematically shows a part of this base section of the flushing line 4 in a perspective view. The jet nozzles 5 are arranged along this section, through which the flushing medium is sprayed against the water bed 1. A row of high-pressure nozzles 6 according to the invention, which are connected to a high-pressure line 7, is also arranged in the direction of travel in front of these jet nozzles 5. With these high-pressure nozzles 6, the bottom of the water can first be weakened before it is whirled up or washed away by the jet jets of the jet nozzles 5.

FIG. 3 shows a cross section through the flushing line section 4 according to FIG. 2. From this illustration it can be seen even more clearly that the high-pressure nozzles 6 are arranged upstream of the jet nozzles 5 in the direction of travel. The high-pressure nozzles 6 are also provided in this illustration of FIG. 3 with a protective cage 8 in order to avoid damage or contamination by the water bed 1. A corresponding protective cage could also be provided for the jet nozzles 5, or the jet nozzles 5 could be included in this protective cage 8.

FIG. 4 shows the section of the suction line 2 which can be swiveled into the water, at the free end of which the suction opening 3 is located. The direction of travel of the hopper excavator according to FIG. 1 is the direction indicated by arrow 9.

High-pressure nozzles 6, which can essentially correspond to the high-pressure nozzles 6 on the flushing device according to FIGS. 2 and 3, are arranged upstream of the suction opening 3 in the direction of travel.

A hopper excavator according to FIG. 1 with a suction device and with a flushing device can have high-pressure nozzles 6 in front of the suction device and / or in front of the flushing device in order to weaken the basic material to be cleared off before suction and / or flushing.

4 indicates with two arrows with the reference number 6 that high-pressure nozzles can be arranged in a position directly in front of the suction opening 3 or can also be advanced at a distance therefrom, that is to say relatively independently of the suction opening 3.

FIG. 5 shows the bottom view of the suction opening 3 according to FIG. 4. It can be seen that this suction opening 3 is protected with a grate 10 against the penetration of larger foreign bodies. In addition, it is indicated in the bottom view that three high-pressure nozzles 6 can be arranged in a row in front of the suction opening 3, that is to say in the position near the suction opening according to FIG. 4. In the position 6 somewhat more distant from the suction opening 3 according to FIG. 4, the high-pressure nozzles could 6 can be accommodated in a separate housing, which can be moved or mounted, for example, independently of the mouth of the suction line 2 having the suction opening 3.

A housing 11 in question for accommodating three high-pressure nozzles 6 is shown in a cross section in FIG. 6.

FIG. 7 shows a longitudinal section through the housing 11 and FIG. 8 shows a plan view of the housing 11, which is shown in part in a chiselled manner. The section of FIG. 7 runs along the dash-dotted line shown in FIG. 8 with A to F. 6 runs along the dash-dotted line labeled VI-VI in FIG. 8.

6 to 8, the high-pressure nozzles 6 are not shown in detail. These high-pressure nozzles 6 can be arranged in the positions 6 in such a way that they protrude downward from the housing 11 as shown in FIG. 7.

Rather, only the housing 11 is shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, which accommodates various clamping screws 12 with which the assembled high-pressure nozzles 6 can be set in certain pivot positions. For this purpose, the high-pressure nozzles 6 can be pivoted gimbally about orthogonal axes 13, 14 individually by adjusting the tensioning screws 12 accordingly. In particular, the individual high-pressure nozzles 6 can be pivoted about the axes 14, which run transversely to the direction of travel 9 of the hopper excavator, so that the high-pressure nozzles 6 can in particular be adjusted so that their nozzle openings point somewhat in the direction of travel to the bottom 1, preferably at an angle of approximately 15 ° to the vertical.

The effective distance between the points of impact of the high-pressure jets on the base 1 from one another can be changed by pivoting about the axis 13.

9 shows a longitudinal section of a high-pressure nozzle 6, as it could be arranged on the housing 11. The high-pressure nozzle 6 can be connected to a high-pressure line 7 via a connection 15. At its free end, the high-pressure nozzle 6 has a nozzle orifice 16 which can be replaced, so that nozzle openings of different geometries and / or diameters can be used as required.

An outer tubular jacket 17 extends coaxially around the high-pressure nozzle 6 such that a jacket intermediate space 18, which surrounds the high-pressure nozzle 6 in a ring, remains between the tubular jacket 17 and the high-pressure nozzle 6.

Suction openings 19 are arranged laterally in the tubular jacket 17, so that the suction effect of the high-pressure jet, which emerges from the high-pressure nozzle 6, allows ambient water to be sucked in through the inlet openings 19 into the jacket space 18 and is entrained by the high-pressure jet, in such a way that the jacket surrounds the jacket jet in a protective manner.

In an alternative embodiment, the inlet openings 19 could also be closed and a pressure connection could be provided on the connection-side end face 20 of the tubular jacket 17 for connecting the jacket intermediate space 18 to its own pressure line. The pressure for the pressure medium passed through the jacket space 18 is preferably chosen to be substantially lower than the pressure for the high-pressure jet from the high-pressure nozzle 6. As a pressure source for the jacket space 18, for example, the pressure source comes into consideration, which also corresponds to the jet nozzles 5 of the suction device 2 and 3 supplied.

10 and 11 show, once in a side view and once in a bottom view, the suction line mouths of a suction line 2, roughly corresponding to FIGS. 4 and 5.

5, the high-pressure nozzles 6 are arranged in a row in the direction of travel in front of the suction opening 3, in the exemplary embodiment according to FIG. 11 the high-pressure nozzles 6 are arranged on a circle in front of the suction opening 3. The circular support 21 of the high-pressure nozzles 6 is rotatable or alternately rotatable about an essentially vertical axis 22, so that the high-pressure nozzles 6 move on a corresponding circular path or when the traveling movement of the hopper excavator is superimposed on cycloid-like paths. This movement of the high-pressure nozzles 6 results in a particularly intensive comminution of the base material of the base 1, since the rotating high-pressure nozzles 6 achieve a puree effect.

Claims (13)

1. Apparatus for increasing the depth of a body of water, in order to act upon the material of the bed of the body of water, the apparatus having a high-pressure jet device with at least one high-pressure nozzle (6) for forming at least one high-pressure water jet directable towards the bed of the body of water, and a high-pressure pump for supplying water to the high-pressure jet device and preferably an additional stirring-up device and/or suction device, the apparatus preferably being provided as equipment of a watercraft, characterised in that an outer tubular casing (17) is arranged coaxially with the high-pressure nozzle (6) in such a manner that a casing water jet enclosing the high-pressure nozzle jet can issue from the annular casing interspace (18) between tubular casing (17) and high-pressure nozzle (6).
2. Apparatus in accordance with Claim 1, characterised in that it comprises a group of high-pressure nozzles (6).
3. Apparatus in accordance with Claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the high-pressure nozzle (6) or the group of high-pressure nozzles (6) is arranged so as to be movable relative to the bed (1).
4. Apparatus in accordance with Claim 3, characterised in that a group of high-pressure nozzles (6) is arranged in a row and is arranged so as to be movable to-and-fro, preferably tranversely to the longitudinal axis of a watercraft.
5. Apparatus in accordance with Claim 3, characterised in that a group of high-pressure nozzles (6) is arranged in a circle and is arranged on this circle (circular bearer 21) so as to be axially rotatable or pivotable about the axis of symmetry (22).
6. Apparatus in accordance with one or a plurality of the preceding Claims, characterised in that the high-pressure jet device is combined with a stirring-up device and/or suction device.
7. Apparatus in accordance with Claim 6, characterised in that the high-pressure jet device is arranged in front of the stirring-up device in the direction of travel of a watercraft.
8. Apparatus in accordance with Claim 6 or 7, characterised in that the high-pressure jet device is arranged in front of the suction device in the direction of travel of a water device.
9. Apparatus in accordance with Claim 2 and 8, characterised in that the suction device comprises a preferably rectangular suction opening (3) in front of which high-pressure nozzles (6), preferably approximately three to four high-pressure nozzles (6), are arranged in a row parallel to the front side of the suction opening (3).
10. Apparatus in accordance with one or a plurality of the preceding Claims, characterised in that the angle of the high-pressure nozzle (6) to the vertical is adjustable in the longitudinal direction of the watercraft on which the nozzle (6) is arranged or is to be arranged.
11. Apparatus in accordance with Claim 10, characterised in that the high-pressure nozzle (6) can be set at an angle of approximately 15° to the vertical, directed in the direction of travel (9) of the watercraft.
12. Apparatus in accordance with Claim 10 and 11, characterised in that the hight-pressure nozzles (6) are adjustable independently of one another.
13. Apparatus in accordance with one or a plurality of the preceding Claims, characterised in that in the tubular casing (17) there is at least one opening (19) for aspiration or entry of ambient medium (ambient water).

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