Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B05—SPRAYING OR ATOMISING IN GENERAL; APPLYING FLUENT MATERIALS TO SURFACES, IN GENERAL
  • B05B—SPRAYING APPARATUS; ATOMISING APPARATUS; NOZZLES
  • B05B13/00—Machines or plants for applying liquids or other fluent materials to surfaces of objects or other work by spraying, not covered by groups B05B1/00 - B05B11/00
  • B05B13/02—Means for supporting work; Arrangement or mounting of spray heads; Adaptation or arrangement of means for feeding work
  • B05B13/0207—Means for supporting work; Arrangement or mounting of spray heads; Adaptation or arrangement of means for feeding work the work being an elongated body, e.g. wire or pipe
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B28—WORKING CEMENT, CLAY, OR STONE
  • B28B—SHAPING CLAY OR OTHER CERAMIC COMPOSITIONS; SHAPING SLAG; SHAPING MIXTURES CONTAINING CEMENTITIOUS MATERIAL, e.g. PLASTER
  • B28B21/00—Methods or machines specially adapted for the production of tubular articles
  • B28B21/92—Methods or apparatus for treating or reshaping
  • B28B21/94—Methods or apparatus for treating or reshaping for impregnating or coating by applying liquids or semi-liquids

Definitions

• This invention is concerned with the coating of pipes of the type used in subterranean or submerged pipelines for the recovery of oil, gas, slurries or like pipeable materials from a subterranean well.
• it is concerned with pipes in which a steel pipe section is covered with a bituminous-type anti- corrosion coating.
• each pipe is lifted, e.g. by overhead crane, on to conveyor means for individual coating treatment.
• the conveyor means causes each pipe to rotate about its longitudinal axis while it is passed longitudinally past different treatment stations.
• the pipes are pre-heated to remove all moisture before being shot blast cleaned to remove all dirt and foreign matter in order to ensure an optimum coating-to-pipe bond.
• a primer is then applied by a measured spray.
• a bituminous-type coating usually asphalt or coal tar, is poured as a flood coat over the rotating pipe.
• a glass fibre inner wrap followed by an asbestos felt, glass fibre or glass cloth outer wrap can be simultaneously wound on to the pipe during the coating process.
• whitewash or a similar solar protection agent is then applied to the coated pipe to prevent adhesion between adjacent pipes and to minimise the effects of direct sunlight upon the integrity of the coating.
• Pipes coated thus and reinforced with the necessary glass fibre inner wraps and felt or glass outer wraps provide adequate protection for normal in line temperatures of up to 80°C (coal tar) or 70°C (asphalt) maximum for oil, gas or water lines.
• the known flood coating method is wasteful and causes excessive mess due to the spillage around the pipe of the bituminous type coating.
• the handling of the pipe during the coating step is also difficult to automate satisfactorily.
• Furthermore the pipe handling apparatus such as support buggies become fouled with the coating during the passage thereof beneath the coating applicator.
• An object of the present invention is to provide improvements in the coating of such pipes, and generally obviate or mitigate the aforesaid difficulties of the known coating processes.
• apparatus for the coating of pipes sequentially in a flood coating booth which solves the aforesaid problems by firstly including a catchment tray for collecting excess coating for recycling, and secondly providing unique pipe handling means adapted to contact the pipe at predetermined times and in a predetermined manner permitting the pipe to be progressively advanced through the coating booth without the need for pipe supports passing under the flood coating which avoids the integrity of the applied coating becoming compromised by the pipe handling means and minimises the risk of the handling apparatus becoming fouled by coating spillage.
• said handling means includes a pipe feed mechanism for introducing a pipe lengthwise in the direction of its longitudinal axis to the coating booth whilst simultaneously applying an appropriate degree of rotation about that longitudinal axis, which mechanism has a pipe hold-down feature whereby the leading end of the pipe is permitted to project freely into the booth whilst another part of the pipe is restrained to avoid the pipe toppling into the booth due to lack of support at the leading end, and said handling means further includes at least first and second pipe end supports for picking up the coated pipe as it exits the coating booth. .
• the first and second pipe end supports are provided on remote controlled vehicles which are preferably rail guided, and independently operable to convey respectively the leading and trailing ends of the pipe as it emerges from the coating booth.
• remote controlled vehicles which are preferably rail guided, and independently operable to convey respectively the leading and trailing ends of the pipe as it emerges from the coating booth.
• a second support device is activated to contact the trailing end of the pipe and convey it on a second vehicle away from the coating booth.
• the operation of the first and second vehicles is synchronised such that they operate in tandem and contact the pipe surface only near the ends of the pipe so that again there is minimum risk of contact or interference with the applied coating.
• the said vehicles are shuttled back and forth in a repeatable cycle which can be appropriately timed and coordinated with downstream pipe conveying or offloading devices to permit both vehicles to be returned for pipe end pick up whilst the next pipe in turn is entering the booth and undergoing coating.
• the invention permits an essentially continual and generally uninterrupted coating operation to be operated.
• the remotely operable support devices may include arms which may be rapidly deployed from a stand off position to a pipe contacting position by pivoting, swinging, sliding or like action.
• apparatus for the coating of pipes e.g. with a bituminous material comprising a coating station, a pipe conveyor arranged in proximity to said coating station, means provided external to the coating station for holding at least a portion of one pipe on a support as it is conveyed into the coating station, means for rotating the conveyed pipe about its longitudinal axis, a plurality of mobile pipe carriers, and control means for synchronising the movement of the carriers with the conveyed pipe relative to said coating station.
• a pipe conveyor whose final point of delivery is just short of a flood or curtain coating device provided within a coating station.
• a pair of parallel rails extends away from coating station to a pipe offloading area.
• Mobile carriers positioned on the .rails adjacent to the coating station, stand ready to receive a coated pipe emerging from the coating station. Once coated, the pipe is conveyed away from the coating station firstly by one such carrier engaging the leading end of the emerging coated pipe and subsequently on other carrier cooperating in tandem with the first to support the trailing end of the pipe. The pipe would then be collected from the mobile carriers which are returned to their initial position ready to receive another pipe.
• the collection device may be a hoist, overhead gantry mounted crane, or other suitable lifting device adapted to minimise the risk of damage to the pipe coating.
• the carriers themselves are provided with off ⁇ loading lever mechanisms whereby the pipe may be laterally displaced from the carriers onto a storage facility or conveyor device.
• the mobile carrier pipe supports are idler rollers mounted on hinged support arms. Said arms are curved in shape such that, when not held in contact with the pipe they may be positioned so as not to impede either the flow of coating material applied to the surface of the pipe, or the flow of excess coating material from the undersurface of the pipe.
• apparatus for the bituminous coating of rotating pipes comprising a coating delivery station, a static pipe conveyor terminating prior to said coating delivery station, a plurality of mobile pipe carriers, means for moving said pipe carriers relative to said coating delivery station and a catchment device positioned below said coating delivery station to recover coating material which does not adhere to the rotating pipes for recycling purposes.
• a method of coating a series of pipes in a flood or curtain coating station comprising the steps of providing a pipe conveyor whose final point of delivery is just short of a flood or curtain coating device provided within said coating station, conveying a pipe in the direction of its longitudinal axis whilst rotating it about that axis and causing the one end of the pipe to project under the flood or curtain coating device whilst holding down a remote part of the pipe to stabilise the pipe, conveying the pipe further into the coating station by means of said conveyor and applying a coating by means of said coating device to coat said pipe, providing a plurality of mobile pipe carriers provided with deployable pipe supports and control means to operate a first and a second pipe carrier in a synchronised sequence related to the passage of the pipe through the coating station, actuating the first pipe carrier to provide support for the pipe as the pipe begins to emerge from the coating station, and after a
• SUBSTfTUTESHEET(RULE26) predetermined time delay actuating the second pipe carrier to provide support for the trailing end of the pipe, and operating the mobile carriers in tandem to carry the coated pipe away from the coating station.
• Fig. 1 shows a side view of pipe transportation and bituminous coating apparatus in accordance with the present invention, with a pipe shown at the commencement of the coating process;
• Fig. 2 shows a side view of pipe transportation and bituminous coating apparatus in accordance with the present invention, with a pipe shown midway through the coating process;
• Fig. 3 shows a side view of pipe transportation and bituminous coating apparatus in accordance with the present invention, with a pipe shown at the end of the coating process;
• Fig. 4 shows a side view of pipe transportation and bituminous coating apparatus in accordance with the present invention, with a pipe shown in the "kick out" position;
• Fig. 5 shows a side view of a leading pipe carrier
• Fig. 6 shows a side view of a trailing pipe carrier
• Fig. 7 shows a front view of a trailing pipe carrier.
• Coating apparatus 5 includes a static conveyor 10 for transporting pipes 15, 15' in series to the entrance of a coating delivery station 20 whilst rotating them about their longitudinal axis.
• Mobile pipe carriers 25, 25" initially positioned adjacent to the static conveyor 10, are supported on rails 30. Said rails 30 lead from the static conveyor 10, past the coating delivery station, to a pipe unloading area 35.
• a collection pan 40 is provided below the delivery station 20 to collect any coating material which fails to adhere to the pipes.
• the leading portion 45 of pipe 15 is passed by the static conveyor 10 to the leading pipe carrier 25.
• Said leading pipe carrier is provided with a drive unit 50 with which to engage the leading portion 45 and maintain the rotation imparted to the pipe 15 by the static conveyor 10.
• Coating material is applied to the rotating pipe 15 as it passes the coating delivery station 20.
• the static conveyor 10 is provided with a hold down unit 55 (in the form of an overhead clamp adapted to make contact with the pipe by provision of means of roller devices) to prevent the leading portion 45 of the pipe 15 from pivoting downwards before it reaches the leading pipe carrier 25.
• the leading pipe carrier 25 advances along the rails 30 and thus continues to move the pipe 15 past the coating delivery station 20.
• rollers 60 mounted on the trailing pipe carrier 25' thus allowing the pipe 15 to continue to rotate under the influence of the drive unit 50.
• the trailing pipe carrier 25' Once the trailing pipe carrier 25' has received the trailing portion 45' of the pipe 15, it too advances along the rails 30 at substantially the same speed as the leading pipe carrier 25.
• the two carriers 25, 25' transport the rotating pipe 15 to the unloading area 35, whereupon it is ejected from the carriers 25, 25' by lever units 65 and 65' .
• the empty carriers 25, 25' then return along the rails 30 to their Original positions ready to receive the next pipe 15 ' from the static conveyor 10.
• a pipe carrier 25 (shown in Fig. 5) comprises a wheeled chassis 70 surmounted by a drive unit 50, driven support rollers 75 which serve to connect the drive unit 50 to the pipe 15, and a lever unit 65 to eject the pipe 15 from the carrier 25.
• the lever unit 65 is composed of a concave load bearing surface 80 connected to a support frame 85 by pins 90, the support frame 85 being attached in turn to the chassis 70.
• a hydraulic ram 95 is mounted between the load bearing surface 80 and the chassis 70. Extension of the ram 95 causes the load bearing surface 80 to rotate about the pins 90 and come into contact with the pipe 15 and, with further extension, tip the pipe 15 from the carrier 25.
• a trailing pipe carrier 25' comprising a wheeled chassis 100, a lever unit 65' and a pair of support arms 105. Said chassis 100 straddles the collection pan 40 when the carrier 25' is in its initial position adjacent to the static conveyor.
• Support arms 105 are connected by pins 110 to the chassis 100, and are surmounted by rollers 60.
• the arms 105 can be rotated about the pins 110 by the action of hydraulic rams 115 positioned between the arms 105 and the chassis 100.
• This enables the rollers 60 to be moved into and out of contact with the pipe 15 as shown in Figure 7.
• the arms 105 and rollers 60 are only moved into contact with the pipe 15, in order to support it, as the trailing portion 45' approaches the end of the static conveyor 10. In this way the rollers 60 do not impede the passage of the majority of the pipe 15 past the coating delivery station.
• the rollers 60 and arms 105 may be held in a position remote from the flow of coating material.
• the first carrier may be actuated by contact with the pipe emerging from the coating station so that drive means for advancing the first carrier is not essential since forward motion is still being imparted to the pipe by the conveyor on the other side of the coating station. Obviously once the pipe leaves the conveyor the second carrier would need to be driven to continue the progression of the pipe out of the coating station.
• the specific drive mechanisms may be operated by a variety of systems as known in this art for other purposes.
• the carriers themselves need not be rail guided vehicles but could be soft tyred or track-laying vehicles. It will be recognised that the invention as herein disclosed provides a simple and relatively easily constructed solution to long-standing problems experienced in this art.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Ceramic Engineering (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Coating Apparatus (AREA)
• Spray Control Apparatus (AREA)
• Application Of Or Painting With Fluid Materials (AREA)

Applications Claiming Priority (3)

Publications (2)

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ID=10776339

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (5)

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• 1995
  • 1995-06-20 GB GBGB9512499.6A patent/GB9512499D0/en active Pending
• 1996
  • 1996-06-17 WO PCT/GB1996/001418 patent/WO1997000733A1/en not_active Ceased
  • 1996-06-17 EP EP96917603A patent/EP0833697B1/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1996-06-17 DK DK96917603T patent/DK0833697T3/da active
• 1997
  • 1997-12-22 NO NO19976050A patent/NO326712B1/no not_active IP Right Cessation

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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