JP2021508017A - Equipment and method - Google Patents

Abstract

It comprises an energy conversion array including a support structure (4) and a plurality of tidal energy conversion modules (6) mounted on the support structure (4), each module (6) including at least one energy conversion device. A plurality of tidal energy conversion modules (6) are arranged so as to be mounted on the support structure (4) in a staggered arrangement, and each module (6) is separated from the adjacent module (6) both horizontally and vertically. Each module (6) has its own unobstructed, substantially vertical lift corridor, and each module (6) has its own unobstructed, substantially horizontal flow corridor. Is a device.

Description

The present invention relates to an energy conversion array.

Utilizing the forces from tidal energy is a well-proven method of extracting energy from the marine environment.

However, achieving the levelized cost of energy (LCOE) to enable legitimate commercial development of tidal energy presents major challenges. The main issues are as follows.

・ High cost and complexity of tidal turbines

・ High cost and complexity of submarine foundation

・ Shorter life due to high level fatigue of seafloor foundation, and increased complexity / cost

High installation costs due to the need for a construction vessel capable of lifting large loads

・ Low availability of properly installed vessels in a specific geographical area

• Complex and high logistics costs associated with the transportation and handling of heavy turbines and the balance of related plant equipment

Very high operating and maintenance costs due to the need to mobilize heavy construction vessels

-Large spending on the cost of mobilizing / demobilizing offshore spreads

-Very limited availability to the site for construction activities

Many of the best tidal sites in the world do not have access to offshore construction vessels (OCV's), so mobilizing such vessels over long distances can be very costly.

Floating platforms are widely recognized as a potential solution. However, this can increase costs and risks, which are high mooring loads, mooring fatigue, mooring elasticity / yawing (fish tailing), high cost and legal requirements for floating plants, seabed. Due to expensive anchoring solutions between and floating devices and complex dynamic cable hookups, cable fatigue, bad weather / viability issues, ship / debris collisions, etc. Moreover, the places where such floating solutions can be used are limited, which poses a great danger to the navigation of vessels. In addition, mooring equipment and related equipment occupy a large amount of seafloor space, so the packing density is relatively low and energy recovery from a specific area is low.

Underwater installation techniques for tidal turbines have recently been very efficient and well documented, with no reason to deviate from the use of submarine turbines.

In addition, the track record of using underwater connectors and hookup methodologies is well understood and has been successfully implemented using wet mate connectors.

According to the first aspect of the present invention, an energy conversion array including a support structure and a plurality of tidal energy conversion modules mounted on the support structure are provided, and each module includes at least one energy conversion device and a plurality of energy conversion devices. The tidal energy conversion modules are arranged so that they are mounted on the support structure in a staggered arrangement, and each module is separated from the adjacent module both horizontally and vertically, and each module is not hindered. Equipment is provided in such an arrangement that there is a vertically vertical lift corridor and each module has a substantially horizontal flow corridor that is not obstructed.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, there is a method of installing an energy conversion array, in which a support structure is installed on the seabed and a plurality of tidal energy conversion modules, each module including at least one energy conversion device, are sequentially lowered. Each module is separated from the adjacent module both horizontally and vertically, and each module interferes with each other, and the support structure is provided with a plurality of tidal energy conversion modules mounted in a staggered arrangement. A method is provided in which there is an unobstructed, substantially vertical lift corridor, and each module has an unobstructed, substantially horizontal flow corridor.

These aspects can provide a foundation structure that allows easy access and recovery of individual underwater energy conversion modules, allowing the foundation / support structure to remain in place.

Preferably, the energy converter is a turbine and their blades rotate about an axis due to fluctuating tidal movements.

Taking advantage of the low cost and light weight of the relatively small tidal turbines available in recent years, multiple of these turbines can be integrated / clustered into a single energy conversion module on a cross-beam structure, and further By integrating hookup and power management systems, it is possible to extract the same amount of energy with less capital expenditure and significant weight savings. For example, a small turbine with a capacity of 50 to 200 kW and a weight of about 1 to 10 tons means that a total of 5 to 20 turbines can achieve a power generation capacity of 1 MW with a turbine weight as low as 20 tons. These cargoes are easily processed by standard low cost work vessels, supply vessels, and barges. Conventional larger turbines (> 1 MW) with this capacity are typically in the range of 130-200 tonnes. This has significant advantages in terms of installation, logistics, operation and maintenance, moving from large heavy duty installation and recovery vessels to smaller work vessels, supply vessels and barges without the need for offshore construction vessels. Allows you to. This approach has the great advantage of being able to adapt locally procured workboats and barges in areas where there are few offshore construction vessels.

In addition, relatively small turbines have been demonstrated to provide not only a fairly high power generation: weight ratio, but also a fairly high power generation: manufacturing cost ratio.

Further advantages are fatigue of the support structure (basic fatigue) and wake loss. Installation, operation and maintenance costs are all significantly reduced. In addition, the ballast requirements for support structures required to mitigate slides and falls are significantly reduced along with the associated cost savings.

The disadvantage of the multi-turbine approach is that the balance of plant costs is increased by integrating multiple units into a common grid and into the foundation structure.

An object of the present invention is to address these problems through the following:

・ Development of low-cost multi-turbine foundation structure

-Reducing cost balance by integrating multiple turbines as a single unit

Distributing fatigue loads to the base structure in a more balanced manner to extend the fatigue life of the turbine support structure

• Develop robust operation and maintenance strategies using workboat-sized vessels, barges, or supply vessels that can be procured locally around the world.

· Use of proven underwater hookups

Use of a dedicated pumping system (LARS) in a dual skid arrangement that can be easily transported around the world and easily integrated on flat deck work vessels, supply vessels, or barges without the need for crane vessels.

・ Lightweight / low cost handling and use of transportation equipment

In order to be able to disclose the present invention clearly and completely, the accompanying drawings are referred to herein as follows, in a manner merely exemplary.

It is a perspective view of the energy conversion array. It is a side view of the array of FIG. It is a rear view of the array of FIG. The perspective view of the stage of the installation of the energy conversion array is shown. The perspective view of the stage of the installation of the energy conversion array is shown. The perspective view of the stage of the installation of the energy conversion array is shown. The perspective view of the stage of the installation of the energy conversion array is shown. The perspective view of the stage of the installation of the energy conversion array is shown. The perspective view of the stage of the installation of the energy conversion array is shown. It is a perspective view which shows the part of the array of FIG. 1 of a separated structure in more detail. It is the same figure as FIG. 4 which has the component of the array of the mounted composition.

Referring to FIGS. 1-3, the energy conversion array 2 includes a support structure or foundation 4 and a plurality of tidal energy conversion modules 6 mounted on the support structure 4, and each module 6 has a cross beam structure 10. It includes a plurality of energy converters in the form of a plurality of mounted turbines 8, which in the example shown is a wing-shaped cross-beam structure.

With reference to FIGS. 4-9, during installation, each module 6 is lowered from the surface vessel or barge 14 onto a support structure 4 previously fixed at the position of the seabed SB. The plurality of modules 6 are arranged so as to be mounted on the support structure 4 in a staggered pattern in order to separate adjacent or adjacent modules 6 both horizontally and vertically. It can be unobstructed to access for installation and recovery, and it can be unobstructed to the flow of water through various levels of turbines, thereby allowing water to pass through the space occupied by Array 2. Optimize energy extraction from volumetric flow. Referring again to FIG. 2, arrow 7 indicates an unobstructed, substantially vertical lift corridor for each module 6 to allow unobstructed access for installation and recovery, arrow 7'. Shows an unobstructed, substantially horizontal flow corridor for each module 6 to allow unobstructed flow of water through different levels of turbines, thereby energy from a volumetric flow rate of water. Optimize the extraction.

In particular, with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5, each module 6 and the cross beam structure 10 are preferably provided by a twin dabit system 12 that incorporates a carrier beam 16 mounted in the front or rear region of the ship or barge 14. It descends into the water with substantially the same width. The cross beam structure 10 is releasably attached to the transport beam 16. The transport beam 16 attached to the module 6 is attached to the lift wire 18 via a landing and pumping system frame (LARS frame). The twin dabit system 12 is equipped with a landing and pumping system and a lashing arrangement for the safe sea transport of module 6 and is designed to be mounted on a ship 14, and therefore a crane or other large scale. Eliminates the need for lift equipment. The lift wire 18 arises from the first winch drum 20. In addition, the two stabilizing cables 22 are advantageously attached from the center of the ship 14 to the end region of the carrier beam 16 to allow full control of the lift at all stages. The stabilizing cable arises from the second winch drum 24. Stabilization cable 22 allows module 6 to be activated in suboptimal bad weather conditions, which means that the pendulum effect caused by strong wind power is to lower the working height (compared to the crane) and two stability. This is because it can be reduced by attaching two points with the conversion cable 22. As a result, the path followed by the load (module 6) is further controlled while the module 6 is placed in the support structure 4 via the splash zone and via the water column. Cable 22 may not be needed in good weather conditions.

FIG. 6 shows a module 6 attached to the transport beam 16 that partially passes through the water column and fits into the support structure 4. FIG. 7 shows the arrival of the module 6 at the desired mating position of the support structure 4. Module 6 is placed or pierced on the support structure 4 by the piercing arrangement discussed in more detail below. FIG. 8 is a carrier beam 16 for releasably connecting to an additional module 6 for the completion of an installation or installation task, released from the module 6 connected to the support structure 4 and by the twin dabit system 12. It shows a transport beam 16 that is lifted back to the ship 14 via a water column. The transport beam 16 is released from the module 6 by a hydraulic ram that releases a pin that secures the lift cable in a pad eye arrangement. The stabilization cable 22 remains attached to the module 6 throughout operation.

FIG. 9 shows a ready-to-use state as soon as the array installation is complete and all electrical connections are complete.

With reference to FIGS. 10 and 11, each module 6 is placed or pierced on the support structure 4 via the placement of the piercing guide 24 on the cross beam 10 and on the end region of the mounting column of the support structure 4. Increases the acceptance tolerance of the corresponding fitting element 26 (in the illustrated version, this tolerance is provided by the truncated conical channel). Intelligent placements attached to lift placements, such as underwater cameras, acoustic positioning systems, and sonar-based reference systems, eliminate the need for expensive, work-oriented, remotely operated vehicles (ROVs). The module 6 may be mounted on the support structure 4 via a remote lock pin arrangement acting from the LARS frame. In addition, the wetmate connector arrangement for electrical connection of module 6 also acts from the LARS frame.

If maintenance and / or repair of one or more modules 6 is required, the ship 14 can return to its location and the twin dabit system 12 with its LARS frame lowers the carrier beam 16 to support the support structure 4. It can be engaged with the desired module 6 above. Due to the staggered arrangement of the modules 6 on the support structure 4, there is no portion of the array 2 that prevents the removal of the module 6 returning to the ship 14 via the water column. The same is true for reconnecting modules after necessary maintenance and / or repairs have been performed.

Module 6 may be designed to generate some downforce in the support structure 4 while simultaneously increasing the flow around the turbine 8 due to the fairing nature of the winged crossbeam 10. The support structure 4 may be in the form of a tripod, bipod, or quadruped structure, may be fixed to the seabed by excavating to the seabed, or placed on the seabed by a gravity-based / modular gravity base. You may be asked. The reinforcement of the support structure 4 may further include fairings to increase the flow of water to the turbine 8. The turbine itself may be suspended from the crossbeam 10 (as shown), fixed onto the crossbeam, or integrated into the crossbeam.

Claims (15)

It comprises an energy conversion array including a support structure and a plurality of tidal energy conversion modules mounted on the support structure, each module including at least one energy conversion device, and the plurality of tidal energy conversion modules are arranged in a staggered manner. Each module is separated from the adjacent module both horizontally and vertically, with each module having a substantially vertical lift corridor that is not obstructed by the above-mentioned support structure. A device that is arranged so that each module has a substantially horizontal flow corridor that is not obstructed. The device according to claim 1, wherein each module includes a plurality of energy conversion devices. The device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the energy conversion device is a turbine. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the module includes a cross-beam structure in which the energy conversion device is mounted. The device according to claim 4, wherein the cross beam structure is a wing-shaped cross beam structure. The device according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the support structure may be in the form of a tripod and further includes a fairing to increase the flow of water to the energy conversion device. Preferably, the device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein each module is lowered into water by a twin-dubit system mounted on a ship. The device according to claim 7, wherein the twin-dubit system comprises a carrier beam having substantially the same width as the cross-beam structure, according to claim 4 or 5. The device according to claim 8, wherein the cross beam structure is releasably mounted on the carrier beam. The device according to any one of claims 4 to 9, wherein the cross beam structure includes a piercing guide. The device of claim 10, wherein the piercing guide is a truncated conical channel that increases the acceptance tolerance of the corresponding fitting element in the end region of the plurality of struts on which the support structure is mounted. The method of installing the energy conversion array is to install a support structure on the seabed, to sequentially lower a plurality of tidal energy conversion modules including at least one energy conversion device, and to sequentially lower the plurality of tidal energy conversion modules. Each module is separated from adjacent modules both horizontally and vertically, with the modules mounted in a staggered arrangement on the support structure, and each module has a substantially vertical lift that is not hindered. A method in which there are corridors, and each module has its own unobstructed, substantially horizontal flow corridor. 12. The method of claim 12, wherein each module is lowered from a surface vessel onto said support structure pre-fixed to the seabed. 12. The method of claim 12 or 13, further comprising stabilizing the module during descent by stabilizing the cable. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 14, wherein each module is pierced into the support structure 4 by a piercing arrangement.

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