NL1035546C2

NL1035546C2 - Self-closing flood barrier and method for protecting a hinterland using the same.

Info

Publication number: NL1035546C2
Application number: NL1035546A
Authority: NL
Inventors: Johannes Heinrich Reinde Noort
Original assignee: Den Noort Innovations B V Van
Priority date: 2008-05-13
Filing date: 2008-06-06
Publication date: 2009-11-16
Also published as: JP2011521126A; EP2315880A1; MX2010012365A; CN102099530B; WO2009139622A1; ES2565220T3; DK2315880T3; EP2315880B1; AU2009247029A1; CN102099530A; JP5702276B2; MX341123B; US20110110722A1; PL2315880T3

Description

Self closing flood barrier and method for protecting a hinterland using same

The invention relates to a self closing flood 5 barrier and a method for protecting a hinterland against floods by means of such a self closing flood barrier.

Self closing flood barriers are known in which a dam wall is forced upwards out of a chamber whenever the 10 chamber fills up with water. Such a flood barrier may be installed in for example a dike at a river side. The flood barrier automatically rises in the event of a flood, thereby protecting the hinterland. As compared to conventional flood barriers, moveable flood barriers, also 15 referred to as moveable dams, offer the advantage that they constitute a dam only then when it is really necessary. In a normal situation, the dam is underground and invisible for the environment.

A moveable dam may comprise a vertical retaining 20 wall which at its lowest side provided with a buoyant body housed in the chamber. The buoyant body forces the retaining wall out of the chamber through an opening at the top of the chamber. The buoyant body may also function as a blocking element in order to limit the upward 25 movement of the retaining wall. The buoyant body can be thicker than the upper opening of the chamber and is thereby prohibited to leave the chamber.

In a state of the art system, the opening of the chamber is determined by two supporting blocks at the 30 upper side of the chamber walls. The supporting blocks are fixed to the chamber walls and comprise an angled surface to which an upper wall of the buoyant body abuts whenever the retaining wall is at its top position. In a closed 1035546 2 state of the flood barrier, the top of the buoyant body meets the angled surfaces of the supporting blocks. In this state, the retaining wall is supported by the supporting blocks so that it will stay in a vertical 5 position. The vertical parts of the chamber walls will not contribute to this support.

It is a goal of the present invention to improve the flood barrier of the state of the art.

10 This goal is achieved by providing a self closing flood barrier for protecting a hinterland against floods, said flood barrier comprising: - a chamber comprising a waterside wall and a hinterland side wall; 15 - a water inlet for letting in water in the chamber; - a dam wall member with up and down movably arranged in the chamber, the dam wall member comprising: - a forcing element for causing an upward 20 movement of the dam wall member, and - a blocking element for providing a blockade for limiting the upward movement, wherein the blocking element and the chamber are arranged so that in a closed state of the flood barrier, 25 the dam wall member experiences a lateral force which forces the dam wall member against the hinterland side wall of said chamber.

By creating a lateral force during the upward movement of the dam wall member, the dam wall member will 30 be forced against the hinterland side wall. This will result in a very stable dam wall when in the closed position of the flood barrier. As compared to using two angled inner walls of the chamber the use of only one 3 angled inner wall of the chamber is preferable for two reasons. The dam wall is pressed against the chamber wall and therefore the horizontal position of the dam wall will be stabilized. Furthermore, the effective contact surface 5 between the dam wall and the chamber wall at the hinterland side is increased as compared to the state of the art barriers that have angled wall surfaces at the top of the chamber.

In an embodiment, the water side wall of the 10 chamber is comprising an angled part. Due to this angle part, and the specific form of the dam wall member, the lateral force is created. This angled part may be formed by way of a support block mounted on top of the side wall of the chamber. By using only one such a support block, 15 the dam wall member will be forced against the hinterland side wall resulting in an improved sealing of the dam wall member. Also the usage of only one support block is cheaper than having two support blocks. Furthermore, the usage of one support block will be favourable when having 20 to maintain or repair the flood barrier.

According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a self closing flood barrier for protecting a hinterland against floods, the flood 25 barrier comprising: - a chamber comprising a waterside wall and a hinterland side wall; - a water inlet for letting in water in the chamber; 30 - a dam wall member with up and down movably arranged in the chamber, the dam wall member comprising: - a forcing element for causing a upward movement of the dam wall member, and 4 - a blocking element for providing a blockade for limiting the upward movement/ wherein the chamber on at least one of the waterside and the hinterland side comprises a removable support block arranged for enclosing 5 said blocking element.

By providing one or two removable support blocks, the chamber can be opened after which the dam wall member can be lifted out of the chamber. In this way the chamber and the dam wall can easily be checked and/or cleaned and, 10 when necessary, be repaired.

In an embodiment, the support block comprises a bottom connectable to said water side wall or to said hinterland wall of the chamber by way of connecting means. By disconnecting the support block, it can be removed 15 after which access is provided to the inner side of the chamber.

According to an embodiment, the support block comprises a lockable entrance which provides access to the connecting means. In this way a maintenance team can have 20 access to the connecting means in a very simple and effective way. The entrance can be opened after which one can disconnect the connecting means and can remove the support block.

According to a further embodiment, the support 25 block comprises an angled wall against which at least a part of the dam wall member acts in the closed state of the flood barrier. Due to the orientation of the angled wall of the support block, the blocking element is forced to move sideward and thereby a lateral force is created 30 forcing the dam wall member to one side of the chamber.

According to an embodiment, the blocking element and the forcing element are integrated in one part, referred to as buoyant body. The buoyant body acts as a 5 forcing element as well as a blocking element for limiting the upward movement of the dam wall member. It should be noted that the blocking element may as well be a separate construction such as a blocking rod engaging a blockade in 5 the chamber walls.

According to an embodiment, the dam wall member comprises a substantially flat side for abutment against the hinterland side wall.

The flood barrier may also comprise a sealing 10 member arranged up or on the substantially flat side of the wall member. Such a sealing member will improve sealing of the flood barrier and thereby preventing water from the water side flowing to the hinterland side through the flood barrier in case of a flood. Preferably the 15 sealing member comprises rubber or the like.

According to an embodiment, the flood barrier comprises a lid for closing an opening of the chamber, wherein the lid is fixed to an upper outer end of the dam wall member. This lid may also function as an additional 20 extension of the flood barrier in case of a flood because it will prevent waves from creeping over the outer top edge of the dam wall member. The lid functions as a breakwater.

The invention also relates to a method for 25 protecting a hinterland against floods by means of a self closing flood barrier as described above, the method comprising: - providing said flood barrier; - bringing said flood barrier in a working state; 30 - letting in of water in said chamber for forcing up said dam wall member.

6

Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which corresponding reference symbols indicate corresponding parts, and in which: 5 - Figure 1 shows an embodiment of a flood barrier according to the invention in a resting state; - Figure 2 shows the embodiment of Figure 1 in a closed state.

10 Figure 1 shows an embodiment of a flood barrier according to the invention as applied in a dike 1. Figure 1 shows the flood barrier in a resting state in which nearby water such as a river 10 has a normal water level.

In the embodiment of Figure 1 the flood barrier 15 comprises a chamber 3 having a water side wall 20 and a hinterland side wall 21. The chamber 3 also comprises a bottom 22 which connects the two sidewalls 20, 21 respectively. The walls 20, 21 may be constructed out of sheet steel or any other suitable construction known to 20 the skilled person, such as concrete. In the embodiment of Figure 1, the sheet steel walls are reinforced by concrete. In the chamber 3 a dam wall 4 is present which is supported at its lowest side by a buoyant body 5. Preferably, the floating dam wall 4 comprises polyester.

25 This material reinforcement may be filled with foam as a sandwich construction and is very strong and also very light. In this embodiment, the flood barrier also comprises a lid 6 fixed to the top of the dam wall 4. The dam wall 4 together with the buoyant body 5 is also 30 referred to as dam wall member.

Furthermore, the flood barrier comprises a support block 7 removable connected to the water side wall 20 by means of a connecting means 15. In a very simple 7 embodiment the connecting means comprise bolds 15. In this embodiment the support block 7 comprises an entrance 14 which is closed by way of a cover 23. The flood barrier further comprises a service pit 9 which is connected to 5 the chamber 3 by way of a water inlet/outlet 24. The water inlet 24 is connected to a vertical pipe 12 in the service pit. The water inlet/outlet 24 comprises a valve 13 that is opened in a case the chamber 3 is emptied. In that situation the water inlet/outlet functions as a water 10 outlet 24. The service pit 9 is connected through a channel 11 to the water side of the dike 1 as shown in figure 1. The service pit 9 acts as a kind of water filter. Dirt and mud coming from the river side will deposit at the bottom of the service pit and will not 15 reach the chamber 3.

The flood barrier is practically invisible under normal water level conditions. On top, the lid 6 locks in the entrenchment space under normal conditions. Figure 2 shows the self closing flood barrier of Figure 1 in a 20 flood situation wherein a flood is present resulting in a high water level of the river 10. As soon as the water level of river 10 rises above the entrance level of pipe 12, the pipe and the water inlet 24 fill with water resulting in a water stream towards the chamber 3. The 25 water in chamber 3 will force the dam wall member 4 to move up because the dam wall 4 together with the buoyant body 5 are floatable on water. The dam wall 4 will move upwards until the buoyant body 5 is forced at its upper side against the angled wall of the support block 7. This 30 will not only limit the upward movement of the dam wall 4 but will also force the dam wall 4 against the hinterland side wall 21 of chamber 3.

8

As soon as the chamber 3 is totally filled, the closing seal 8 will lock the barrier waterproof. Now the water can rise further without flooding the protected area, i.e. the hinterland.

5 Preferably, on or at the flat side of the dam wall member, a sealing member 8 is provided sealing the dam wall member. In Figure 2, it can be seen that the sealing member 8 seals of the space between the dam wall 4 and the hinterland side wall 21.

10 Once the water level subsides to a normal level, the chamber 3 is drained through outlet 24 with one way check valves 13 or by means of a pump (not shown). Once the water has left the chamber 3, the dam wall member returns to its resting position within the chamber. The 15 lid 6 on top of the dam wall 4 then closes to prevent the inflow of waste or debris. In Figure 1 is shown that the dam wall member does not rest on a floor of the chamber 3. This results in a space in which mud and the like may deposit. Such deposition will effectively raise the floor 20 of the chamber 3 but this raising will not affect the resting position of the dam wall member. As a result, the lid will always close the opening of the chamber 3, even when dirt is present at the bottom of the chamber 3. Furthermore, due to the weight of the dam wall member, the 25 lid will be presses downwards and will thus be closed due to the gravity forces.

Preferably, the lid 6 is arranged to support traffic and may be part of a road surface, or a pavement.

30 While specific embodiments of the invention have been described above, it will be appreciated that the invention may be practiced otherwise than as described.

For example, the invention may also be used to provide a 9 door for a garage or for closing/protecting any other entrance of a building. It may even be conceivable to provide water basins the walls of which are formed by the flood barrier described above.

5 The descriptions above are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Thus, it will be apparent to one skilled in the art that modifications may be made to the invention as described without departing from the scope of the claims set out below.

10 1035546

Claims

Self-closing flood defense for protecting a hinterland against flooding, the flood defense comprising: - a chamber comprising a water-side wall and a hinterland-side wall; - a water inlet for introducing water into the chamber; - a sheet pile member which is movably arranged up and down in the chamber, which sheet pile member comprises: - a weir element for causing an upward movement of the sheet pile member, and - a stop element for providing a stop for limiting the upward beam movement, wherein the stop element and the chamber are arranged such that in a closed position of the flood defense, the sheet pile member undergoes a lateral thrust so that it is pressed against the hinterland side of the chamber.

2. Self-closing water barrier according to claim 1, wherein the water barrier comprises a support block which is arranged on an upper side of the chamber and is of such a shape that the support block also causes the lateral thrust.

Self-closing flood defense for protecting a hinterland against flooding, the flood defense comprising: 1035546 - a chamber comprising a water-side wall and a hinterland-side wall; - a water inlet for introducing water into the chamber; 5. a sheet pile member which is movably arranged up and down in the chamber, which sheet pile comprises; - a weir element for causing an upward movement of the sheet pile member, and - a stop element for providing a stop for limiting the upward movement, wherein the chamber has a removable support block on at least one of the water side and the hinterland side comprises arranged for enclosing the stop element. 15

4. Self-closing water barrier according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the support block comprises a bottom that can be attached to the water-side wall or the hinterland-side wall of the chamber by means of coupling means.

Self-closing water barrier according to claim 4, wherein the support block comprises a lockable entrance that provides access to the coupling means. 25

6. Self-closing water barrier as claimed in one or more of the claims 2-5, wherein the support block comprises an oblique wall against which at least a part of the sheet pile member exerts force in a closed position of the water barrier.

Self-closing water barrier according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the stop element and the weir element form an integrated whole.

8. Self-closing water barrier according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the sheet pile member comprises a substantially flat side for supporting against the hinterland-side wall.

A self-closing water barrier according to claim 8, wherein the water barrier comprises a sealing member arranged on or on the substantially flat side of the sheet pile member.

Self-closing water barrier according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein chamber is adapted to install the chamber below the bottom surface.

11. Self-closing water barrier according to claim 10, wherein the chamber is installed at least substantially below the bottom surface and is connected to a service well via a water supply / drain.

12. Self-closing water barrier according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein the water barrier comprises a cover for closing an opening of the chamber, the cover being attached to an upper end of the sheet pile member.

13. Method for protecting a hinterland against a flood by means of a self-closing flood defense according to one or more of the preceding claims, comprising steps for: - providing the flood defense, - bringing the flood defense into a position of use, - allowing water into the chamber for driving up the sheet pile member. 10 1035546