RU2808496C1 - Collective rescue device for use in ice conditions - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: shipbuilding.

SUBSTANCE: collective rescue vehicle for use in ice conditions comprises a body, a propulsion system with a rotary screw propulsion unit and a power plant, electrical equipment, a ventilation and heating system, release and towing devices. There is an electric propulsion system connected to the power plant. The power plant is hybrid and includes a main engine located in the engine room and an energy source connected in the combustion zone without the use of air supply. The hull includes a compartmentalized displacement lower structure with a stem cut at an angle in the underwater part and a superstructure located on it, made of fire-resistant material with a frame and divided into an engine room and a salon. The propulsion system additionally includes an auxiliary tracked propulsion unit located along the stem. Auxiliary tracked and rotary-screw propulsors are connected to elements of the electric propulsion system.

EFFECT: safety, reliability, manoeuvrability and autonomy are increased.

1 cl, 6 dwg

Description

The invention relates to the field of shipbuilding and concerns life-saving equipment on water and ensuring the evacuation of personnel of offshore floating oil and gas production complexes and crews of transport and technological vessels operating in polar waters in ice conditions.

A closed-type lifeboat is known for the evacuation and rescue of personnel from offshore facilities in ice conditions, described in RF patent No. 2648620, publ. 03/27/2018 A well-known closed-type lifeboat for the evacuation and rescue of personnel from offshore facilities in ice conditions contains a hull, a propulsion system, which includes side-mounted high-pressure gas cylinders located in the hull of the boat and jet nozzles connected to them through controlled valves - movers. High pressure gas cylinders are placed in protective containers and installed with the possibility of their dismantling. Jet propulsion nozzles are attached directly to the housings of high-pressure gas cylinders. At the same time, the propulsion complex of the lifeboat is supplemented with a propulsion device in the form of a folding rotary rudder column with a power drive. The well-known lifeboat solves the problem of ensuring guaranteed evacuation and safety of personnel being rescued from offshore facilities in ice conditions. Its propulsion complex, containing jet nozzles and propellers and a folding rudder propeller, as well as the concavity of the bottom of the boat, allows the boat to be guaranteed to move in water with ice debris. But the known boat is not capable of providing a guaranteed exit from the water onto the ice, especially without acceleration (from a standstill). In addition, without fire protection means for the hull, it will not be able to overcome the combustion zone in the event of a fire and the presence of burning oil products on the surface of the water.

A technical solution is known that can be selected as a prototype of the claimed invention. It is a well-known closed-type lifeboat for the evacuation and rescue of personnel on offshore oil and gas platforms, transport and technological vessels in ice conditions according to RF patent for invention No. 2630871, publ. 09/13/2017 The bow end of the hull of a known boat has two stems spaced apart from each other, coupled to each other in the upper part of the hull along a curvilinear generatrix and having an inclination forward in the direction from bottom to top, and in the lower part - with the bottom surface of the boat with a formation in the front parts of its body are notched. The propulsion complex is made in the form of on-board rotary-screw propulsors. The fire protection system is a system of nozzles distributed along the perimeter of the outer surface of the boat to form a protective gas thermally insulating curtain, which are connected by a line to a source of increased pressure of inert gas located in the hull of the boat. The known lifeboat improves its reliability and safety in emergency situations. However, the propulsion complex of the known lifeboat, consisting of side-mounted rotary-screw propulsors, does not guarantee the implementation of independent exit from the water onto the ice without acceleration (from a standstill) due to the low efficiency of this type of propulsion in the water. Exiting onto ice from the water when accelerating the boat requires, in order to reduce the existing stresses in the hull from shock loads, to provide additional ice strength in the structures of the bow end of the boat by increasing the material consumption of the stems and the hull. Creating the possibility of shifting the rotary-screw propulsors along the axis in the aft direction and changing their angle of inclination to the horizon leads to a significant increase in the mass of structural elements designed to connect the rotary-screw propulsors to the hull, which in turn entails an increase in the operational draft of the boat and a decrease in its reliability and increased manufacturing costs.

In addition, the source of increased pressure of inert gas inside the boat hull is a source of increased danger to humans in the event of a breakthrough or depressurization of the system. In accordance with the requirements of the International Life-Saving Appliances Code, air for the operation of diesel engines of classic lifeboats when passing through a zone of burning oil in conditions of low oxygen levels overboard is taken from inside the pre-sealed room of the boat, while maintaining the oxygen concentration and air pressure level inside the room is carried out by an autonomous system air supply The prototype does not describe the process of generating and transmitting energy to the drives of rotary-screw propulsors and elements of the fire protection system in conditions of movement in fire, which indicates the implementation of the requirements regulated by the International Life-Saving Appliances Code. However, achieving speed limits regulated by the International Life-Saving Appliances Code with a low efficiency of rotary-screw propulsors in water inevitably entails an increase in the power of the lifeboat's power plant, which, combined with the logic of achieving maximum speed when forcing a fire obstacle, contributes to an increase in the volume of the tank or nominal pressure inside the reservoir of the air source of the autonomous air supply system, increasing the dimensions of the product, reducing reliability and increasing the level of danger.

The proposed collective life-saving device for use in ice conditions (collective life-saving device) ensures the following tasks:

- fast, reliable start if emergency evacuation is necessary in extremely low temperatures;

- safe descent and undocking from the launching device;

- independent movement on water, in broken ice, on ice and snow-covered surfaces, including uphill;

- independent overcoming of ice hummock formations;

- independent exit from the water onto the ice, including from an ice hole (without the possibility of acceleration) and safe descent from the ice into the water;

- safe forcing of a fire barrier formed by burning hydrocarbons;

- microclimatic conditions sufficient for a person, communication with rescue forces, transmission of distress signals, placement of energy reserves and supply reserves inside the rescue vehicle, taking into account the maximum waiting time for rescue in conditions of extremely low temperatures;

- safe for a person to stay inside the habitable space in the event of a life-saving appliance overturning, emergency cases of breaking through elements of hull structures, as well as ensuring the possibility of leaving the habitable space in any possible position of the life-saving equipment in space.

The technical result of the proposed collective rescue device for use in ice conditions is to increase its safety, reliability, maneuverability and autonomy. This is achieved by the fact that a collective rescue vehicle for use in ice conditions contains a body, a propulsion complex, including a rotary-screw propulsion unit, a power plant, electrical equipment, a ventilation and heating system, a release and towing device. The collective rescue vehicle contains an electric propulsion system connected to a power plant. Moreover, the power plant is hybrid. It includes a main engine located in the engine room and an energy source connected in the combustion zone without the use of air supply. The hull includes a compartmentalized displacement lower structure with a stem cut at an angle in the underwater part and a superstructure located on it, which is made of fire-resistant material with a frame frame. The superstructure is divided into the engine room and saloon. In this case, the propulsion complex additionally includes an auxiliary tracked propulsion unit located along the stem. At the same time, the auxiliary tracked and rotary-screw propulsors are connected to the electric propulsion system.

The invention is illustrated in the figures:

Fig.1 - collective rescue device for use in ice conditions, seen from the side (right) with a local cutout of the installation site of the traction motor of the rotary screw propulsion;

Fig.2 - collective rescue device for use in ice conditions, viewed from the front;

Fig.3 - collective rescue device for use in ice conditions, viewed from the side (left);

Fig.4 - collective rescue device for use in ice conditions when viewed from the rear;

Fig.5 - engine room and interior of the superstructure of the hull of a collective life-saving appliance for use in ice conditions, viewed from above;

Fig.6 is an isometric general view of a collective life-saving device for use in ice conditions.

A collective rescue device for use in ice conditions is intended for the safe one-time evacuation of personnel (groups of people) from emergency facilities (offshore structures, ships) in the event of an emergency, including an oil spill, and the movement of personnel in ice conditions.

The claimed collective life-saving device for use in ice conditions contains a completely enclosed fireproof housing. The hull is equipped with a deck and includes a displacement lower structure 1 in the form of a boat and a superstructure 3. The lower structure 1 is divided into displacement compartments and is made of metal with a strength set that provides strength and with a stem 2 cut at an acute angle in the underwater part. The superstructure 3 is located on the displacement lower structure 1. The superstructure 3 is made of fire-resistant and heat-insulating composite material with a metal frame 4. As such a composite material, a material with an outer layer of fiberglass based on low-flammability epoxy vinyl ester resin and an inner layer of insulation based on basalt mineral wool can be used. The frame frame 4 gives strength and rigidity to the superstructure 3 of the hull and ensures the safety of the rescue vehicle in the event of its overturning onto the roof. The roof of the superstructure 3 along the sides of the rescue vehicle is made with a stepped transition. The superstructure 3 is divided by a fireproof bulkhead into a salon 5 (livable space) with seats 13 for evacuated personnel and into an engine room 6, which houses the power plant, mechanisms and electrical equipment. The fully enclosed fireproof body of the rescue vehicle with a superstructure made of fire-resistant and heat-insulating material ensures fire safety when passing through the fire zone.

A collective lifesaving device for use in ice conditions has a center of gravity located below deck level. The combination of the value of the height of the center of gravity of the rescue craft in all operational cases of its loading with the displacement volume and contours, and the presence of a stepped transition of the roof level of the superstructure 3 gives the rescue craft stability when moving and contributes to self-healing when the critical angle of roll is exceeded and overturns in the water. When turning over on a hard surface, the interior 5 of the superstructure 3 is protected from damage in the form of a frame frame 4. These design features of the body increase the safety of the rescue vehicle.

On superstructure 3 there are exit points for people: on the upper surface there is a hatch with a cover 17, and on each side of the superstructure 3 of the hull there is a door 18 for boarding and disembarking people. The hatch cover 17 and the doors 18 of the superstructure 3 are equipped with fireproof insulation and are closed hermetically. The presence of several exit points in the superstructure 3 of the hull ensures that in an emergency, people can escape in any possible position of the rescue vehicle.

A fender beam is fixed along the perimeter of the hull of the rescue craft, ensuring the safety of the hull and the safety of the rescue craft during side impacts, including when launching or rising from the water.

The collective rescue device contains a release and towing device, including bow 14 and stern 15 release mechanisms and a painter recoil device 16. Release mechanisms 14, 15 are installed on the deck in the bow and stern ends of the lower structure 1 of the hull and are necessary for carrying out hoisting operations on cables. The release mechanisms have a remote drive for simultaneous operation. The release device of the painter 16 is located on the deck near the bow release mechanism 14. It allows you to unfasten the bow end of the rescue craft and perform remote release on the move of the emergency object after undocking from the launching device, and is also used for towing operations.

The propulsion complex of the proposed invention is connected to an electric propulsion system and consists of two rotary-screw propulsors 7. They are made to displace and are installed sideways and horizontally on the bottom of the lower structure 1 of the hull. Rotary screw propulsors 7 provide independent movement through water, in broken ice, on ice and snow-covered surfaces, including ascents, and overcoming ice hummock formations.

The propulsion system additionally includes an auxiliary tracked propulsion unit 8, which is located and installed along the stem 2 at the bow end of the rescue vehicle. The auxiliary tracked propulsion unit 8 provides exit from the water onto the ice, including from the ice hole onto the ice, without the possibility of acceleration, and a safe descent from the ice into the water, as well as in the case of draft, in which the rotary screw propulsors are completely immersed in water, which increases maneuverability and amphibious properties of the rescue vehicle. The auxiliary tracked propulsion unit 8 and the rotary screw propulsion units 7 are connected to the elements of the electric propulsion system.

If any compartment of the lower structure 1 of the hull or the rotary-screw propulsion unit 7 is penetrated below the waterline, the life-saving craft, while in the water, retains positive buoyancy and stability, while flooding of the cabin 5 of the hull is excluded, which ensures the safety of the life-saving craft.

The power plant of the proposed invention is hybrid. It includes a main engine 9, for example, a gas turbine engine, an energy source 10, for example, a lithium-ion battery, and an emergency energy source 11, for which it is advisable to install a diesel generator. The main engine 9, the energy source 10 and the emergency energy source 11 are located in the engine room 6 of the superstructure 3.

The energy source 10 in the form of a lithium-ion battery has the ability to operate without the use of air supply and is connected when the rescue vehicle is in a hydrocarbon combustion zone, which increases the reliability and safety of the movement of the rescue vehicle without turning on the main engine 9.

The diesel generator, which is an emergency source of energy 11, is connected to the necessary electrical equipment to maintain normal habitability conditions on a life-saving craft without running, taking into account the maximum waiting time for rescue forces in conditions of extremely low temperatures or during forced parking in the event of a failure of the propulsion system. Emergency energy source 11 allows you to increase the duration of normal habitable conditions and increase the autonomy of the rescue vehicle.

In this case, the power plant is equipped with an air supply and exhaust gas removal system, which contains pipelines and ventilation holes 19 located in the upper part of the superstructure 3 of the life-saving craft body and equipped with automatic closing devices to prevent water from entering the life-saving craft during a coup or combustion products when overcoming a fire obstacles.

The proposed collective rescue vehicle for use in ice conditions contains an electric propulsion system, which is connected to the constituent elements of the power plant and the propulsion complex. The electric propulsion system includes 12 traction motors and 6 frequency converters installed in the engine room. One of the traction electric motors 12 is connected to one rotary-screw propulsion unit 7, the second - to another rotary-screw propulsion unit 7, the third - to an auxiliary tracked propulsion unit 8. The first and second electric motors 12 are installed in the rear part of the body of the corresponding rotary-screw propulsion unit 7. The third traction electric motor 12 - installed in the lower part of the auxiliary tracked propulsion unit 8. Electric motors 12 of the electric propulsion system transmit energy from the elements of the power plant to the housing elements of the rotary screw propulsion units 7 and the auxiliary caterpillar propulsion unit 8.

The collective rescue vehicle contains electrical equipment, which includes radio-electronic and navigation aids that ensure operation at high latitudes, as well as electrical heating means for the main functional units. Electrical heating of the main functional units, when stored at the base site, receives power from the power supply network of the base facility, and when moving, from the power supply network connected to the power plant of the rescue vehicle, which does not require lengthy preparation, warming up and reaching the nominal mode, and ensures quick and reliable activation of the main functional units in case of emergency evacuation in conditions of extremely low temperatures.

The proposed collective rescue vehicle contains a ventilation and heating system, which includes a group of heaters located in the superstructure 3 with the ability to operate in fan mode to maintain the required air exchange and temperature in the cabin 5 and the engine room 6.

The proposed collective rescue device for use in ice conditions works as follows. In the event of an emergency when there is a threat of death of an emergency facility (offshore floating oil and gas production complex, transport, technological vessel) operating in polar waters in ice conditions, personnel are evacuated and rescued. In this case, the personnel are placed in individual seats in a life-saving appliance, which is lowered overboard using the ropes of a hoisting device installed on the rescue deck.

When evacuating personnel from emergency facilities that have a high content of hydrocarbons on board, there is a possibility that the rescue vehicle will enter an area of continuously burning oil after lowering.

If before the start of the descent of the rescue vehicle on the evacuation route there is no fire barrier of burning hydrocarbons, then the ventilation holes and pipelines of the air supply and exhaust gas removal system of the power plant are opened, the main engine of the power plant is started, and the electric propulsion system receives power from the main engine.

In the event that, before the start of the descent of the rescue vehicle, there is a fire barrier formed by burning hydrocarbons on the evacuation route, the ventilation openings and pipelines of the air supply system and exhaust gas removal system of the power plant are closed, and at the same time the electric propulsion system switches to power from an electric power source without the use of air supply .

After disembarking from the emergency object, the life-saving craft is undocking using release mechanisms, and, if necessary, using the painter’s release device.

Next, the rescue vehicle moves away from the side of the emergency object to a safe distance on rotary-screw propulsors powered by an electric propulsion system using the required energy source of the power plant, if necessary, the fire barrier is forced, overcoming the zone of broken ice, ice and snow-covered surfaces, ice hummock formations .

Exit from the water onto the ice is carried out perpendicular to the ice edge by activating the auxiliary tracked mover. In this case, the draft of the life-saving craft may be such that the rotor-screw propulsors are completely submerged in water. The process of entering the ice can be carried out in two main ways: at speed (running up) or without inertia (from a standstill).

In the case of entering the ice without inertia, in order to implement the clutch (clamping) of the caterpillar propulsion unit with the ice edge, an increase in the speed of the rotor-screw propulsion units is ensured in the initial phase (additional traction is created). With a large number of revolutions of the rotary-screw propulsors, at the moment the nasal turns of the rotary-screw propulsors begin to engage with the ice edge, the rotation speed of the rotary-screw propulsors is automatically reduced, thereby ensuring a smooth exit of the rescue vehicle onto the ice.

After crossing the fire barrier and moving away from the side of the emergency marine object to a safe distance, the rescue vehicle stops and goes into standby mode for rescue forces without moving. In this case, the main engine and the energy source of the power plant are deactivated, the emergency energy source, the ventilation and heating system based on an autonomous air heater are started, they are installed in the operating position and the radio-electronic means of communication and distress signals are turned on.

Thus, the proposed collective rescue vehicle for use in ice conditions makes it possible to increase its safety, reliability, maneuverability and autonomy, while ensuring a quick start, safe descent from an emergency offshore facility, efficient movement, overcoming the zone of burning hydrocarbons, safe long-term accommodation of people and detection emergency rescue forces in conditions of extremely low temperatures.

Claims (1)

Collective rescue vehicle for use in ice conditions, containing a body, a propulsion system, including a rotary-screw propulsion unit, a power plant, electrical equipment, a ventilation and heating system, a disconnecting and towing device, characterized in that it contains an electric propulsion system associated with the power plant, and The power plant is made of a hybrid, including a main engine located in the engine room and an energy source connected in the combustion zone without the use of air supply; the hull includes a displacement lower structure divided into compartments with a stem cut at an angle in the underwater part and a superstructure located on it, made of fire-resistant material with frame frame, and divided into an engine room and a salon, while the propulsion complex additionally includes an auxiliary tracked propulsion unit located along the stem, and the auxiliary tracked and rotary screw propulsion units are connected to elements of the electric propulsion system.