WO2014111258A2

WO2014111258A2 - Ship for recovering ocean waste

Info

Publication number: WO2014111258A2
Application number: PCT/EP2014/000111
Authority: WO
Inventors: Serge Menard
Original assignee: Serge Menard
Priority date: 2013-01-16
Filing date: 2014-01-16
Publication date: 2014-07-24
Also published as: NZ711067A; JP2016507415A; US20160023724A1; CN105189279A; CA2898255C; PH12015501792A1; JP2019069771A; FR3000937A1; AU2014207087B2; FR3000937B1; CA2898255A1; EP2945853A2; WO2014111258A3; AU2014207087A1; PH12015501792B1; FR3000936A1; KR20150110632A

Abstract

The present invention relates to a ship for recovering ocean waste. The invention aims to provide a means for recovering waste floating in the sea. Said aim is achieved by a ship (1) that recovers ocean waste, comprising at least two lateral hulls (2) which define a basin (3) therebetween. The ship according to the invention is characterised in that the basin (3) is open at the two ends thereof (6, 7) and comprises a plurality of consecutive sections (11, 12, 13) from the bow (6) to the stern (7) of the ship (1), each of which is provided with at least one collection device (21, 22, 23), the collection devices (21, 22, 23) of each section (11, 12, 13) being capable of collecting objects of different sizes, the sections (11, 12, 13) being arranged such that a device capable of collecting smaller objects is arranged behind a device capable of collecting larger objects.

Description

OCEANIC WASTE RECOVERY SHIP

The present invention relates to a ship recovering ocean waste.

[0002] Over a vast expanse of the North Pacific, evaluated most often at 3.5 million square kilometers, concentrates a "soup" that experts estimate at several million tonnes of plastic debris accumulated and floating between two waters, in a layer 10 to 30 meters thick.

This tablecloth of the North Pacific is the largest discharge in the world, held in place by ocean currents, whose growth projections dating back to 2008 already suggested that it could double in size in the next decade.

In 2006, the oceanographer Charles Moore was the discoverer of this area- trash vortex made of non-biodegraded waste for some 50 years, undetectable by satellites, as circulating under the water surface, composed of plastics at 90%, as for the overall volume of all floating waste in the oceans.

This threat is also evident for marine ecosystems, this polluted area of the Pacific is the manifestation of a phenomenon that affects indeed all the oceans of the planet, because this waste floats in all the seas, including in the polar regions. In some places, there would be more plastic waste than plankton.

The inevitable cleaning of these polluted areas is ultimately a titanic project that can only be at the expense of the international community in the broad sense. The cleaning of the oceans is inevitable and urgent. A persistent aggravation of the situation would lead to an irreversible global catastrophe. The object of the present invention is to provide a means for recovering floating waste in the sea.

According to the invention, this object is achieved by an ocean waste recovery vessel which comprises at least two lateral hulls which determine a basin between them. Depending on the size of the ship it may also include more than two side hulls.

The ship according to the invention is characterized in that the basin between the hulls is open at both ends and comprises a plurality of successive sections of the bow towards the stern of the vessel, each of which is equipped with at least one pickup device . Each section is equipped with pickup devices capable of picking up objects of a specific size, or a specific size range. The sections are arranged so that a device adapted to pick up smaller objects is disposed behind a device adapted to pick up larger objects.

The overall basin width of the vessel according to the invention and its height can determine a treatment surface of the water layer in a vertical plane of the sea at least equal to 1000 m ² , preferably at least 2000 m ² and preferably at least equal to 3000 m ² , treated in its entirety by the pickup devices, whatever their design or arrangement.

The ship can be equipped with a bridge connecting the hulls which is equipped with openings for the recovery of objects picked up by the pickup devices. This technical bridge may include superstructures for the treatment, storage and / or transhipment of objects collected. The technical bridge may also be equipped with fastening devices and / or retraction secured to the pickup devices.

A vessel having these characteristics makes it possible to collect floating waste in an efficient and economical manner. The vessel has limited forward resistance which is reduced to the sum of the hull widths. The ship can therefore move relatively quickly and treat a considerable area. Moving forward, the floating waste can enter the basin of the vessel and will be collected in different sections by the or the collection devices provided in the respective section corresponding to the size of the object. The different pickup devices are designed for picking up objects of different size. That is, each device is capable of picking up objects of a size within a range of specific sizes.

The different sections are arranged in such a way that a device capable of picking up smaller objects is arranged behind a device capable of picking up larger objects. This arrangement allows the collection of the largest objects in the front part of the ship. The collection devices of this section can be provided especially for the collection of large objects. They are particularly stable but allow objects that are smaller than their size range to pass. Successive sections are designed to pick up objects of smaller sizes. For example, the first section can be designed to pick up larger items such as containers. The collection devices of the following sections are then protected against objects of this size and may be of lesser strength but sufficient for smaller objects.

The basin defined by the hulls may comprise a floor. This floor can connect the hulls together and stabilizes the structure. The vessel according to the invention is preferably of the ballasted type to navigate with different drafts. The ballasts can be in the hulls and / or in the floor. The advantage of ballasting is that the ship can navigate at different levels to be able to treat a shallower layer of waste for example, or on the contrary a thicker layer.

The hulls can be based on the SWATH concept (Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull). The side hulls can each have a ballast keel, allowing to float the ship at different levels. A SWATH is a two-hull ship, each hull being deeply submerged. The Central platform is connected to the hulls by thin junctions at the level of the waterline. The advantage of this configuration is to improve the seaworthiness in bad weather. In this case, the keels ensure the hydrostatic and hydrodynamic stability of the vessel by their location, shape and volume, and make the vessel particularly stable and insensitive to the destabilizing effects of the waves. The hulls being deeply submerged and the reduced buoyancy surface, the ship suffers much less the destabilizing effects of the waves. Its movements are reduced by 20 to 50% compared to a monohull of the same displacement. This system can be applied to the ship according to the invention.

The sections of the ship according to the invention may have supports for holding and / or guide the pickup devices. These supports may in particular be one or more longitudinal partitions. The partitions of the sections are spaced from each other to allow the passage of objects of the size corresponding to the section concerned.

Preferably, the bow part of the ship is equipped with shock absorbing devices, preferably over its entire height immersed at least, including a coating of a material having a damping power such as a rubberized coating and / or a spring and / or hydraulic and / or hydropneumatic damping device.

Advantageously, at least one collection device comprises one or more platforms or skips or excavators rising, secured or independent of the pickup device, fixed or articulated, and / or comprises or consists of nets or mesh meshes or barriers filtration, especially in textiles.

The collection devices, including the first zone in the forward part of the ship may consist of large mesh nets or trellis, wire rope, or metal mesh, or any material having sufficient strength. At the bottom of the nets or trellis, a horizontal platform can be provided, constituting an advance connected to the bottom of the net or trellis, to raise the floating waste at different depths. This platform can be consisting of an extension of the net or trellis, forks or a metal tray. In another version, the platform of lifts waste is independent of the net or the trellis. The collection devices may also consist of mesh trucks, rotating conveyor belts comprising in particular lifting means integral or independent of the conveyor belt, in particular lifting shovels, wire trucks or hooks, fixed or articulated. The collection devices are preferably liftable and / or retractable and / or removable. According to a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention, at least one section is equipped with at least two successive collection devices. In this configuration, a device can be reassembled, for example for reasons of maintenance or because it is blocked by a picked-up object, and the second device can ensure collection in the meantime and can prevent waste of an unadapted size. arrive in the next section.

The vessel may be equipped with a device for detecting and locating floating or submerged objects under the sea surface, and lying in the layer of water on the ship's road, in order to allow the ship to slow down sufficiently in advance to pick up large pieces of waste.

The supports for maintaining and / or guiding the pickup devices, such as longitudinal partitions, are preferably laterally movable and / or removable. This makes it possible to increase or reduce the number, in order to increase or reduce their spacing, or to allow the installation of different collection devices, for example more advanced in case of a subsequent technical update.

At least a portion of the pickup devices may have an inclination towards the rear of the ship. According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the devices may have a backward inclination forming an angle less than 45 ° with respect to the horizontal, in particular less than 30 °, and preferably less than 15 °. This applies in particular to section devices that are able to pick up objects of smaller size. These devices are more fragile because their mesh or trellis is finer. The inclination reduces the forces exerted by an object that hits the device.

The collection devices preferably comprise collecting means such as treadmills, trellis, excavators or skips mounted on a rotary system. These collecting means thus move during the operation of the device according to an inclined plane, preferably almost horizontal, towards the rear while going up at the same time towards the deck of the ship.

The operating speed of these devices can be regulated to obtain the best possible compromise between the relative speed of movement of the pickup means, and the speed of movement of the ship, which can also vary depending on multiple conditions . The higher the speed of the rearward movement of the collection means, the more the resistance to the advancement of these collecting means is reduced, but the efficiency of the collection of waste is reduced. It is therefore necessary to be able to regulate the speed of operation of the collection devices as a function of the speed of movement of the vessel and the other factors involved to obtain optimum efficiency.

The inclination of the collection means such as skips and shovels must of course be adapted to the inclination of the pickup devices they are part of to keep their effectiveness.

Part of the pickup devices may be movable in the opposite direction of the direction of movement of the ship. The collection devices for smaller objects are, on the one hand, more fragile because their mesh or trellis is thinner, and on the other hand they have greater resistance to advancement in the layer of water. They can therefore be movable in their section in the longitudinal direction, for example on rails. A device in the collection position can then move in the opposite direction of the ship's direction to reduce the speed of impact of an object on the device as well as to reduce the drag. The actual speed of an impact or resistance actually exerted is the difference between the speed of the ship and the speed of movement of the device in the opposite direction. Arrived at the end of its section the device can be reassembled, transported towards the front of its section and starts again its course. The vessel can be equipped with a bridge for storing, processing and / or transhipment of objects picked up to other vessels. The deck can be equipped with cabins and kitchens and other facilities for the crew of up to more than 100 people. The ship may be equipped with diesel electric propulsion means, Flettner rotors and / or solar sails.

The main propulsion can be provided by propellers, hydrojets or pods or any other suitable technique. A propeller fairing will be advantageous to protect them from possible large waste.

The outer faces of the side hulls of the ship may be equipped with supports or devices, fixed or removable, for fixing flexible or rigid advertising panels, fixed or removable. Such media or devices allow sponsors to have their advertising billboards made individually. Installing these panels takes very little time and does not stop the vessel. The installation can be carried out during the regular maintenance of the ship or even during a mission in calm weather. The invention is explained more precisely below with the aid of the attached figures which show embodiments of the invention schematically:

Figure 1 schematically illustrates a vessel according to the invention in front perspective;

[0037] Figure 2 schematically illustrates a vessel according to the invention in longitudinal section; [0038] Figure 3 illustrates a ship according to the invention schematically in horizontal section.

It is noted that the figures show the invention purely schematically to explain its general operating mode. The figures are neither scale nor complete but schematically show only the elements that are necessary to appreciate the invention.

Figure 1 schematically illustrates a vessel 1 according to the invention in front perspective. The ship 1 has three lateral hulls 2 which determine two basins 3 between them. The basins 3 are open at both ends whose front opening is visible in the figure. The basins 3 comprise a floor 4 and are each divided by a longitudinal partition 30.

The basins 3 have three successive sections in the direction of displacement D of the ship, each of which is equipped with several collection devices that bring the waste entering the basins 3 to the factory bridge 5 of the ship.

The height of the hulls 2 of the ship 1 described here by way of example is about 50 m. Such a vessel can intervene in a layer of water up to 35 m deep. The hulls are ballasted to allow the ship to float at different levels.

The vessel has a length of about 320 m and is divided into several sections as described below. All measurements listed here are for reference only. Depending on the area of intervention planned, the vessel according to the invention may be larger or smaller, with more or fewer hulls or more or fewer sections. The general principle of the configuration of the vessel 1 according to the invention is that the basins 3 open at both ends allow the passage of the sea by limiting the resistance to the advancement of the ship to the sum of the widths of the hulls 2 and longitudinal partitions 30 which are between the shells 2 and which serve from supports to waste collection devices not shown in FIG. 1.

Above the shells 2 is a factory bridge 5 including all the equipment for the treatment of waste. It is essentially the width of the ship.

In normal configuration, the floor of the bridge-factory 5 is between 10 m and 12 m above sea level to allow the ship to continue working by sea formed or storm.

The first section 11 is intended for the collection of the largest waste. It is located in the first 50 m of the ship and includes devices for the collection of very large waste, such as containers or logs, weighing 20 tons or more, and generally large.

The plant bridge 5 may include several transhipment points for waste to be simultaneously transship on the different stations, the waste in the different holds of a ship positioned on one of its sides. The transhipment means include cranes 51, slides or treadmills.

The vessel is equipped with diesel electric propulsion means. In addition, Flettner 9-type rotors, also known as turbo-sail, are added to reduce the vessel's consumption by about 30%.

Figure 2 illustrates a vessel 1 according to the invention schematically in longitudinal section. We can see the basin 3 which extends over the entire length of the ship and which is divided into three sections 11, 12, 13. Each section is equipped with several collection devices 21, 22, 23 of waste. The basin 3 has an opening at the bow 6 and at the stern 7 of the ship to allow the seawater to cross the sections 11, 12, 13. The collection devices 21, 22, 23 return the waste entering the basin 3 to the factory deck 5 to be processed, stored and / or transhipped to other vessels. The pickup devices 21 of the first section 11 are intended to pick up the largest waste. The first section 11 has a length of about 50 m. It includes devices 21 for the collection of very large waste, such as containers lost by a container ship or logs, weighing 20 tons or more, and generally large.

The first section 11 has two successive collection devices 21. They consist of nets with large mesh or mesh, wire rope, or mesh of metal, or any material having sufficient strength. At the bottom of the nets or trellises, a horizontal platform 211 constituting an advance connected to the bottom of the net or trellis, makes it possible to raise the floating trash at different depths. This platform 211 is constituted by a net extension or trellis, forks, a metal tray or any other suitable means.

The waste of the first section 11 are reassembled on the front deck of the vessel which is a large handling area. The bridge has the openings necessary for the lifts of the waste by means of the collection devices. Handling and storage areas with winch or cranes 51 can be provided and rail carriages can be arranged to allow the movement and storage of these large pieces of waste at the rear of the vessel.

The first section 11 comprises two rows of pickup devices 21, so that when a device row is being lifted phase of the garbage on the factory deck 5, at least one other row continues to recover waste by preventing them from arriving in second section 12.

The bow 6 of the ship 1 is equipped with devices for detecting and locating floating objects 8 in the layer of water on the ship's road, in order to allow the ship to slow down sufficiently in advance with a view to collection of large waste. The second section 12 of the ship has a length of about 50 m. It is designed to recover medium-sized waste, ranging from the size of a plastic bottle to debris of the order of 5 cm.

In the configuration shown in the figure, the second section comprises three rows of pickup devices 22. The pickup devices 22 are substantially identical to those of the first section, apart from the size of the equipment and the mesh allowing the pickup, since the garbage to pick up in this section 12 is much smaller. The first two rows are equipped with platforms 221, the last of forks 222 on a rotary conveyor. The platforms and forks on rotating treadmill have a technical equivalence and can freely be replaced by each other.

The collection devices open directly into the factory deck 5 through openings 52 of the deck-plant provided for this purpose, by which the waste is recovered for processing and storage. The third section 13 of the ship has a length of about 200 m. It uses the finest mesh or trellis, thus the most fragile metal nets or trellises, because of their greater resistance to advancement in the layer of water. In order to allow the vessel to maintain a high speed, the pickup devices 23 of the third section 13 are movable in the opposite direction I of the direction D of the ship's movement. Thus, when the ship is traveling at a speed of 40 km / h, the speed of the pickup devices 13 can be 20 or 30 km / h in the opposite direction I, which reduces the effective speed of the movement of the pickup devices 20 or 10 km / h.

The third section 13 is much longer than the first and the second section 11, 12, because the reduction of the effective speed of the collection devices must allow the treatment of all the waste arriving in this area. third section 13, which is made possible by a sufficient number of devices constituting a train constantly moving towards the rear of the basin 3, each device 23 being retracted or raised at the end of its stroke to allow the recovery of waste and the return of the device 23 to the front of the train to perform a new collection cycle.

The number of devices 23 shown in this figure is only used for illustration. In the present configuration, an active train of at least four devices will be required over the operational length of basin 3 of the train. If one takes into account the number of passive devices returning to the front of the operational train, each mobile train should comprise a total of at least eight to ten devices, regularly spaced, and preferably twelve to twenty devices.

Figure 3 is a view of a vessel 1 according to the invention in horizontal section. The pickup devices 21, 22, 23 are shown only partially and purely schematically.

We see the three shells 2 of the ship which delimit two basins 3 which cross the ship over its entire length. The basins 3 are open at the ends 6, 7 and are divided into three collection sections 11, 12, 13.

The first section 11 has collecting devices 21 for the largest waste up to the size of a container. Each section 11, 12, 13 is equipped with longitudinal partitions 31, 32, 33. The sides of the shells 2 and partitions 31, 32, 33 serve as a support for the devices 21, 22, 23 of each section 11, 12, 13 of the ship. These supports may be mobile sliders actuated by winches and cables, hydraulic, hydropneumatic or other means, or oscillating arms, articulated, telescopic, or any other technique for horizontal mobility and / or vertical waste collection devices required.

The longitudinal partitions 31, 32, 33 are fixed on supports that make them removable and laterally movable, in order to increase or reduce the number, in order to increase or reduce their spacing, or to allow the installation of different or more advanced collection devices. The possibility of temporarily removing or storing the bulkheads to obtain a large pond or to arrange them differently makes it possible to use the ship also for other applications. For example, the vessel could be converted to an aquaculture vessel.

In the second section 12, the longitudinal partitions 32 are more numerous, finer and closer, to serve as supports for pickup devices whose mesh finer and less solid, hardly withstand a large pickup width. The greater constraints due to the increase in the running resistance of the pickup devices 22 therefore imply pickup devices 22 less wide to have sufficient strength.

The third section 13 comprises a number of partitions 33 supporting the collection devices 23 even more important than the second section 12.

The pickup devices 23 of the third section 13 are movable in the opposite direction I of the displacement direction D of the vessel as already described above.

Claims

Ocean waste recovery vessel (1) comprising at least two side hulls

(2) which determine a basin (3) between them, characterized in that the basin (3) is open at its two ends (6, 7) and comprises several successive sections (11, 12, 13) of the bow (6 ) towards the stern (7) of the ship (1) each of which is equipped with at least one collection device (21, 22, 23), the collection devices (21, 22, 23) of each section (1 1, 12, 13) being capable of picking up objects of different sizes, the sections (11, 12, 13) being arranged in such a way that a device capable of picking up smaller objects is arranged behind a device capable of picking up larger objects big.

Vessel (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that its overall basin width

(3) and its height determine a treatment surface of the water layer in a vertical plane of the sea at least equal to 1000 m ² , advantageously at least equal to 2000 m ² and preferably at least equal to 3000 m ² , processed in its entirety by the collection devices.

Ship (1) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the ship (1) is equipped with a deck (5) connecting the hulls (2), equipped with openings allowing the recovery of objects picked up by the lifting devices. collection (21, 22, 23), and in that it comprises superstructures allowing the processing, storage and/or transshipment of the objects collected.

4. Ship (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the hulls (2) delimiting the basin (3) are also connected by a floor (4).

5. Ship (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the ship is ballasted.

6. Vessel (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the sections (11, 12, 13) have supports intended to maintain and/or guide the collection devices (21, 22, 23 ), in particular one or more longitudinal partitions (31, 32, 33).

7. Ship (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that at least the submerged bow part (6) of the ship is equipped with shock absorbing devices over its entire height, in particular a coating of a material having damping power, in particular a rubberized coating and/or a spring and/or hydraulic and/or hydropneumatic damping device.

8. Vessel (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that at least one collection device (21, 22) comprises one or more platforms or skips or lifting shovels (211, 221).

9. Vessel (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that at least one collection device (21, 22, 23) comprises or is made up of nets or mesh trellises or barriers of filtration, particularly in textiles.

10. Ship (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that at least one collection device (21, 22, 23) comprises rotating conveyor belts, comprising in particular integral or independent lifting means of the conveyor belt, in particular shovels (222), mesh buckets or hooks, fixed or articulated.

11. Vessel (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the collection devices (21, 22, 23) are liftable and/or retractable and/or removable.

12. Ship (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the ship is equipped with a device for detecting and/or locating (8) objects floating or submerged under the surface of the sea , and being on the ship's route.

13. Ship (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that the supports, in particular the longitudinal partitions (31, 32, 33), are movable laterally and/or removable.

14 Vessel (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that at least part of the collection devices has an inclination towards the rear of the vessel, preferably forming an angle less than 45° relative to horizontally, advantageously less than 30°, and more advantageously less than 15°.

15. Ship (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that the collection devices (23) are movable in the opposite direction (I) to the direction (D) of movement of the ship.

16. Ship (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 15, characterized in that the ship is equipped with diesel electric propulsion means, Flettner rotors (9) and/or solar sails.

17. Ship (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 16, characterized in that the exterior faces of its side hulls are equipped with supports or devices, fixed or removable, intended for fixing flexible or rigid advertising panels, fixed or removable.