WO2016097578A2

WO2016097578A2 - Insulating unit suitable for making an insulating wall in a sealed tank

Info

Publication number: WO2016097578A2
Application number: PCT/FR2015/053507
Authority: WO
Inventors: Thomas CREMIERE
Original assignee: Gaztransport Et Technigaz
Priority date: 2014-12-15
Filing date: 2015-12-15
Publication date: 2016-06-23
Also published as: CN107257900A; CN108700257B; FR3030014A1; FR3030014B1; AU2016373295B2; KR102422517B1; WO2016097578A3; CN107257900B; KR20180094925A; KR102624276B1; CN108700257A; KR20170099949A; AU2016373295A1; WO2017103500A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a parallelepiped insulating unit (3) comprising: a rectangular bottom plate (15), a rectangular cover plate (16) parallel to the bottom plate and spaced apart from the bottom plate in a thickness direction of the insulating unit, a plurality of supporting pillars (17) arranged between the bottom plate and the cover plate, the supporting pillars extending longitudinally in the thickness direction and having a small cross-section relative to a length and a width of the insulating unit, and an insulating seal arranged between the bottom plate and the cover plate and between the supporting pillars. The cover plate is divided into a plurality of rectangular cover portions, the cover portions having a thickness of less than 10 mm, the insulating unit further comprising a connection piece (23) attached to an inner surface of the cover plate.

Description

INSULATING BLOCK SUITABLE FOR MAKING AN INSULATING WALL IN A WATERPROOF TANK

Technical area

The invention relates to the field of sealed and thermally insulating tanks, with membranes, for storing and / or transporting fluid, such as a cryogenic fluid.

Watertight and thermally insulated membrane tanks are used in particular for the storage of liquefied natural gas (LNG), which is stored at atmospheric pressure at about -162 ° C. These tanks can be installed on the ground or on a floating structure.

Technological background

In a liquefied gas storage tank at low temperature, an essential function of the tank wall is to isolate the cargo to limit the heat flow causing the evaporation of the cargo, and also to protect the hull of the cryogenic temperatures in the tank. case of a vessel tank. But the vessel wall must also support the hydrodynamic loading of the cargo, which therefore implies a compressive strength.

One possible option to perform these functions is to make the tank wall with a layer of homogeneous material that is both insulating and structurally resistant to compression. Examples of such vessels are available in the literature, for example US-A-4116150 and WO-A-2013124573. However, the insulating material used in these examples, namely reinforced polyurethane foam, is expensive. In addition, it is difficult to find a structural insulating material that optimizes both mechanical strength and thermal insulation.

Another possible option is to make the tank wall with heterogeneous insulating blocks comprising mechanically strong carrier parts and insulating materials arranged between the carrier parts. As the insulating materials are at least partially released from the load hydrodynamic in this case, there is a wider choice of insulation materials. Examples of such vessels are available in the literature, for example publications FR-A-2867831, FR-A-2989291 and WO-A-2013182776.

In FR-A-2867831, the insulating block is a box having parallel interior partitions defining compartments filled with expanded perlite or aerogels. FR-A-2989291 the insulating block is a similar box filled with fibrous materials. In one embodiment, small section pillars are used in place of the parallel partitions. In WO-A-2013182776, it is intended to cast an insulating foam between bearing pillars. In all cases, the overall heat flux transmitted by such an insulating block results both from the fluxes transmitted by the carrier parts and from the fluxes transmitted by the insulating inserts.

summary

An idea underlying the invention is to provide an insulating block at least some carrier parts are manufactured in thin materials having good mechanical strength, to maximize the volume occupied by non-structural insulating materials.

For this, the invention provides a parallelepipedic insulating block that is suitable for producing an insulating wall in a cold liquid storage tank, the insulating block comprising:

a rectangular bottom plate,

a rectangular-shaped cover plate parallel to the bottom plate and spaced from the bottom plate in a thickness direction of the insulating block, a plurality of supporting pillars disposed between the bottom plate and the cover plate, the supporting pillars extending longitudinally in the thickness direction and having a small size section with respect to a length and width of the insulating block, and

an insulating gasket disposed between the bottom plate and the cover plate and between the pillars.

According to embodiments, such an insulating block may comprise one or more of the following characteristics.

According to one embodiment, the lid plate is divided into a plurality of rectangular lid portions, the lid portions having a thickness of less than 10 mm and being juxtaposed along a transverse direction of the insulating block, a gap being provided each time between two of the cover portions juxtaposed along the entire length of the insulating block,

the insulating block further comprising a connecting piece fixed to an inner surface of the cover plate facing the bottom plate to connect the two juxtaposed cover portions, the connecting piece having successively along the transverse direction of the insulating block a first end portion fixed to the inner surface of a first of the two juxtaposed lid portions, an intermediate portion spanning the gap between the two juxtaposed lid portions and a second end portion attached to the inner surface of a second of the two lid portions juxtaposed.

Thanks to these characteristics, the space taken by the cover plate is decreased, which allows, for equal volume, to increase the volume of the insulating lining in the insulating block. In addition, the connection piece (s) make it possible to give the cover plate a certain bending strength so as to provide a reliable and sufficiently uniform support surface for a relatively fragile waterproof membrane.

According to one embodiment, the connecting piece and the two juxtaposed lid portions are shaped so as to define a housing communicating with the outside of the insulating block through the gap between the two juxtaposed lid portions, the intermediate portion of the connecting piece closing the housing in the thickness direction opposite the gap, the housing having a retaining zone extending in the transverse direction of the insulating block from the gap, the retaining zone housing extending under a marginal area of at least one of the two juxtaposed lid portions, the housing being open in the length direction of the insulating block to allow a metal strip bent at right angles into the housing in the direction to be slid in the direction length of the insulating block.

Thanks to these characteristics, the connecting piece also makes it possible to house welding supports for a waterproof metal membrane.

The connection piece or parts of the cover plate can take many forms, symmetrical or not. According to one embodiment, said at least one of the two juxtaposed lid portions has a recess dug in the inner surface of the lid portion at the marginal area, the housing having the inside space of the counterbore. With these features, the interior space of the housing can be provided at least partially in the cover plate, so that the volume of the connecting piece can be reduced.

According to one embodiment, the connecting piece is a wafer parallel to the cover plate whose intermediate portion spans the counterbore of said at least one of the two juxtaposed cover portions and whose end portions are fixed on the inner surface the cover plate outside the countersink. Thanks to these characteristics, the space occupied by the connecting piece can be minimized.

According to one embodiment, the intermediate portion of the connecting piece is spaced from the inner surface of the cover plate in the thickness direction, the housing further having an inlet area located opposite the gap between the intermediate portion of the connecting piece and the inner surface of the cover plate, the retaining zone of the housing extending in the extension of the inlet zone in the direction of the width of the insulating block. Thanks to these characteristics, the interior space of the housing can be provided at least partially in the connecting piece.

According to one embodiment, the connecting piece is an elongate profiled piece in the length direction of the insulating block, the connecting piece having a planar upper surface parallel to the internal surface of the cover plate and a central groove dug in the thickness direction from the flat upper surface, the intermediate portion of the connecting piece forming the bottom of the middle groove. Thanks to these characteristics, the connecting piece can be manufactured relatively simply.

Such a groove may have different appropriate shapes. According to embodiments, the median groove has a section in the form of a rectangle or an inverted T.

Different materials having a suitable strength can be used for the cover plate, for example plywood of different types or composite materials. Preferably, the cover plate is made of densified plywood. The densified plywood wood can be obtained with wood sheets impregnated with a large amount of thermosetting resins, for example with beech, fir or birch wood. Preferably, the density of the densified plywood is greater than or equal to 0.9. In comparison, the typical density of ordinary plywood is of the order of 0.7. Such densified plywood wood offers satisfactory properties in terms of cost, mechanical strength and thermal insulation. For example, the thickness of the cover plate may be of the order of 5 mm. Similar considerations can be applied to the bottom plate.

Different materials having a suitable strength can be used for the connecting part of the cover plate, for example plywood of different types or composite materials. Preferably, the connecting piece is made of a material having a thermal contraction coefficient close to that of the cover plate, in particular the same material as that used in the cover plate. According to one embodiment, the connecting piece is made of densified plywood.

Many configurations are possible for the connection part or parts of the cover plate. According to one embodiment, the connecting piece extends continuously over substantially the entire length of the insulating block. Thanks to these characteristics, the resistance of the cover plate has a good uniformity.

According to another embodiment, a plurality of connecting pieces of small length relative to the length of the insulating block are arranged along the gap in the length direction of the insulating block. Thanks to these characteristics, the ease of installation of the connecting pieces is increased and the configuration of the connecting pieces can be easily adapted to different application cases.

To minimize heat flow by conduction, it is preferable to limit the section of the pillars. However, since the bearing pillars are intended to take a hydrostatic and hydrodynamic load to transmit it from the cover plate to the carrier wall, a risk of punching of the cover plate and / or bottom may exist in case of concentration excessive compression constraints. In addition, the pillars are likely to create bending stresses in the plate of cover and / or bottom. To reduce the stresses and the risk of punching, different load distribution elements can be used at the connection between the bearing pillars and the cover plate and / or bottom.

According to one embodiment, the insulating block further comprises flared-shaped charge distribution pieces arranged between the supporting pillars and the cover or bottom plate, the charge distribution part comprising in each case a smaller surface area. section facing the bearing pillar and a larger section surface facing the cover plate or bottom.

According to one embodiment, the carrying pillars are arranged in a plurality of rows extending in the length direction of the insulating block, the insulating block further comprising charge distribution beams arranged between the carrying pillars and the cover plate. , the load distribution beam being oriented in the length direction of the insulating block and resting each time on one of the rows of bearing pillars.

According to one embodiment, the load distribution beam each has a smaller section surface facing the supporting pillars and a larger section surface facing the cover plate.

Beams can be used similarly at the bottom plate.

In addition, different structures can be provided at the corners of the insulating block. According to one embodiment, the insulating block comprises four corner pillars extending in the thickness direction between the bottom plate and the cover plate, a corner pillar being each placed between a corner zone of the bottom plate and a corresponding corner area of the cover plate and having a longitudinal web extending from the corner along a longitudinal edge of the bottom plate and the cover plate over a portion of the length of the insulating block and a transverse web extending from the corner along a transverse edge of the bottom plate and the cover plate over a portion of the width of the insulating block. Such an angle pillar has a relatively high moment of inertia in the length direction and the width direction of the insulating block, which is useful for withstanding the possible shear stresses of the insulating block parallel to the cover and bottom plates. . Alternatively, the corner pillar disposed each time between a corner area of the bottom plate and a corresponding corner area of the cover plate has a bisecting web extending from the corner along a corner bisector. from the bottom plate and the cover plate to an inner end located inside the insulating block and a cross-baffle vane perpendicular to the bisecting veil, the back-baffle veil being attached to the inner end of the veil bisector and extending obliquely between a transverse edge and a longitudinal edge of the cover plate and the bottom plate. Thanks to these characteristics, the corner pillar has excellent buckling behavior.

Advantageously in this case, each bisecting veil comprises, successively along the thickness direction of the insulating block, a wider lower portion in contact with the bottom plate and a narrower upper portion in contact with the cover plate, so that an outer edge of the baffle plate turned towards the corner of the bottom plate has a shoulder surface placed between the wider lower portion and the upper portion narrower and perpendicular or oblique to the thickness direction of the insulating block .

Preferably in this case, the corner region of the cover plate has a cutout located vertically above the shoulder surface of the bisecting web to provide an access window for accessing the shoulder surface. Thus, it is possible to access a retaining member cooperating with the shoulder surface to achieve the fixing of the insulating block in a tank wall.

According to a preferred embodiment, each bisecting veil has an upper surface which is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the insulating block, and the corner region of the cover plate has a cutout located vertically above the upper surface of the cover plate. bissecteur sail to achieve a counter surface located at right of the upper surface of the bisecting veil, while the upper surface of the bisecting veil is fixed against the cover plate.

According to another embodiment, each bisecting veil has an upper surface that is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the insulating block, and the corner region of the cover plate has a cutout located vertically in line with an outer portion. the upper surface of the bisecting veil to provide an access window to access the outer portion of the surface upper portion of the bisecting web, while an inner portion of the upper surface of the bisecting web is fixed against the cover plate. Thus, it is possible to access a retaining member cooperating with the upper surface of the bisecting veil in its outer portion to achieve the fixing of the insulating block in a tank wall.

Preferably in this case, each bisecting web has a trapezoidal shape with a wider upper end in the direction of the bisector of the corner of the cover plate and a narrower lower end in the direction of the bisector of the corner of the cover plate. background. Due to this gradual narrowing of the bisecting veil, the corresponding thermal bridge can be reduced.

For the insulating pad of the insulating block, different materials may be employed, including glass wool, rockwool, wadding, fibrous materials, perlite, expanded perlite, low density polymer foams, aerogels and others. According to one embodiment, granular or powdered insulating materials are employed. For this, sidewalls are provided to close the four lateral sides of the insulating block. These side walls can be made of thin and light materials such as fabric or very thin plywood. Alternatively, these side walls may be made of thicker materials if they must jointly perform a function of recovery of the load.

According to one embodiment, the bottom plate of the insulating block is divided into a plurality of rectangular bottom portions, the bottom portions being juxtaposed along a width direction of the insulating block, a gap being provided each time between two of the bottom portions juxtaposed along the entire length of the insulating block,

the insulating block further comprising a connecting piece fixed to an inner surface of the bottom plate facing the cover plate to connect the two juxtaposed bottom portions, the connecting piece having successively along the width direction of the block isolating a first end portion secured to the inner surface of a first of the two juxtaposed bottom portions, an intermediate portion spanning the gap between the two juxtaposed bottom portions and a second end portion attached to the inner surface of a second of the two bottom portions juxtaposed,

the connecting piece having a housing in the extension of the gap between the two bottom portions juxtaposed, the intermediate portion of the connecting piece closing the housing in the direction of thickness opposite the gap, and the gap between the two juxtaposed bottom portions and the corresponding housing are suitable receiving the projecting portion of a waterproof membrane including the protruding wing of a metal strip of the waterproof membrane and the raised side edges of strakes welded thereto.

According to one embodiment, the invention also provides a sealed and insulating tank comprising a tank wall retained on a supporting structure, the tank wall including, in the direction of the thickness from the outside towards the inside of the tank, a secondary insulating barrier retained on the supporting structure, a secondary waterproof membrane retained on the secondary insulating barrier, a primary insulating barrier retained on the secondary waterproof membrane and a primary impervious membrane retained on the primary insulating barrier.

The aforementioned insulating block can be used to manufacture one and / or the other of the insulating barriers in such a tank wall, in particular for the secondary insulating barrier whose flexural stress is quite moderate.

According to one embodiment, the secondary insulating barrier essentially consists of a plurality of aforementioned secondary insulating blocks juxtaposed in a repeated pattern, the secondary waterproofing membrane comprising right-angled folded metal strips arranged in the housing of the block cover plates. secondary insulators, each metal strip having a wing protruding above the cover plate through the gap in the cover plate, the secondary waterproofing membrane having low coefficient of expansion steel strakes which are laid flat on the cover plates of the secondary insulating blocks between the metal strips, each strake having two parallel raised side edges which are sealingly welded to the projecting flanges of the metal strips.

According to one embodiment, mastic supports are inserted between the bottom plates of the secondary insulating blocks and the supporting structure, the mastic supports having small section mastic pads arranged vertically above the pillars carrying the secondary insulating blocks. .

According to one embodiment, the primary insulating barrier consists essentially of a plurality of parallelepipedic insulating blocks. primaries juxtaposed in a repeating pattern, each primary insulating block comprising:

a rectangular bottom plate,

According to one embodiment, the bottom plate of the primary insulating block is divided into a plurality of rectangular bottom portions, the bottom portions being juxtaposed along a transverse direction of the primary insulating block, a gap being formed each time between two bottom portions juxtaposed along the entire length of the primary insulating block,

the primary insulating block further comprising a connecting piece fixed to an internal surface of the bottom plate facing the cover plate to connect the two juxtaposed bottom portions, the connecting piece having successively along the transverse direction of the block primary insulator a first end portion fixed to the inner surface of a first of two juxtaposed bottom portions, an intermediate portion spanning the gap between the two juxtaposed bottom portions and a second end portion attached to the inner surface a second of the two bottom portions juxtaposed,

the connecting piece having a housing in the extension of the gap between the two juxtaposed bottom portions, the intermediate portion of the connecting piece closing the housing in the direction of thickness opposite the gap, in which the gap between the two juxtaposed bottom portions and the corresponding housing receive the projecting wing of one of the metal strips of the secondary membrane and the raised side edges of the strakes which are welded thereto.

Different materials having a suitable strength can be used for the connecting piece of the bottom plate, for example plywood of different types or composite materials. Preferably, the connecting piece is made of a material having a contraction coefficient thermal close to that of the bottom plate, including the same material as used in the bottom plate. According to one embodiment, the connecting piece is made of densified plywood.

Many configurations are possible to place the pillars carrying the insulating blocks. According to one embodiment, the pillars carrying a primary insulating block are located in line with the pillars carrying a secondary insulating block. Such a configuration makes it possible to minimize the bending stresses in the cover plates of the secondary insulating blocks.

According to another embodiment, the pillars carrying a primary insulating block are located between the pillars carrying a secondary insulating block.

According to one embodiment of the sealed and insulating tank, the secondary insulating barrier consists essentially of a plurality of secondary insulating blocks which have the aforementioned corner pillars and which are juxtaposed in a repeated pattern and the primary insulating barrier is essentially consisting of a plurality of primary insulating blocks which have the aforementioned corner pillars and which are juxtaposed according to the repeated pattern, the primary insulating blocks being aligned with the secondary insulating blocks in the direction of the wall thickness of the tank wall.

Preferably in this case, the vessel wall further comprises fasteners attached to the carrier structure at the corners of the secondary insulating blocks, a retaining member each cooperating with four adjacent secondary insulating blocks to retain the insulating blocks. adjacent secondary members on the carrier structure and with four primary insulative blocks superimposed on said adjacent secondary insulative blocks for retaining the primary insulative blocks on the secondary impermeable membrane.

According to one embodiment, the retaining member comprises in each case a primary bearing element held in abutment on the shoulder surface of a bisecting web of each of the four primary insulating blocks. According to one embodiment, the retaining member comprises in each case a secondary support element held in abutment on a counter surface of the cover plate of each of the four secondary insulating blocks, the counter surface being located at the right of the upper surface of a bisecting veil.

Such a tank can be part of a land storage facility, for example to store LNG or be installed in a floating structure, coastal or in deep water, including a LNG tank, a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), a floating production and remote storage unit (FPSO) and others.

According to one embodiment, a vessel for the transport of a fluid product, in particular cold liquid, comprises a double shell and a aforementioned tank disposed in the double shell.

According to one embodiment, the invention also provides a method for loading or unloading such a vessel, in which a fluid is conveyed through isolated pipes from or to a floating or land storage facility to or from the tank. of the ship.

According to one embodiment, the invention also provides a transfer system for a fluid product, in particular cold liquid, the system comprising the abovementioned vessel, insulated pipes arranged to connect the vessel installed in the hull of the vessel to an installation. floating or ground storage tank and a pump for driving a flow of fluid through the insulated pipelines from or to the floating or land storage facility to or from the vessel vessel.

Brief description of the figures

The invention will be better understood, and other objects, details, characteristics and advantages thereof will appear more clearly in the course of the following description of several particular embodiments of the invention, given solely for illustrative and non-limiting purposes. with reference to the accompanying drawings.

• Figure 1 is a partial cutaway perspective view of a sealed and insulating tank wall according to one embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic representation in perspective and in cross-section of a superimposed primary insulating block and secondary insulating block that can be used in the cell wall of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of an insulating block according to one embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the zone IV of FIG. FIGS. 5, 6 and 7 are views similar to FIG. 4 showing other embodiments of the cover plate.

• Figure 8 is a view similar to Figure 2 showing another embodiment of the primary and secondary insulation blocks.

FIG. 9 is a longitudinal sectional view of an insulating block of FIG.

• Figure 10 is a top view of an insulating block according to one embodiment.

Figures 11, 12 and 13 are perspective and cross-sectional views showing further embodiments of the cover plate of an insulating block.

Fig. 14 is a perspective cross-sectional view showing the bottom cover plate of a secondary insulator block according to one embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the bottom plate of a primary insulating block according to one embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a schematic perspective view of a primary insulating block according to one embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a cutaway schematic representation of a vessel of a LNG carrier and a loading / unloading terminal of this vessel.

FIG. 18 is a diagrammatic representation in perspective of superimposed primary and secondary insulating blocks that can be used in the cell wall of FIG.

FIG. 19 is a diagrammatic representation in perspective and in cross-section of superimposed primary and secondary insulating blocks that can be used in the cell wall of FIG. 1.

Detailed description of embodiments In Figure 1, a wall of a sealed and thermally insulating tank is shown. The general structure of such a tank is well known and has a polyhedral shape. It will therefore focus only to describe a wall zone of the tank, it being understood that all the walls of the tank may have a similar general structure.

Therefore, regardless of the effective orientation of the vessel wall in the earth's gravity field, the terms "on" and "above" will be used to designate a position inwardly of the vessel in the direction the thickness of the tank wall and the terms "under" and "below" to designate a position located towards the outside of the tank, that is to say towards the supporting structure.

The wall of the tank comprises, from the outside to the inside of the tank, a carrier wall 1, a secondary thermally insulating barrier 2 which is formed of insulating blocks 3 juxtaposed on the carrier structure 1 and anchored thereto by secondary holding members 4, a secondary sealing membrane 5 carried by the insulating blocks 3, a primary thermally insulating barrier 6 formed of insulating blocks 7 juxtaposed and anchored on the secondary sealing membrane 5 by primary retaining members 8 and a primary sealing membrane 9, carried by the insulating blocks 7 and intended to be in contact with the cryogenic fluid contained in the tank.

The carrier structure comprises a plurality of load-bearing walls defining the general shape of the vessel. The supporting structure may in particular be formed by the hull or the double hull of a ship. The supporting wall 1 may in particular be a self-supporting metal sheet or, more generally, any type of rigid partition having suitable mechanical properties.

The primary 9 and secondary 5 waterproofing membranes are, for example, constituted by a continuous sheet of metal strakes with raised edges, said strakes being welded by their raised edges to parallel welding supports held on the insulating blocks 3, 7 The metal strakes are, for example, made of Invar ®, that is to say an alloy of iron and nickel whose expansion coefficient is typically between 1, 2.10 ^"6 and 2.10 ^{" 6} K ^"1 , or in an alloy of iron with a high manganese content, the coefficient of expansion of which is typically of the order of 7 × 10 ^-6 K ^-1 . In the case of a vessel vessel, the strakes are preferably oriented parallel to the longitudinal direction of the ship.

The secondary insulating blocks 3 and the primary insulating blocks 7 may have identical or different structures and equal or different dimensions.

Figure 2 is a half-view of a secondary insulating block 3 surmounted by a primary insulating block 7, the sealed membranes being omitted for the sake of simplicity.

Each of the insulating blocks 3 and 7 comprises a rectangular parallelepiped shape having two large faces, or main faces, and four small faces, or side faces. The two insulating blocks have the same length and the same width. The secondary insulating block 3 is thicker than the primary insulating block 7.

The secondary insulating block 3 comprises a bottom plate 15 and a cover plate 16 parallel, spaced in the direction of thickness. The bottom plate 15 and the cover plate 16 define the main faces of the secondary insulating block 3.

The cover plate 16 has an outer support surface for receiving the secondary sealing membrane 5. The cover plate 16 further has housings for receiving welding supports 11 for welding the metal strakes 12 of the diaphragm. secondary seal 5, as will be explained below. By convention, the longitudinal direction of the secondary insulating block 3 is the direction parallel to the soldering supports 11.

Bearing pillars 17 extend in the thickness direction of the secondary insulating block 3 and are fixed, on the one hand, to the bottom plate 15 and, on the other hand, to the cover plate 16. The carrying pillars 17 allow to resume compression efforts. The carrying pillars 17 are aligned in a plurality of rows and distributed in staggered rows. The distance between the bearing pillars 17 is determined so as to allow a good distribution of compression forces. In one embodiment, the bearing pillars 17 are distributed equidistantly. The carrying pillars 17 are fixed to the bottom plate 15 and to the cover plate 16 by any appropriate means, by screwing, stapling and / or bonding for example. In the embodiment shown in Figure 2, the pillars 17 have a solid section, square. At the four corners of the bottom plate 15 and the cover plate 16, a corner post 18 is also provided. The corner pillar 18 has in each case a longitudinal web 19 and a transverse web 20 joining at the corner. The longitudinal web 19 and the transverse web 20 here have a rectangular shape. Alternatively they may have a trapezoid shape as sketched in FIG.

The bearing pillars 17 and the corner pillars 18 can be made in many materials. They can in particular be made of ordinary or densified plywood, or of a plastic material, such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene (PE), acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene copolymer (ABS). ), polyurethane (PU) or polypropylene (PP), optionally reinforced with fibers.

A heat-insulating lining, not shown, extends in the spaces formed between the carrying pillars 17. The heat-insulating lining is, for example, glass wool, wadding, a polymer foam, such as polyurethane foam, polyethylene foam or polyvinyl chloride foam. Such a polymeric foam may be disposed between the carrying pillars 17 by an injection operation during the manufacture of the secondary insulating block 3. Alternatively, it is possible to produce the heat-insulating lining by providing, in a pre-cut block of polymer foam , glass wool or wadding, orifices to accommodate the carrying pillars 17.

The primary insulating block 7 has a general structure similar to the secondary insulating block 3, with some differences which will be explained below. For the sake of simplicity, the constituent elements of the primary insulating block 7 similar to those of the secondary insulating block 3 are designated by the same reference numeral increased by 100.

In a configuration such as in Figure 2 where the primary pillars 117 are superimposed on the secondary pillars 17, the primary bottom plate 115 and the secondary cover plate 16 are not stressed substantially in bending or shearing. Essentially, under a hydrodynamic loading, it is therefore the primary cover plate 116 which works in bending while the bearing pillars 17 and 17 and the corner pillars 18 and 118 work in compression. In contrast, the primary bottom plate 115, the secondary cover plate 16 as well as the secondary bottom plate 15 are less stressed, that is to say essentially by loadings of the ship's ballast, which however cause lower stresses compared to those related to the weight of the cargo. The useful thickness of these structural elements can be reduced to leave a larger volume for the insulating lining and thus improve the thermal performance of the wall.

For the primary bottom plate 115, the secondary cover plate 16 and the secondary bottom plate 15, it is therefore particularly advantageous to use structurally resistant thin materials, such as densified plywood or composite materials.

Examples of suitable densified plywood include materials marketed by RANCAN srl under the trademark RANPREX®, for example references ML15 and ML20. These materials can especially be used in thicknesses between 4 and 9mm.

The secondary cover plate 16 will now be described more specifically with reference to FIGS. 3 to 7, where like elements are designated by the same reference numeral despite shape variations.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the secondary insulating block 3. It can be seen that the cover plate 16 has two longitudinal housings 21 spaced in the width of the insulating block to receive soldering supports 11. For this, the cover plate 16 is divided into three successive portions in the width of the insulating block. Indeed, the small thickness of the secondary cover plate 16 does not allow to machine the housing in its thickness in the conventional manner. A housing 21 is thus formed here by the gap 22 between two successive portions of the cover plate 16 and by a connecting piece 23 fixed to the gap 22 on the inner surface of the cover plate 16.

As best seen in the enlarged view of FIG. 4, the connecting piece 23 here has the shape of a profiled strip with a trapezoidal section whose large base is turned towards the cover plate 16 and the small base facing towards the bottom plate 15 A central portion of the large base is recessed by a groove with rectangular section 26, while two end portions 24 of the large base are attached to the inner surface of the cover plate 16 on either side of the gap 22. The intermediate portion 25 of the connecting piece 23 thus spans the gap 22 at a distance therefrom. It is seen that the groove 26 extends under a marginal portion 28 of the cover plate 16 on each side of the gap 22. In reality, it would be sufficient for the groove 26 to extend on one side of the gap 22 to receive the horizontal flange 30 of the solder support 11, as shown in Figure 6.

In the embodiment of FIG. 5, which is particularly suitable for a thicker cover plate 16, the housing 21 comprises a countersink 27 formed in the internal surface of the cover plate 16 at the marginal portion 28. The connecting piece 23 is here a simple flat plate.

The embodiment of Figure 6 is similar to Figure 4, except the outer shape of the connecting piece 23 is here rectangular and non-trapezoidal.

The embodiment of FIG. 7 is similar to FIG. 6, except for the section of the groove 26, which is here in the form of an inverted T, which increases the area of the end portion 24 available for attachment to the cover plate 16.

In FIGS. 3 to 7, the connecting piece may each time be a profiled piece extending over the entire length of the secondary insulating block 3. Depending on the position of the bearing pillars 17, other configurations may be appropriate. FIG. 8 thus shows another embodiment of the secondary insulating block 3, where elements similar or identical to those of FIG. 2 are designated by the same reference numeral. In this case, bearing pillars 17 are very close to the interstices 22 for the passage of the welding supports and the connecting piece 23 is interrupted at these bearing pillars 17. In other words, a housing 21 is here constituted of a plurality of connecting pieces 23 juxtaposed along the gap 22 and mutually spaced in the length direction of the insulating block to let the pillars 17 between them. This situation is better seen in FIG. 9, which is a longitudinal sectional view of the secondary insulating block 3 of FIG. 8, in which three connecting pieces 23 are juxtaposed in the length direction of the insulating block.

The two situations discussed above are summarized in Figure 10 which is a top view of a secondary insulating block 3 whose plate of cover 16 comprises three rectangular portions separated by two longitudinal interstices 22. By way of example, this secondary insulating block 3 comprises fourteen bearing pillars 17 divided into five longitudinal rows. With respect to the central row, the row on the right of the figure is relatively spaced from the corresponding gap 22 and the connecting piece 23 is formed continuously over the entire length of the insulating block. In contrast, the row on the left of the figure is closer to the corresponding gap 22 and four connecting pieces 23 are arranged along the gap 22 on the left, with mutual spacings at the pillars 17.

The connecting pieces 23 are fixed to the cover plate 16 by any appropriate means, for example stapling, nailing, screwing, insertion of a non-return pin, bonding, or more of these solutions at a time. The machining of the interstices 22 and the housings 21 can be performed before or after the joining of the connecting pieces 23 to the cover plate 16.

In FIGS. 3 and 9, the carrying pillars 17 are directly resting on the bottom plate 15 and the cover plate 16. In order to improve the distribution of the load of the bearing pillars, different structures can be provided at the connection between the bearing pillars 17 and the bottom plate 15 and / or the cover plate 16. Examples of load distribution structures are illustrated in FIGS. 11 to 13 in the case of the cover plate 16. The distribution structure the load can each time be made in the form of a separate part, or made in one piece with the cover plate 16, or made in one piece with the bearing pillar 17.

In Figure 11, a pyramidal pad 31 is placed at the top of each pillar carrier 17 in the manner of an architectural marquee. In a variant not shown, the stud is a parallelepiped flattened instead of a pyramid. In Figures 12 and 13, a longitudinal beam 32 is placed at the top of each row of pillars 17. In Figure 12, the beam 32 has a trapezoidal section. In Figure 13, the beam 32 has a square section.

The manufacture of a carrier wall 1 of large size as the hull of a ship does not allow to obtain perfectly flat surfaces. It is therefore generally necessary to provide polymerizable mastic supports under the bottom plate 15 of a secondary insulating block 3 to be able to make up for defects. of flatness of the carrier wall 1 and thus align the secondary insulating blocks 3 with a low tolerance, so as to obtain a very uniform support surface for the secondary membrane 5.

These polymerizable putty carriers can take different configurations. FIG. 14 illustrates an exemplary embodiment in which the polymerizable mastic supports comprise square studs 33 located vertically above the carrying pillars 17 and L-shaped corner strips 34 located directly above the corner pillars. 18. It is thus possible to minimize the bending forces in the bottom plate while providing a total section of the mastic mounts which is quite small, which limits heat conduction through the mastic mounts. In a version not shown, the mastic pad section is circular.

All the above description relating to the secondary insulating blocks 3 is also applicable to the primary insulating blocks 7. Nevertheless, the primary insulating block 7 may have some differences with the secondary insulating block 3, especially at the bottom plate 5. Thus, it is not necessary that the bottom plate 115 has mastic mounts. On the other hand, it is necessary to adapt the bottom plate 115 to the protruding parts of the secondary membrane 5, namely the raised edges of the strakes 12 and the vertical flange of the welding supports 11.

For this, as illustrated in Figure 15, it is possible to subdivide the bottom plate 115 similarly to the cover plate 16 to allow the protruding portions of the secondary membrane 5 to pass into the interstices 36. To maintain a certain flexural strength of the bottom plate 115, the connecting pieces 35 may be used similarly to the connecting pieces 23. The connecting piece 35 of the bottom plate is for example a profiled rod fixed astride two successive portions of the bottom plate 115 to the right of the gap 36 and having a longitudinal groove 37 in the extension of the interstice 36.

As for the cover plate 1 16 of the primary insulating block 7, it can be made similarly to the cover plate 16 of the secondary insulating block 3. However, the bending forces are generally higher at the cover plate 116, it is preferable to make it in a stronger and / or thicker material than the secondary cover plate 16. If necessary, if the primary cover plate 116 is sufficiently thick, the housing of the welding support for the primary waterproof membrane 9 can be machined in its thickness in the known manner.

Fig. 16 shows a primary insulating block 7 having corner pillars 40 according to another embodiment, the cover plate and the insulating liner being omitted from the representation. The bottom plate 115 is subdivided into three portions by two longitudinal interstices 36. It carries fourteen bearing pillars 117 arranged in five longitudinal rows.

The corner pillar 40 has a T-section formed of two perpendicular webs:

a bisecting veil 41 oriented at 45 ° between the longitudinal side 43 and the transverse side 44 of the bottom plate 115, and extending from the corner of the bottom plate 115 about half of the distance to the interstice 36 of the portion,

a counter-bisecting veil 42 oriented perpendicular to the bisecting veil 41 and extending tangentially to the inner end 45 of the bisecting veil 41 from the longitudinal side 43 to the transverse side 44 of the bottom plate 1 15.

The corner pillar 40 can also be used in the secondary insulating block 3, as can be seen in FIGS. 3 and 9.

In one embodiment, the bisecting veil 41 is made of a plywood 9 to 10 mm thick with a length of 100 mm and a height adapted to the thickness of the insulating barrier. The counter-bisector veil 42 is made of a plywood 12 mm thick with a length of 200 mm. Such thicknesses of plywood are standard and therefore readily available. Alternatively, a densified plywood can also be used.

FIG. 18 illustrates another embodiment of the primary and secondary insulating barriers of the tank wall, the sealed membranes being omitted. Elements similar or identical to those described above are designated by the same reference numeral increased by 200. The representation employed fictitiously places the vessel wall on a transparent or invisible carrier structure, so that the bottom plates 215 of the secondary insulating blocks 203 and the secondary retainer 204 are seen slightly from below, which is generally impossible in. a real construction.

FIG. 18 shows three secondary insulating blocks 203, two of which are very partially, each having a corner adjacent to the secondary holding member 204. A fourth non-represented secondary insulating block could be inserted in the same way, so that the secondary holding member 204 located at the adjacent corners of the four secondary insulating blocks cooperates simultaneously with each of them to retain them on the carrier structure. The same applies to the primary retaining member 208. The secondary retaining member 204 and the primary retaining member 208 can be made in different ways, for example according to the teaching of the publications FR-A- 2798902 and FR-A-2973097.

In the secondary insulating block 203 of FIG. 18, it can be seen that the bisecting veil 241 of the corner pillar 240 has a trapezoid shape with a wider upper end and a narrower lower end, so that the outer edge 46 of the Bisector sail is oblique. A rectangular cutout is formed in each corner of the cover plate 216 in a portion of the thickness of the cover plate 216 so as to form a counter surface 50 in the cover plate. The horizontal upper end of the bisecting web is covered by the cover plate. The horizontal upper end of the bisecting web 241 is located under the counter surface 50. This counter-surface 50 makes it possible to receive the support of a metal plate 51 of the secondary retaining member 204.

In a variant not shown, the corner of the cover plate 216 could be completely cut to partially discover the upper horizontal end of the bisecting veil 241, so that a horizontal surface uncovered at the upper end of the bisecting veil 241 can receive directly the support of a metal plate of the secondary retaining member 204.

In the primary insulating block 207 of FIG. 18, it can be seen that the bisecting veil 241 of the corner pillar 240 has a different shape, with a lower portion 47 wider and an upper portion 48 being narrower, so that the outer edge of the bisecting web has a horizontal shoulder surface 49 between the portions 47 and 48. A rectangular cutout 53 is formed in each corner of the cover plate 316 so as to discover the horizontal shoulder surface 49 of the bisecting web 241. This exposed horizontal shoulder surface can receive the support of a metal plate 52 of the primary retention member 208 The surface 49 could fulfill the same function being oblique.

The rectangular cutouts 53 formed in the corners of the cover plates 316 provide access to the retainers to facilitate their placement. After this installation, these windows can be plugged, for example using the teaching of the publication FR-A-2973097.

As well as the pillars 317 and 217, the corner pillars 240 of the primary insulating blocks 207 are also superimposed on the corner pillars 240 of the secondary insulating blocks 203.

Figure 19 is a view similar to Figure 2 which shows yet another embodiment of the vessel wall. The reference numerals identical to FIG. 18 are used to denote similar or identical elements. In the secondary insulating block 203 of FIG. 19, the cover plate 416 is continuous and sufficiently thick so that grooves 55 with an L-shaped cross-section are hollowed out therein to receive the welding supports 1. For the rest, the construction is similar to Figure 18.

Examples

Several examples of the primary and secondary insulating blocks offering advantageous properties in terms of mechanical strength and overall thermal conductivity have been described in the appended Table 1, particularly by virtue of the use of densified plywood materials for the bottom and lid plates and of a limited number of carrying pillars 17. The insulating block has in each case a length of 1.2 m and a width of 1 m. The dimensions in the table below (thicknesses and sections) are expressed in mm. The supporting pillars have a square section. Four corner pillars conforming to the pillars 18 of Figure 2 are used. The longitudinal sails 19 and transverse 20 are all 145 mm long. At the primary, the longitudinal sails 19 and transverse 20 have a thickness of 12mm and a height of 213mm. In secondary, the longitudinal sails 19 and transverse 20 have a thickness of 15mm and a height of 290mm. The technique described above for making a waterproof and insulating wall can be used in different types of tanks, for example to form the wall of an LNG tank in a land installation or in a floating structure such as a LNG tank or other.

Referring to Figure 17, a cutaway view of a LNG tanker 70 shows a sealed and insulated tank 71 of generally prismatic shape mounted in the double hull 72 of the ship. The wall of the tank 71 comprises a primary sealed barrier intended to be in contact with the LNG contained in the tank, a secondary sealed barrier arranged between the primary waterproof barrier and the double hull 72 of the ship, and two insulating barriers arranged respectively between the primary watertight barrier and the secondary watertight barrier and between the secondary watertight barrier and the double hull 72.

In a manner known per se, loading / unloading lines 73 arranged on the upper deck of the ship can be connected, by means of appropriate connectors, to a marine or port terminal to transfer a cargo of LNG from or to the tank 71.

FIG. 17 represents an example of a marine terminal comprising a loading and unloading station 75, an underwater pipe 76 and an onshore installation 77. The loading and unloading station 75 is a fixed off-shore installation comprising an arm mobile 74 and a tower 78 which supports the movable arm 74. The movable arm 74 carries a bundle of insulated flexible pipes 79 which can be connected to the loading / unloading pipes 73. The movable arm 74 can be adapted to all gauges LNG carriers . A connection pipe (not shown) extends inside the tower 78. The loading and unloading station 75 enables the loading and unloading of the LNG tank 70 from or to the shore facility 77. liquefied gas storage tanks 80 and connecting lines 81 connected by the underwater line 76 to the loading or unloading station 75. The underwater line 76 allows the transfer of the liquefied gas between the loading or unloading station 75 and the onshore installation 77 over a large distance, for example 5 km, which makes it possible to keep the tanker vessel 70 at great distance from the coast during the loading and unloading operations. In order to generate the pressure necessary for the transfer of the liquefied gas, pumps on board the ship 70 and / or pumps equipping the shore installation 77 and / or pumps equipping the loading and unloading station 75 are used.

Although the invention has been described in connection with several particular embodiments, it is obvious that it is not limited thereto and that it comprises all the technical equivalents of the means described and their combinations if they are within the scope of the invention.

The use of the verb "to include", "to understand" or "to include" and its conjugated forms does not exclude the presence of other elements or steps other than those set out in a claim. The use of the indefinite article "a" or "an" for an element or a step does not exclude, unless otherwise stated, the presence of a plurality of such elements or steps.

In the claims, any reference sign in parentheses can not be interpreted as a limitation of the claim.

Table 1

example 1 2 material ML20 ML20 secondary bottom thickness 5 5 cover material ML20 ML20 secondary thickness 5 5 material ML20 ordinary plywood pillars number 14 14 secondary section 27 37 material ML20 ML20 primary background thickness 5 5 cover material ML15 ML15 primary thickness 12 12 material ML20 plywood ordinary number 14 14 primary pillars section 18 24 load distribution structure no no primary pillar alignment and

secondary YES YES thermal flow compared to a

reference geometry (%) «- 40%

Claims

1. parallelepipedic insulating block (3, 7, 203, 207) suitable for producing an insulating wall in a tank for storing a cold liquid, the insulating block comprising:

a bottom plate (15, 1 15, 215, 315) of rectangular shape,

a cover plate (16, 16, 216, 316, 416) of rectangular shape parallel to the bottom plate and spaced from the bottom plate in a thickness direction of the insulating block,

a plurality of carrying pillars (17, 17, 217, 317) disposed between the bottom plate and the cover plate, the bearing pillars extending longitudinally in the thickness direction and having a small size section relative to a length and a width of the insulating block, and

an insulating gasket disposed between the bottom plate and the cover plate and between the supporting pillars,

characterized in that the insulating block further comprises four corner pillars (40, 240) extending in the thickness direction between the bottom plate (15, 115, 215, 315) and the cover plate ( 16, 116, 216, 316, 416), a corner post being each disposed between a corner region of the bottom plate and a corresponding corner region of the cover plate and having a bisecting web (4, 241) extending from the corner along a bisector of the corner of the bottom plate and the cover plate to an inner end located inside the insulating block and a counter-bisecting veil (42, 242) perpendicular to the bisecting web, the counterbiased web being attached to the inner end (45) of the bisecting web and extending obliquely between a transverse edge and a longitudinal edge of the cover plate and the bottom plate.

An insulating block according to claim 1, wherein each bisecting web has, successively along the thickness direction of the insulating block (207), a wider lower portion (47) in contact with the bottom plate (315). and a narrower upper portion (48) in contact with the cover plate (316), such that an outer edge of the baffle plate facing the corner of the bottom plate has a shoulder surface (49) positioned between the lower portion wider and the upper portion narrower and perpendicular or oblique to the direction of thickness of the insulating block,

and wherein the corner region of the cover plate (316) has a cutting located above the shoulder surface (49) of the bisecting web to provide an access window for accessing the shoulder surface.

An insulation block according to claim 1, wherein each bisecting web (241) has an upper surface which is perpendicular to the thickness direction of the insulating block (203),

and wherein and the corner region of the cover plate (216) has a cut-out located above the upper surface of the bisecting web to provide a counter surface (50) located at the top surface of the bisecting web while the upper surface of the bisecting web is fixed against the cover plate (216).

An insulation block according to claim 3, wherein each bisecting web (241) has a trapezoidal shape with a wider upper end in the direction of the bisector of the corner of the cover plate (216, 416) and a lower end more narrow in the direction of the bisector of the corner of the bottom plate (215).

5. A sealed and insulating tank having a tank wall retained on a supporting structure (1), the tank wall including, in the direction of the thickness from the outside to the inside of the tank, a secondary insulating barrier ( 2) retained on the supporting structure, a secondary waterproof membrane (5) retained on the secondary insulating barrier, a primary insulating barrier (6) retained on the secondary waterproof membrane and a primary waterproof membrane (9) retained on the primary insulating barrier, characterized in that the secondary insulating barrier consists essentially of a plurality of secondary insulating blocks (3, 203) made according to claim 1 and juxtaposed in a repeating pattern, and that the primary insulating barrier consists essentially of a plurality of primary insulating blocks (7, 207) made according to claim 1 and juxtaposed according to the repeated pattern, the primary insulating blocks (7, 207) being al igneous to the secondary insulating blocks (3, 203) in the direction of the thickness of the vessel wall,

the vessel wall further comprising fasteners (204, 208) attached to the carrier structure at the corners of the secondary insulating blocks, a retaining member (204, 208) cooperating each time with four secondary insulating blocks (203); ) adjacent to retain the adjacent secondary insulation blocks on the carrier structure and with four primary insulation blocks (207) superimposed said adjacent secondary insulating blocks for retaining the primary insulating blocks on the secondary waterproof membrane.

6. Tank according to claim 5, wherein the primary insulating blocks (207) are made according to claim 2, the retaining member (208) comprising in each case a primary bearing element (52) held in abutment on the shoulder surface (49) of a bisecting web of each of the four primary insulating blocks.

7. Tank according to claim 5, wherein the secondary insulating blocks (203) are made according to claim 3 or 4, the retaining member (204) each comprising a secondary support element (51) maintained in support. on the outer portion of the upper surface (50) of a bisecting web of each of the four secondary insulating blocks.

8. Parallelepiped insulating block (3) suitable for producing an insulating wall in a cold liquid storage tank, the insulating block comprising:

a bottom plate (15) of rectangular shape,

a rectangular-shaped cover plate (16) parallel to the bottom plate and spaced from the bottom plate in a thickness direction of the insulating block, a plurality of supporting pillars (17) disposed between the bottom plate and the plate cover, the bearing pillars extending longitudinally in the thickness direction and having a small size section with respect to a length and width of the insulating block, and

characterized in that the cover plate is divided into a plurality of rectangular cover portions, the cover portions having a thickness of less than 10mm and being juxtaposed along a width direction of the insulating block, a gap (22). being formed each time between two of the lid portions juxtaposed along the entire length of the insulating block, the insulating block further comprising a connecting piece (23) fixed to an inner surface of the cover plate facing the plate of bottom to connect the two juxtaposed lid portions, the connecting piece having successively along the width direction of the insulating block a first end portion (24) fixed to the inner surface of a first of the two lid portions juxtaposed, an intermediate portion (25) spanning the gap between the two juxtaposed lid portions and a second end portion (24) attached to the inner surface of a second of the two juxtaposed lid portions, wherein the connection and the two juxtaposed lid portions are arranged to define a housing (21) communicating with the outside of the insulating block through the gap between the two juxtaposed lid portions, the intermediate portion of the connecting piece closing the housing in the thickness direction opposite the gap, the housing having a retaining zone extending in the width direction of the insulating block from the gap, the housing retaining zone extending under a marginal zone (28) of at least one of the two juxtaposed lid portions, the housing being open in the longitudinal direction of the insulating block to allow sliding er a metal strip (1 1) bent at right angles in the housing in the longitudinal direction of the insulating block.

An insulation block according to claim 8, wherein said at least one of the two juxtaposed lid portions has a counterbore (27) hollowed in the inner surface of the lid portion at the marginal area (28), the housing comprising the interior space of the counterbore.

10. insulating block according to claim 9, wherein the connecting piece (23) is a wafer parallel to the cover plate whose intermediate portion spans the countersink of said at least one of two lid portions juxtaposed and whose portions of end are attached to the inner surface of the cover plate outside the counterbore (27).

An insulating block according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the intermediate portion (25) of the connecting piece is spaced from the inner surface of the cover plate in the thickness direction, the housing (21) having in addition to an inlet zone situated opposite the gap (22) between the intermediate portion of the connecting piece and the internal surface of the cover plate, the retaining zone of the housing extending in the extension of the zone input in the width direction of the insulating block.

12. Insulating block according to one of claims 8, 9 and 11, wherein the connecting piece (23) is a profiled piece elongate in the longitudinal direction of the insulating block, the connecting piece having a flat top surface. parallel to the inner surface of the cover plate and a middle groove (26) dug in the thickness direction from the flat upper surface, the intermediate portion of the connecting piece forming the bottom of the middle groove.

An insulation block according to claim 12, wherein the middle groove (26) has a rectangular or inverted T-shaped section.

14. Insulating block according to one of claims 8 to 13, wherein the cover plate (16) is made of densified plywood wood.

15. Insulating block according to one of claims 8 to 14, wherein the connecting piece (23) is made of densified plywood wood.

16. Insulating block according to one of claims 8 to 15, wherein the connecting piece (23) extends continuously over substantially the entire length of the insulating block.

An insulating block according to one of claims 8 to 15, wherein a plurality of connecting pieces (23) of short length relative to the length of the insulating block are arranged along the gap (22) in the length direction. insulation block.

18. Insulating block according to one of claims 8 to 17, further comprising flared shaped distribution of charge distribution pieces arranged between the supporting pillars and the cover plate, the load distribution part comprising in each case a surface of smaller section facing the bearing abutment and a larger section surface facing the cover plate.

19. Insulating block according to one of claims 8 to 17, wherein the supporting pillars (17) are arranged in a plurality of rows extending in the length direction of the insulating block, the insulating block further comprising beams of load distribution (32) arranged between the supporting pillars and the cover plate, the load distribution beam being oriented in the length direction of the insulating block and resting each time on one of the rows of pillars.

An insulation block according to one of claims 8 to 19, further comprising four corner pillars (18) extending in the thickness direction between the bottom plate and the cover plate, a corner pillar being each time disposed between a corner area of the bottom plate and a corner area corresponding to the cover plate and having a longitudinal web (19) extending from the corner along a longitudinal edge of the bottom plate and the cover plate over a portion of the length of the insulating block and a web cross section (20) extending from the corner along a transverse edge of the bottom plate and the cover plate over a portion of the width of the insulating block.

An insulation block according to one of claims 8 to 19, further comprising four corner pillars (40) extending in the thickness direction between the bottom plate (15) and the cover plate (16). a corner pillar being disposed between a corner region of the bottom plate and a corresponding corner region of the cover plate and having a baffle plate (41) extending from the corner along a bisector of the wedge of the bottom plate and the cover plate to an inner end located inside the insulating block and a cross-baffle veil (42) perpendicular to the bisecting veil, the cross-baffle veil being fixed at the inner end (45) of the bisecting web and extending obliquely between a transverse edge and a longitudinal edge of the cover plate and the bottom plate.

22. A sealed and insulating vessel having a tank wall retained on a supporting structure (1), the tank wall including, in the thickness direction from the outside towards the inside of the tank, a secondary insulating barrier ( 2) retained on the supporting structure, a secondary waterproof membrane (5) retained on the secondary insulating barrier, a primary insulating barrier (6) retained on the secondary waterproof membrane and a primary waterproof membrane (9) retained on the primary insulating barrier, characterized in that the secondary insulating barrier consists essentially of a plurality of secondary insulating blocks (3) according to one of claims 8 to 21 juxtaposed in a repeating pattern, the secondary waterproofing membrane (5) comprising metal strips

(11) folded at right angles disposed in the housings (21) of the cover plates (16) of the secondary insulating blocks, each metal strip having a wing projecting above the cover plate through the gap (22) of the cover plate, the secondary waterproof membrane having strakes

(12) low coefficient of expansion steel which are laid flat on the cover plates of the secondary insulating blocks between the metal strips, each strake having two parallel raised side edges which are sealingly welded to the protruding flanges of the metal strips (11).

23. Tank according to claim 22, wherein the primary insulating barrier (6) consists essentially of a plurality of primary parallelepiped insulating blocks (7) juxtaposed in a repeated pattern, each primary insulating block comprising:

a bottom plate (115) of rectangular shape,

a rectangular-shaped cover plate (116) parallel to the bottom plate and spaced from the bottom plate in a thickness direction of the insulating block, a plurality of supporting pillars (117) disposed between the bottom plate and the plate cover, the bearing pillars extending longitudinally in the thickness direction and having a small size section with respect to a length and width of the insulating block, and

The vessel according to one of claims 22 to 23, wherein the bottom plate (115) of the primary insulating block is divided into a plurality of rectangular bottom portions, the bottom portions being juxtaposed along a direction. width of the primary insulating block, a gap (36) being provided each time between two bottom portions juxtaposed along the entire length of the primary insulating block,

the primary insulating block further comprising a connecting piece (35) fixed to an inner surface of the bottom plate facing the cover plate to connect the two juxtaposed bottom portions, the connecting piece presenting successively along the direction width of the primary insulating block a first end portion fixed to the inner surface of a first of two juxtaposed bottom portions, an intermediate portion spanning the gap between the two juxtaposed bottom portions and a second end portion fixed on the inner surface of a second of two juxtaposed bottom portions,

the connecting piece having a housing (37) in the extension of the gap between the two juxtaposed bottom portions, the intermediate portion of the connecting piece closing the housing in the thickness direction opposite the gap in which the gap (36) between the two juxtaposed bottom portions and the corresponding housing (37) receive the projecting flange of one of the metal strips (11) of the secondary membrane and the raised side edges of the strakes (12) which are welded thereto.

25. Tank according to claim 23, wherein the bearing pillars (117) of a primary insulating block are located vertically above the bearing pillars (17) of a secondary insulating block.

26. Vessel (70) for the transport of a fluid, the vessel comprising a double hull (72) and a tank (71) according to one of claims 5 to 7 and 22 to 25 disposed in the double hull.

A method of loading or unloading a vessel (70) according to claim 26, wherein a fluid is conveyed through isolated pipes (73, 79, 76, 81) to or from a floating or land storage facility ( 77) to or from the vessel vessel (71).

28. Transfer system for a fluid, the system comprising a ship (70) according to claim 26, insulated pipes (73, 79, 76, 81) arranged to connect the tank (71) installed in the hull of the ship a floating or land storage facility (77) and a pump for driving a fluid flow through the isolated pipelines from or to the floating or land storage facility to or from the vessel vessel.