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CN-121986236-A - Wall for sealed and thermally insulated tank

CN121986236ACN 121986236 ACN121986236 ACN 121986236ACN-121986236-A

Abstract

The invention relates to a wall (11) comprising a thermal insulation barrier (14, 12) and a sealing film (13, 15) resting against the thermal insulation barrier, the thermal insulation barrier comprising a support element (20) comprising-a pillar (21) standing in the thickness direction of the wall, -an inner plate (22) connected to the inner end of the pillar by means of a connecting means (30) holding the inner plate to the pillar in the thickness direction (E), the sealing film being fixed to the inner plate, the connecting means having-a degree of freedom of rotation about a first axis perpendicular to the thickness direction of the wall, and-a degree of freedom of rotation about a second axis perpendicular to the thickness direction of the wall and orthogonal to the first axis.

Inventors

  • Guillaume Salmon Leganie
  • Benjamin Fabry

Assignees

  • 气体运输技术公司

Dates

Publication Date
20260505
Application Date
20241010
Priority Date
20231013

Claims (17)

  1. 1. A wall of a sealed and thermally insulated tank for storing liquefied gas, the wall (11, 111, 211) comprising a thermal insulation barrier (12, 14) and a sealing membrane (13, 15, 113, 115) resting against the thermal insulation barrier in a thickness direction (E) of the wall; The thermal isolation barrier comprises a plurality of support elements (20, 120, 220, 320, 420, 520, 620, 720, 820, 920) which are spaced apart in a direction perpendicular to the thickness direction of the wall and which support the sealing film, Each support element comprises: -a column (21, 121, 221, 321, 421, 521, 621, 721, 821, 921) upstanding in the thickness direction of the wall; An inner plate (22, 122, 222, 322, 422, 522, 622, 722, 822, 922) connected to an inner end of the pillar by a connecting means (30, 130, 230, 330, 430, 530, 630, 730, 830, 930) that holds the inner plate on the pillar in the thickness direction, the sealing film being fixed to the inner plate, The connecting device has: -a degree of freedom of rotation about a first axis (X1) perpendicular to the thickness direction of the wall, and A degree of freedom of rotation about a second axis (X2) perpendicular to the thickness direction of the wall and orthogonal to the first axis, Wherein the sealing film (13, 15, 113, 115) rests only against the inner plate of the support element.
  2. 2. The wall of claim 1, wherein the connection means has: -a degree of freedom of translation along said first axis (X1), and -A translational degree of freedom along said second axis (X2).
  3. 3. The wall according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the connection means comprise a support (131, 231, 331, 431, 531, 631, 831, 931) fixed to the inner end of the column.
  4. 4. A wall according to claim 3, wherein the support comprises a sleeve (131, 231, 331, 431, 831, 931) pressed into the inner end of the column.
  5. 5. A wall according to claim 3, wherein the support comprises a closing plate (531, 631) fixed to and covering the inner end of the column.
  6. 6. The wall according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the connection means comprises a spherical joining socket (239, 339, 439, 639) and a spherical joining head (238, 338, 438, 638) accommodated in the spherical joining socket, one of the spherical joining socket and the spherical joining head being rigidly fastened to the inner plate and the other of the spherical joining socket and the spherical joining head being rigidly fastened to the support.
  7. 7. The wall of claim 6, wherein the connection means is arranged to press the ball joint head and the ball joint socket against each other.
  8. 8. The wall of claim 7, wherein the connection means comprises a spike (233, 333, 433, 633) passing through the spherical coupling head and the spherical coupling socket, the spike comprising a head forming an abutment, the connection means further comprising an elastic member (237, 337, 437, 637) or a spherical washer mounted on the spike and arranged between the abutment and the spherical coupling socket or the spherical coupling head to press the spherical coupling head and the spherical coupling socket against each other.
  9. 9. The wall according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the connection means comprises a spike (133, 533, 833, 933) having a first end (134, 534, 834, 934) fixed to a first element of the inner plate and the support and a second end (136, 536, 836, 936) comprising an abutment through which the spike passes, wherein the connection means further comprises at least one elastic member (137, 537, 837, 937) mounted on the spike and positioned between the inner plate and the support to press the second element against a surface of the abutment.
  10. 10. The wall of claim 9, wherein the connection means comprises a plurality of resilient members and a plurality of spikes spaced apart from each other, each spike (133, 533) having a first end (134, 534) fixed to a first element of the inner plate and the support and a second end (136, 536) comprising an abutment, the spike passing through a second element of the inner plate and the support, and each resilient member (137, 537, 837) being mounted on one of the spikes and positioned between the inner plate and the support to press the second element against a surface of the abutment.
  11. 11. The wall of claim 10, wherein the plurality of spikes includes three spikes distributed such that three straight line segments connecting the spikes in pairs form an equilateral triangle.
  12. 12. The wall according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the thermal isolation barrier is a primary thermal isolation barrier (14), the sealing film being a primary sealing film (15, 115), the wall further comprising a secondary thermal isolation barrier (12) intended to rest against a support structure (1), a secondary metal sealing member (13, 113) intended to rest against the secondary thermal isolation barrier, the primary thermal isolation barrier being intended to rest against the secondary sealing film, the primary sealing film being intended to rest against the primary thermal isolation barrier and to be in contact with the liquefied gas contained in the tank (71, 171), Wherein the support element comprises: An outer plate (23, 123) connected to an outer end portion of the column by an external connection means that holds the outer plate on the column in the thickness direction, the secondary sealing film being fixed to the outer plate, The external connection device has: -a degree of freedom of rotation about a first axis perpendicular to the thickness direction of the wall, and -A degree of rotational freedom about a second axis perpendicular to the thickness direction of the wall and orthogonal to the first axis.
  13. 13. A sealed and thermally insulated tank comprising at least one first wall (111) and at least one second wall (211), the first and second walls being walls according to any of claims 1 to 12.
  14. 14. The sealed and thermally insulated tank of claim 13, wherein the first wall (111) and the second wall (211) form corners of the tank, and each of the first wall and the second wall comprises a row of support elements (95, 96) supporting the sealing membrane, the row of support elements extending in parallel with edges formed by the corners of the tank, wherein the row of support elements (95, 96) comprises the support elements (20, 120, 220, 320, 420, 520, 620, 720, 820, 920).
  15. 15. A vessel (70) for transporting liquefied gas, the vessel comprising a double hull (72) and a tank (71) according to claim 13 or 14 provided in the double hull.
  16. 16. A transfer system for liquefied gas, the system comprising a vessel (70) according to claim 15, and an insulated pipe (73, 79, 76, 81) arranged to connect the tank (71) installed in the hull of the vessel to a floating or onshore storage facility (77).
  17. 17. A method of loading or unloading a vessel (70) according to claim 15, wherein liquefied gas is led from a floating or land storage facility (77) to the tank (71) of the vessel (70) through an insulated pipe (73, 79, 76, 81) or liquefied gas is led from the tank (71) of the vessel (70) to a floating or land storage facility (77) through an insulated pipe (73, 79, 76, 81).

Description

Wall for sealed and thermally insulated tank Technical Field The present invention relates to the field of walls for sealed and thermally insulated tanks. The invention relates in particular to the field of the walls of sealed and thermally insulated tanks for storing and/or transporting liquefied gases, such as liquid hydrogen at atmospheric pressure at about-253 ℃. These tanks may be mounted on land or on floating structures. In the case of a floating structure, the tank may be used for transporting liquefied gas or for liquefied gas that acts as fuel for propelling the floating structure. Background Sealed and thermally insulated tanks for storing liquefied gases are known in the art. Such tanks generally comprise a plurality of walls, each comprising a multilayer structure comprising at least one thermal isolation barrier held on a support structure, and at least one sealing membrane resting against the thermal isolation barrier and intended to come into contact with the liquefied gas contained inside the tank. One of the main difficulties is that in tanks of the above type, the walls of the tank are subjected to various uneven loads. In particular, the walls are subjected to compressive forces due to the loading of the tank, thermal stresses during cooling, and forces due to dynamic shocks of the fluid contained in the tank due to the phenomenon of "sloshing" or surging of the fluid in the tank during sea. Furthermore, the force is applied in a direction transverse to the thickness of the wall and therefore tends to cause buckling of the elements constituting the tank. Disclosure of Invention In order to be able to better distribute the stresses in the sealing film, the inventors contemplate a thermal isolation barrier comprising discrete support structures, each supporting an area of the sealing film, and the sealing film being welded to the support structures. The discrete support structure includes, for example, columns that stand up in the thickness direction of the wall to support the sealing film. This arrangement has a number of disadvantages because, as described above, laterally applied forces tend to cause buckling of the column. Accordingly, one idea of the present invention is to solve the above-described problems. Another idea of the invention is to propose a wall for a sealed and thermally insulated tank, which wall comprises a support element adapted to resist forces applied in a direction transverse to the thickness of the wall. In one embodiment, the present invention provides a wall of a sealed and thermally insulated tank for storing liquefied gas, the wall comprising a thermal insulation barrier and a sealing membrane resting against the thermal insulation barrier in a thickness direction of the wall; The thermal isolation barrier comprises a support member that, The support element comprises: -a column upstanding in the thickness direction of the wall; An inner plate connected to an inner end portion of the pillar by a connecting means that holds the inner plate on the pillar in a thickness direction, a sealing film fixed to the inner plate, The connecting device comprises: -a degree of freedom of rotation about a first axis perpendicular to the thickness direction of the wall, and -A degree of freedom of rotation about a second axis perpendicular to the thickness direction of the wall and orthogonal to the first axis. Thanks to these features, the connection between the sealing membrane and the column allows a relative movement between the two and thus forms a damping device which dampens the forces that may be transmitted to the column, in particular when the sealing membrane is subjected to a sloshing phenomenon. Thus, the bending moment applied to the column is reduced. Thus, the service life of the support element, and thus of the tank wall, is increased compared to a tank wall without the above-mentioned features. Such wall embodiments may have one or more of the following features. In one embodiment, the connection device has: -a translational degree of freedom along a first axis, and -A translational degree of freedom along the second axis. In one embodiment of the wall, the connection means has a degree of freedom of rotational movement in the thickness direction of the wall. In one embodiment of the wall, the connection means has a translational degree of freedom in the thickness direction, which is limited to a translational movement within a certain maximum distance, preferably a distance of less than 3 cm. In one embodiment, the connection means comprises a support member fixed to the inner end of the column. In one embodiment, the support comprises a sleeve that is pressed into the inner end of the column. In one embodiment, the sleeve is secured against a longitudinal surface of the column. In one embodiment, the sleeve extends beyond the inner end of the post. In one embodiment, the sleeve is made of a composite material or metal. In one embodiment, the columns are