Method and system for offshore wind turbine installation

Abstract

The application relates to a kind of offshore wind turbine installation method and installation system, comprising: hoisting bottom section setting section number of tower section; From the side of the installed tower, the next section tower section is lifted to the top of the installed tower, and the tower section is rotated to be in place with the installed tower, and the step is repeated until all tower sections are installed. The application hoists the tower section at the bottom first, the next section tower section is set upside down and lifted to the top of the installed tower from the side of the installed tower, and then the tower section is rotated to be in place with the installed tower; The tower section within the maximum lifting height range of the lifting equipment can be lifted by the lifting equipment, and the tower section exceeding the maximum lifting height of the lifting equipment is lifted to the side of the installed tower by the lifting equipment, the performance requirement of the lifting equipment is reduced, and the installation operation of a deep sea, large-capacity wind turbine generator can be completed by using a conventional lifting ship, thereby reducing the wind turbine installation cost.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the technical field of wind power generation, and in particular to an offshore wind turbine installation method and installation system. Background Technology

[0002] Currently, with the massive consumption of fossil fuels and severe environmental pollution, renewable energy is receiving increasing attention worldwide, and wind energy has become one of the most competitive new energy sources. The construction of large-scale offshore wind farms has gradually begun. my country has a vast ocean area and abundant offshore wind resources, with a large amount of usable wind resources. With the development of wind power technology, offshore wind farms will be located further offshore and in deeper waters, and the single-unit capacity of offshore wind turbines is also steadily increasing. The construction of offshore wind farms is characterized by diverse sea conditions, complex seabed topography and geology, making construction difficult. Offshore wind farm construction is affected by climate, weather, tides, and other factors, resulting in a longer construction period and more complex operating conditions compared to onshore wind farms.

[0003] In related technologies, the installation of offshore wind turbine units is basically carried out by two types of vessels: jack-up crane platforms and floating crane vessels. The vessels can be self-propelled or non-self-propelled. Depending on the water depth, lifting capacity, and availability of the vessels, one or two methods can be used for installation. A typical method of joint installation is to load wind turbine components or single foundation piles onto a flat-deck barge and tow them to the site, and then the jack-up platform or crane vessel lifts the components from the flat-deck barge to complete the installation or piling.

[0004] However, for deep-sea, large-capacity wind turbines, the tower height is high, the installation is difficult, and the performance requirements of the lifting equipment are high. Large and high-performance lifting equipment is required, resulting in high wind turbine installation costs. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This application provides an offshore wind turbine installation method and system to address the high installation cost of deep-sea, large-capacity wind turbine units in related technologies.

[0006] On the one hand, this application provides a method for installing an offshore wind turbine, and the technical solution adopted is:

[0007] A method for installing an offshore wind turbine, comprising:

[0008] Hoisting tower sections with a predetermined number of segments at the bottom;

[0009] Lift the next tower segment, which is set up upside down, from the side of the installed tower to the top of the installed tower. Rotate the tower segment until it is aligned with the installed tower. Repeat this process until all tower segments are installed.

[0010] In some embodiments, the rotating the tower section to be perpendicular to the installed tower comprises: rotating the tower section to be perpendicular to the installed tower by means of a jacking assembly provided between the tower section and the installed tower and located at a side of the installed tower.

[0011] In some embodiments, the rotating the tower section to be perpendicular to the installed tower comprises: rotating the tower section to be perpendicular to the installed tower by means of a jacking assembly provided between the tower section and the installed tower and located at a side of the installed tower.

[0012] In some embodiments, the pulling the tower section to be in abutment with the installed tower by means of the pulling assembly provided at the top of the installed tower is performed simultaneously with jacking the tower section by means of the jacking assembly until the tower section is rotated to be in abutment with the installed tower.

[0013] In some embodiments, the lifting the next section tower section in an inverted position from a side of the installed tower to the top of the installed tower comprises: aligning the bottom opening of the tower section with the top opening of the installed tower.

[0014] In some embodiments, the lifting the next section tower section in an inverted position from a side of the installed tower to the top of the installed tower comprises: aligning the bottom opening of the tower section with the top opening of the installed tower.

[0015] In some embodiments, the rotating the nacelle and blade assembly to be in abutment with the tower comprises: rotating the nacelle and blade assembly to be at a set angle with the tower, and pulling the nacelle and blade assembly to be in abutment with the tower by means of a pulling assembly provided at the top of the tower.

[0016] In some embodiments, the lifting the nacelle and blade assembly in an inverted position from a side of the tower to the top of the tower comprises: assembling the nacelle and blade assembly at a side of the installed tower.

[0017] In a second aspect, the present application provides a system for installing an offshore wind turbine, comprising:

[0018] a hoisting device for hoisting a tower section with a bottom opening of a set number of sections;

[0019] a lifting device provided at a side of the installed tower for lifting a next section tower section to the top of the installed tower;

[0020] a jacking assembly provided at a side of the installed tower and located between the installed tower and the next section tower section, and configured to rotate the tower section to be in abutment with the installed tower.

[0021] In some embodiments, a pulling assembly is also included for setting at the top of the installed tower section and for pulling the next tower section segment into position in abutment with the installed tower section.

[0022] The technical solutions provided by the present application have the following beneficial effects:

[0023] The offshore wind turbine installation method and system provided by the embodiments of the present application first hoist the tower section segments at the bottom to a specified number of segments, after the hoisting of the tower section segments at the bottom to the specified number of segments is completed, the next tower section segment is set upside down and lifted from the side of the installed tower to the top of the installed tower, then the tower section segment is rotated to be in abutment with the installed tower, and the step is repeated until all the tower section segments are installed; during construction, the tower section segments within the maximum hoisting height range of the hoisting equipment can be hoisted by the hoisting equipment, and the tower section segments exceeding the maximum hoisting height of the hoisting equipment only need to be hoisted by the hoisting equipment to the side of the installed tower during installation, therefore, the maximum hoisting height of the hoisting equipment does not need to reach the height of the entire tower, the performance requirement of the hoisting equipment is reduced, and the installation operation of a deep sea, large-capacity wind turbine generator can be completed by using a conventional hoisting ship, thereby reducing the cost of wind turbine installation. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0024] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the drawings needed in the embodiment description will be briefly introduced as follows. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application, and other drawings can be obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort.

[0025] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of hoisting the tower section segments at the bottom by the hoisting equipment in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0026] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of installing the to-be-installed tower section segment upside down on the lifting device by the hoisting equipment in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0027] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of lifting the to-be-installed tower section segment to the top of the installed tower by the lifting device in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0028] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of rotating the to-be-installed tower section segment by the jacking assembly in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0029] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of rotating the to-be-installed tower section segment to be perpendicular to the installed tower by the jacking assembly in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0030] Figure 6 A schematic view of the pulling assembly pulling the to-be-installed tower section to rotate in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0031] Figure 7 A schematic view of the to-be-installed tower section and the installed tower section being docked and positioned in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0032] Figure 8 A schematic view of the nacelle and blade assembly being invertedly installed on the lifting device in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0033] Figure 9 A schematic view of the lifting device lifting the nacelle and blade assembly to the top of the installed tower in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Figure 10 A schematic view of the jacking assembly rotating the to-be-installed tower section by a set angle in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Figure 11 A schematic view of the nacelle and blade assembly being docked and positioned with the tower in the offshore wind turbine installation method provided by the embodiment of the present application.

[0036] In the figure: 1, tower section; 2, lifting device; 3, jacking assembly; 4, pulling assembly; 5, crane ship; 6, track section; 7, nacelle and blade assembly. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0037] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0038] For deep-sea, large-capacity wind turbines, the tower column is high, the installation is difficult, the performance requirements for the lifting equipment during installation are high, large and high-performance lifting equipment is needed, and the updating of the equipment cannot meet the installation requirements of large-capacity wind turbines.

[0039] The embodiments of the present application provide an offshore wind turbine installation method and installation system, which can solve the problem of high installation cost of current deep-sea, large-capacity wind turbines.

[0040] Reference Figures 1-11As shown, the present application provides a method for installing offshore wind turbine, comprising:

[0041] Hoisting the tower section 1 of the set number of sections.

[0042] Lifting the next section tower section 1 of the upside down setting from the side of the installed tower to the top of the installed tower, rotating the tower section 1 to be in place with the installed tower, repeating the step until all the tower sections 1 are installed.

[0043] Referring to Figures 1-2 Specifically, when hoisting the tower section 1 of the set number of sections, hoisting is carried out by lifting equipment, the number of tower sections 1 hoisted by the lifting equipment is determined according to the maximum hoisting height of the lifting equipment, and in this embodiment, the lifting equipment is a crane ship 5.

[0044] After the lifting equipment hoists the tower section 1 of the set number of sections, the lifting device 2 is installed on the side of the installed tower by the lifting equipment, the lifting device 2 can move axially on the installed tower, the next section tower section 1 is installed upside down on the lifting device 2 by the lifting equipment, and the lifting device 2 is used to lift the tower section 1 to the top of the installed tower.

[0045] Specifically, the tower section 1 is provided with a track section 6 along its axial direction, and after the adjacent tower sections 1 are connected, the two track sections 6 on the adjacent tower sections 1 form a continuous climbing track, and the lifting device 2 adopts a rack type elevator which is installed on the climbing track and can move along the length direction of the climbing track.

[0046] Referring to Figures 2-3 As shown, after the installation of the lifting device 2 is completed, the tower section 1 to be installed is installed on the lifting device 2 by the lifting equipment, and the lifting device 2 climbs to lift the tower section 1 to be installed from the side of the installed tower close to the bottom height to the top of the installed tower.

[0047] Referring to Figures 4-7 As shown, after the tower section 1 to be installed is lifted to the top of the installed tower, the tower section 1 is rotated to be in place with the installed tower, and specifically, a jacking assembly 3 is provided on the side of the installed tower to rotate the tower section 1 lifted to the top of the installed tower, and the jacking assembly 3 is located between the tower section 1 and the installed tower when the tower section 1 is jacked up.

[0048] In the embodiment, the jacking assembly 3 is installed on the lifting device 2 and lifts with the lifting device 2, and the jacking assembly 3 is located on the side of the lifting device 2 away from the installed tower drum, and the jacking assembly 3 adopts a hydraulic cylinder, one end of which is hinged to the lifting device 2, and the other end is used for hinged connection to the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1; when the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 is installed to the side of the installed tower drum by the hoisting equipment, the tower drum segment 1 is inverted and temporarily fixed and installed on the lifting device 2, the jacking assembly 3 is located between the tower drum segment 1 and the installed tower drum, and the jacking assembly 3 is hinged and connected to the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1, when the lifting device 2 climbs to the top of the installed tower drum, the bottom opening of the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 is connected to the top opening of the installed tower drum and the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 can rotate, the temporary fixing of the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 and the lifting device 2 is released, the jacking hydraulic cylinder is started to rotate the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1, and the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 is rotated until it is in place and is connected to the installed tower drum.

[0049] Further, when the next segment tower drum segment 1 arranged in an inverted manner is lifted from the side of the installed tower drum to the top of the installed tower drum, the bottom opening of the tower drum segment 1 is flush with the top opening of the installed tower drum; thereby when the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 is rotated, it can be more quickly and accurately connected to the installed tower drum in place, and the construction efficiency is improved.

[0050] Referring to Figures 4-7 Further, when the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 is rotated to be connected to the installed tower drum in place, the tower drum segment 1 is first rotated to be perpendicular to the installed tower drum, and then the pulling assembly 4 arranged at the top of the installed tower drum is used to pull the tower drum segment 1 to be connected to the installed tower drum in place.

[0051] Specifically, after the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 is rotated to be perpendicular to the installed tower drum, the pulling assembly 4 is installed at the top of the installed tower drum, and the pulling assembly 4 also adopts a pull-and-press hydraulic cylinder, both ends of which are hinged to the top of the installed tower drum and the bottom opening of the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1, respectively, so as to rotate the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 by starting the pull-and-press hydraulic cylinder to pull the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1.

[0052] Further, when the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 is pulled to be connected to the installed tower drum in place by the pulling assembly 4, the jacking assembly 3 is used to jack up the tower drum segment 1 at the same time, until the tower drum segment 1 is rotated to be connected to the installed tower drum in place. The jacking assembly 3 and the pulling assembly 4 cooperate to more quickly rotate the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 to be connected to the installed tower drum in place, and improve the construction efficiency.

[0053] After the to-be-installed tower drum segment 1 is connected to the installed tower drum in place, subsequent connection construction of the tower drum segment 1 and the installed tower drum is required, until the installation construction of the tower drum segment 1 is completed.

[0054] Referring toFigures 8-11 Further, after the installation of all the tower segments 1, the nacelle and blade assembly 7 is lifted from the side of the tower and set upside down on the top of the tower, and then the nacelle and blade assembly 7 is rotated to be in position and connected with the tower.

[0055] Specifically, the nacelle and blade assembly 7 is also lifted to the top of the tower by the lifting device 2, and is rotated by the jacking assembly 3. Before lifting, the nacelle is installed upside down on the lifting device 2 by the hoisting equipment, and is temporarily fixed with the lifting device 2, and one end of the jacking assembly 3 is hingedly connected with the nacelle, and then the blades are assembled on the nacelle by the hoisting equipment to obtain the nacelle and blade assembly 7.

[0056] Further, when the nacelle and blade assembly 7 is rotated to be in position and connected with the tower, the nacelle and blade assembly 7 is first rotated to a set angle with the tower by the jacking assembly 3, and then is pulled to be in position and connected with the tower by the pulling assembly 4 arranged on the top of the tower. When the nacelle and blade assembly 7 is lifted to the top of the tower, the nacelle is higher than the tower, and after the nacelle is rotated to the set angle by the jacking assembly 3, the pulling assembly 4 is arranged on the top of the tower and is connected with the nacelle, and the nacelle is rotated by the pulling assembly 4, and the nacelle and blade assembly 7 is quickly rotated to be in position and connected with the tower by the jacking assembly 3.

[0057] After the nacelle and blade assembly 7 is rotated to be in position and connected with the tower, subsequent fixing and connecting construction of the nacelle and blade assembly 7 with the tower is performed, after the construction is completed, the lifting device 2 is lowered to the bottom of the tower, and the lifting device 2 is removed by the hoisting equipment, and the installation construction of the wind turbine is completed.

[0058] Further, when the wind turbine needs to be removed, only the reverse operation of the above-mentioned wind turbine installation method is required, that is, the removal and installation of the wind turbine are performed by the same equipment, which can further reduce the cost.

[0059] The present application can complete the installation of deep-sea, large-capacity wind turbines by using the conventional wind power installation ship in the market, and has no requirements for the hub center height and nacelle weight, and is simple and convenient to install, high in efficiency, low in cost, and good in safety, which provides guidance for large-scale offshore wind power construction and has good technical popularization value. In addition, the method can be used to complete the installation of large-capacity wind turbines by using a general self-elevating platform, and has no limitations on the height and weight of the large-capacity wind turbines, and has a wide range of applications.

[0060] In another aspect, the application also provides an offshore wind turbine installation system, which comprises a lifting device, a lifting device for lifting a bottom section of the tower section 1, a lifting device 2 arranged on the side of the installed tower for lifting the next section of the tower section 1 to the top of the installed tower; and a jacking assembly 3 arranged on the side of the installed tower between the installed tower and the next section of the tower section 1, and used to rotate the tower section 1 to be in alignment with the installed tower.

[0061] Specifically, in this embodiment, the lifting device is a crane 5, and the lifting device 2 is a rack-type elevator. A track section 6 is arranged on the side of the tower section 1 along the axial direction, and after the adjacent tower sections 1 are connected, the two track sections 6 on the adjacent tower sections 1 form a continuous climbing track. The lifting device 2 is installed on the climbing track and can move along the length direction of the climbing track, thereby achieving the function of lifting the tower section 1 from the side of the installed tower at the bottom height to the top of the installed tower.

[0062] The jacking assembly 3 is installed on the lifting device 2 and rises and falls with the lifting device 2, and the jacking assembly 3 is located on the side of the lifting device 2 away from the installed tower. The jacking assembly 3 is a hydraulic cylinder, one end of which is hinged to the lifting device 2, and the other end is used to be hingedly connected to the to-be-installed tower section 1. When the to-be-installed tower section 1 is installed to the side of the installed tower by the lifting device, the tower section 1 is inverted and temporarily fixed on the lifting device 2, the jacking assembly 3 is located between the tower section 1 and the installed tower, and the jacking assembly 3 is hingedly connected to the to-be-installed tower section 1. When the lifting device 2 climbs to the top of the installed tower, the to-be-installed tower section 1 is connected to the top of the installed tower and can be rotated, the temporary fixing of the to-be-installed tower section 1 and the lifting device 2 is released, the to-be-installed tower section 1 is rotated by starting the jacking hydraulic cylinder, and the to-be-installed tower section 1 is rotated until it is in alignment with the installed tower.

[0063] Further, it also includes a pulling assembly 4 arranged on the top of the installed tower and used to pull the next section of the tower section 1 to be in alignment with the installed tower.

[0064] Specifically, when the to-be-installed tower section 1 is rotated to be in alignment with the installed tower, the tower section 1 is first rotated to be perpendicular to the installed tower, and then the pulling assembly 4 is installed on the top of the installed tower. The pulling assembly 4 also uses a pull-and-press hydraulic cylinder, and the two ends of the pull-and-press hydraulic cylinder are hingedly connected to the top of the installed tower and the bottom end of the to-be-installed tower section 1, respectively, so as to rotate the to-be-installed tower section 1 by starting the pull-and-press hydraulic cylinder to pull the to-be-installed tower section 1. The jacking assembly 3 and the pulling assembly 4 cooperate to make the to-be-installed tower section 1 rotate to be in alignment with the installed tower more quickly, thereby improving the construction efficiency.

[0065] In the description of the present application, it should be noted that the terms "upper", "lower", and the like are used to indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a particular orientation, be constructed and operated in a particular orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present application. Unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, the terms "mounting", "connecting", "connecting" should be broadly understood, for example, it can be fixedly connected, or it can be detachably connected, or integrally connected; it can be mechanically connected, or it can be electrically connected; it can be directly connected, or it can be indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, or it can be the communication between two elements inside. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms in the present application can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0066] It should be noted that in the present application, relational terms such as "first" and "second" and the like are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply that there is any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Moreover, the terms "include", "contain" or any other variant thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that the process, method, article or device including a series of elements not only includes those elements, but also includes other elements not explicitly listed or inherent to such process, method, article or device. Without more limitations, the element defined by the sentence "including a" does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the element.

[0067] The above is only a specific embodiment of the present application, which enables those skilled in the art to understand or implement the present application. Various modifications of these embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present application. Therefore, the present application will not be limited to these embodiments shown herein, but will conform to the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features applied herein.

Claims

1. A method for installing an offshore wind turbine, characterized in that, include: Hoist the tower section (1) with a predetermined number of sections at the bottom; Using a lifting device (2) located on the side of the installed tower, the next tower segment (1) that is set up upside down is lifted from the side of the installed tower to the top of the installed tower. The tower segment (1) is rotated to be aligned with the installed tower. This step is repeated until all tower segments (1) are installed. The step of rotating the tower section (1) to be aligned with the installed tower includes: rotating the tower section (1) to be perpendicular to the installed tower, and using the pulling assembly (4) located on the top of the installed tower to pull the tower section (1) to be aligned with the installed tower. When lifting the next tower segment (1) that is inverted from the side of the installed tower to the top of the installed tower, the bottom opening of the tower segment (1) is made flush with the top opening of the installed tower.

2. The offshore wind turbine installation method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of rotating the tower section (1) to be perpendicular to the installed tower includes: using a lifting assembly (3) located between the tower section (1) and the installed tower and on the side of the installed tower to lift and rotate the tower section (1) to be perpendicular to the installed tower.

3. The offshore wind turbine installation method according to claim 2, characterized in that: When the tower section (1) is pulled to dock with the installed tower using the pulling assembly (4) located on the top of the installed tower, the tower section (1) is simultaneously lifted by the lifting assembly (3) until the tower section (1) rotates to dock with the installed tower.

4. The offshore wind turbine installation method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The process continues until all tower sections (1) are installed, and then includes: lifting the inverted nacelle and blade assembly (7) from the side of the tower to the top of the tower, and rotating the nacelle and blade assembly (7) to dock with the tower.

5. The offshore wind turbine installation method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The process of rotating the nacelle and blade assembly (7) to dock with the tower includes: rotating the nacelle and blade assembly (7) to a set angle with the tower, and using the pulling assembly (4) located at the top of the tower to pull the nacelle and blade assembly (7) to dock with the tower.

6. The offshore wind turbine installation method according to claim 4, characterized in that, Before lifting the inverted nacelle and blade assembly (7) from the side of the tower to the top of the tower, the process includes assembling the nacelle and blade assembly (7) on the side of the installed tower.

7. An offshore wind turbine installation system, characterized in that, include: Lifting equipment used for hoisting tower sections (1) with a predetermined number of sections at the bottom; Lifting device (2), which is located on the side of the installed tower, is used to lift the next tower section (1) that is set up upside down to the top of the installed tower, so that the bottom opening of the tower section (1) is flush with the top opening of the installed tower. The lifting assembly (3) is located on the side of the installed tower and between the installed tower and the next tower segment (1), and is used to rotate the tower segment (1) to dock with the installed tower. A track segment (6) is provided on the side of the tower section (1) along its axial direction. After the adjacent tower sections (1) are connected, the two track segments (6) on the adjacent tower sections (1) form a continuous climbing rail. The lifting device (2) is installed on the climbing rail and can move along the length of the climbing rail.

8. The offshore wind turbine installation system according to claim 7, characterized in that: It also includes a pulling assembly (4), which is located on top of the installed tower and is used to pull the next tower segment (1) into place with the installed tower.

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