Inner tank support system for spherical liquefied hydrogen tank

Abstract

The present invention provides an inner tank support system for a spherical liquefied hydrogen tank, which exerts a stable supporting force against horizontal, vertical, and torsional loads of an inner tank from the side of an outer tank, suppresses the generation of concentrated load of a support connection portion, and minimizes thermal loss from an inner tank support means. According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the inner tank support system for a spherical liquefied hydrogen tank, for supporting an inner tank in an outer tank supported on the ground via support pillars, comprises: inner tank upper and lower pin brackets which are located respectively on upper and lower portions on the basis of the equator of the spherical liquefied hydrogen tank and are circularly arranged with certain intervals on the outer surface of the inner tank in a circumferential direction; outer tank upper and lower pin brackets which are located on upper and lower portions on the basis of the equator line of the spherical liquefied hydrogen tank and are circularly arranged and fused on the inner surface of the outer tank with the same arrangement interval as the inner tank upper and lower pin brackets in the circumferential direction; vertical tie bars which each have one end coupled to the outer tank upper pin bracket via a pin and the other end coupled to the inner tank lower pin bracket via a pin and are arranged in the longitudinal direction and circularly arranged in the circumferential direction; upper horizontal sway bars which each have one end coupled to the inner tank upper pin bracket via a pin and the other end coupled to the outer tank upper pin bracket via a pin and are connected in the shape of a polygonal closed curve; and lower horizontal sway bars which each have one end coupled to the inner tank lower pin bracket via a pin and the other end coupled to the outer tank lower pin bracket via a pin and are connected in the shape of a polygonal closed curve.

Description

Internal support system of a spherical liquefied hydrogen tank

[0001] The present invention relates to an inner tank support system of a spherical liquefied hydrogen tank, and more particularly, to an inner tank support system of a spherical liquefied hydrogen tank that can stably support horizontal, vertical, and torsional loads of the inner tank from the outer tank side, prevent concentrated loads from occurring at a support connection, and minimize heat loss of the inner tank support means.

[0002] Liquid hydrogen tanks are containers for storing cryogenic liquids at -253℃. To block heat inflow from the external atmosphere into the liquid hydrogen, the tanks are constructed with two layers: an inner tank and an outer tank. Furthermore, the structure allows for insulation to be filled into the annular space between the inner and outer tanks. The two spherical tanks are each supported by their own supports. While the outer tank is supported on the ground via support columns, the inner tank is supported by directly connecting the supports to the inner and outer tanks rather than to the external ground.

[0003] Meanwhile, liquefied hydrogen tanks are steel plate containers made of stainless steel, and they undergo thermal contraction / expansion movements depending on the temperature. Due to their structure, each tank (inner / outer tank) has significantly different temperatures of the fluid it comes into contact with, which in turn results in differences in the amount of contraction / expansion. For example, the inner tank is in contact with ultra-low temperature liquefied hydrogen, while the outer tank is in contact with the outside air. Therefore, the inner tank support system connecting the two tanks must be designed to take into account the variation in displacement due to temperature. However, existing technologies do not consider an appropriate system that can offset this difference in displacement, resulting in stress concentration at the support points of the two tanks during operation.

[0004] Furthermore, existing technologies do not provide resistance to upward or rotational movements that can occur due to dynamic loads such as earthquakes, making them unsuitable as support systems in areas prone to high seismic intensity. Therefore, technological alternatives are needed to prevent concentrated loads on supports and connections caused by differential thermal displacement between the inner and outer structures.

[0005] The background technology of the present invention is Korean Patent No. 10-2315489 (Patent Document 1), which proposes a "liquefied hydrogen storage tank." This tank includes an inner and outer spherical tank, a support means for supporting the inner spherical tank, and a horizontal fixing means, thereby enhancing insulation and minimizing heat loss.

[0006] Another technology that serves as the background for the present invention is Korean Patent Registration No. 10-1744223 (Patent Document 2), which proposes an 'internal support structure for an LNG storage tank for a ship'. This is a structure for supporting an inner tank of an LNG storage tank including a cylindrical outer tank and an inner tank, comprising: a sliding main supporter installed on one side of the bottom of the outer tank to fix the center of the bottom surface of the inner tank and having a long sliding groove formed in the longitudinal direction of the inner tank; a fixed main supporter installed on the other side of the bottom of the outer tank to fix the center of the bottom surface of the inner tank and having a circular groove formed; and a sub-supporter installed on the bottom of the outer tank to support the bottom surface of the inner tank; wherein the bottom surface of the inner tank is not fixed to the sub-supporter, so that when the inner tank expands and contracts due to temperature changes caused by storage and discharge of LNG, expansion and contraction in the circumferential direction and longitudinal direction of the inner tank is not restricted.

[0007] However, the aforementioned background technologies do not consider an appropriate system for the inner tank support system connecting the two tanks (inner and outer tanks) to compensate for temperature-related displacement variations. This can lead to stress concentrations at the support points of the two tanks during operation. Furthermore, they do not provide resistance to upward or rotational movements that can occur due to dynamic loads such as earthquakes, resulting in inadequate support in areas with high seismic intensity.

[0008] The purpose of the present invention is to provide an inner tank support system for a spherical liquid hydrogen tank that can stably support horizontal, vertical and torsional loads of the inner tank from the outer tank side, prevent concentrated loads from occurring at the support connection, and minimize heat loss of the inner tank support means.

[0009] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an inner tank support system for a spherical liquefied hydrogen tank for supporting an inner tank inside an outer tank supported on the ground via support columns, the system comprising: upper and lower pin brackets for the inner tank, respectively positioned above and below the equator of the spherical liquefied hydrogen tank and fixed in a circular arrangement with a predetermined spacing in a circumferential direction on the outer surface of the inner tank; upper and lower pin brackets for the outer tank, respectively positioned above and below the equator of the spherical liquefied hydrogen tank and fixed in a circular arrangement with the same spacing as the upper and lower pin brackets for the inner tank in a circumferential direction on the inner surface of the outer tank; a vertical tie bar, one end of which is pin-connected to the upper pin bracket for the outer tank and the other end of which is pin-connected to the lower pin bracket for the inner tank and arranged longitudinally so as to be circularly arranged in a circumferential direction; an upper horizontal sway bar, one end of which is pin-connected to the upper pin bracket for the inner tank and the other end of which is pin-connected to the upper pin bracket for the outer tank and connected in a polygonal closed curve shape; It is characterized by including a lower horizontal sway bar, one end of which is pin-connected to a lower pin bracket for internal use and the other end of which is pin-connected to a lower pin bracket for external use, and connected in a polygonal closed curve shape.

[0010] In addition, the upper pin bracket for the inner tank is provided with an inner tank side horizontal wing having a sway bar coupling pin hole for pin-coupling an end of an upper horizontal sway bar, and the lower pin bracket for the inner tank includes an inner tank side vertical plate having a tie bar coupling pin hole for pin-coupling an end of a vertical tie bar, and an inner tank side horizontal wing having a sway bar coupling pin hole for pin-coupling an end of a lower horizontal sway bar, which are joined in a right angle direction to each of both sides of the inner tank side vertical plate.

[0011] In addition, the upper pin bracket for the outer tank includes an outer tank side vertical plate having a tie bar coupling pin hole for pin-coupling an end of a vertical tie bar, and an outer tank side horizontal wing having a sway bar coupling pin hole for pin-coupling an end of an upper horizontal sway bar, which is joined in a right angle direction to each of both sides of the outer tank side vertical plate, and the lower pin bracket for the outer tank is characterized in that it includes an outer tank side horizontal wing having a sway bar coupling pin hole for pin-coupling an end of a lower horizontal sway bar.

[0012] In addition, the vertical tie bar is characterized by including a first rod having a first pinhole at one end and a first screw portion at the other end, a second rod having a second pinhole at one end and a second screw portion at the other end, and a turnbuckle having one end screwed to the first screw portion and the other end screwed to the second screw portion to finely adjust the center distance between the first pinhole and the second pinhole depending on the direction of rotation.

[0013] Additionally, the upper horizontal sway bar and the lower horizontal sway bar are characterized by being installed in positions such that they are aligned with each other when viewed from a flat surface.

[0014] Additionally, the upper horizontal sway bar and the lower horizontal sway bar are characterized by being installed in a position such that they intersect each other when viewed from a plane.

[0015] According to the inner tank support system of the spherical liquefied hydrogen tank of the present invention, the horizontal load of the inner tank is resisted by the upper and lower horizontal sway bars installed in two rows, and the vertical load of the inner tank is stably supported on the outer tank side by the vertical tie bars arranged in a circular manner in the circumferential direction. In addition, the geometrical installation structure of the upper and lower horizontal sway bars and vertical tie bars arranged in two rows enables the outer tank side to stably support the torsional load. In addition, the upper and lower horizontal sway bars and vertical tie bars have a pin joint structure, which can suppress the occurrence of concentrated load at the support connection portion and minimize the heat loss of the inner tank support means.

[0016] The following drawings attached to this specification illustrate preferred embodiments of the present invention and, together with the detailed description of the invention, serve to further understand the technical idea of ​​the present invention, and therefore, the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited to the matters described in the attached drawings.

[0017] Figure 1 is a configuration diagram of an internal support system of a spherical liquid hydrogen tank according to the present invention.

[0018] Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of Figure 1.

[0019] Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of Figure 2.

[0020] Fig. 4a is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC of Fig. 2.

[0021] Figure 4b is an enlarged view of a portion of Figure 4a.

[0022] Figure 5a is a front view of the upper and lower pin brackets for the inner chamber applied to the present invention.

[0023] Figure 5b is a side view of Figure 5a.

[0024] Figure 5c is a plan view of Figure 5a.

[0025] Figure 6a is a front view of the upper and lower pin brackets for the outer case applied to the present invention.

[0026] Figure 6b is a side view of Figure 6a.

[0027] Figure 6c is a plan view of Figure 6a.

[0028] Figure 7 is a diagram showing the installation status of the upper and lower horizontal sway bars applied to the present invention.

[0029] Figures 8a and 8b are a front view and a plan view of a vertical tie bar applied to the present invention.

[0030] Below, the present invention is described in detail with reference to embodiments presented in the attached drawings, but the presented embodiments are exemplary for a clear understanding of the present invention and the present invention is not limited thereto.

[0031] The present invention provides an inner tank support system of a spherical liquid hydrogen tank (10) for supporting an inner tank (14) inside an outer tank (12) supported on the ground via support columns (16) as shown in FIG. 1. In particular, the present invention supports the inner tank (14) by installing vertical tie bars (20) arranged in a circle in the space (annular space) between the outer tank (12) and the inner tank (14) and upper and lower horizontal sway bars (30, 32) arranged in two rows as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. At this time, the vertical tie bar (20) supports the vertical load of the inner tank (14), and the upper and lower horizontal sway bars (30, 32) arranged in two rows are designed to resist the horizontal load of the inner tank (14). Here, the horizontal load refers to a seismic load generated during an earthquake. In addition, the vertical tie bar (20) and the upper and lower horizontal sway bars (30, 32) arranged in two rows are installed by hinge-joining the upper and lower pin brackets (16a, 16b) for the inner tank and the upper and lower pin brackets (18a, 18b) for the outer tank in a pin type, thereby preventing the occurrence of concentrated load at the connection part due to the differential thermal displacement of the inner and outer tanks. In addition, the vertical tie bar (20) and the upper and lower horizontal sway bars (30, 32) can maximize the insulation function by minimizing the contact area with the inner and outer tanks due to the pin joint. In addition, the geometric arrangement structure of the vertical tie bar (20) and the upper and lower horizontal sway bars (30, 32) arranged in two rows can efficiently exert strength against the torsional load generated in the inner tank (14).

[0032] The upper and lower pin brackets (16a, 16b) for the inner tank are respectively positioned at the upper and lower portions with respect to the equator (X) of the spherical liquid hydrogen tank (10) and are arranged in a circular manner at regular intervals in the circumferential direction on the outer surface of the inner tank (14). In this embodiment, the upper and lower pin brackets (16a, 16b) for the inner tank are installed at 3.214° intervals, and 112 are installed in the circumferential direction, but the present invention is not limited to such angles or numbers.

[0033] As shown in FIGS. 5a to 5c, the inner tank upper pin bracket (16a) is provided with an inner tank side horizontal wing (162) having a sway bar coupling pin hole (162a) for pin-coupling the end of the upper horizontal sway bar (30). The inner tank lower pin bracket (16b) includes an inner tank side vertical plate (161) having a tie bar coupling pin hole (161a) for pin-coupling the end of the vertical tie bar (20), and an inner tank side horizontal wing (162) having a sway bar coupling pin hole (162a) for pin-coupling the end of the lower horizontal sway bar (32) by being joined at right angles to each of both sides of the inner tank side vertical plate (161).

[0034] The upper and lower pin brackets (18a, 18b) for the outer tank are positioned above and below the equator (X) of the spherical liquid hydrogen tank (10), and are arranged in a circle on the inner surface of the outer tank (12) with the same arrangement interval as the upper and lower pin brackets (16a, 16b) for the inner tank in the circumferential direction. Accordingly, in the present embodiment, the upper and lower pin brackets (18a, 18b) for the outer tank are installed at the same interval of 3.214°, and 112 are installed in the circumferential direction, but the present invention is not limited to such angles or numbers.

[0035] As shown in FIGS. 6a to 6c, the upper pin bracket (18a) for the outer tank includes an outer tank side vertical plate (181) having a tie bar coupling pin hole (181a) for pin-coupling the end of a vertical tie bar (20), and an outer tank side horizontal wing (182) having a sway bar coupling pin hole (182a) for pin-coupling the end of an upper horizontal sway bar (30) which is joined at right angles to both sides of the outer tank side vertical plate (181). The lower pin bracket (18b) for the outer tank includes an outer tank side horizontal wing (182) having a sway bar coupling pin hole (182a) for pin-coupling the end of a lower horizontal sway bar (32).

[0036] The vertical tie bar (20) is pin-connected at one end to the upper pin bracket (18a) for the outer tank and at the other end to the lower pin bracket (16b) for the inner tank, and is arranged longitudinally so that it can be installed in a circular arrangement in the circumferential direction. Accordingly, the outer tank (12) stably and balancedly supports the load of the inner tank (14) around the entire circumference by means of the vertical tie bar (20).

[0037] Meanwhile, as shown in FIGS. 8a and 8b, the vertical tie bar (20) may be configured to include a first rod (201) having a first pin hole (201a) at one end and a first screw portion (201b) at the other end for convenience of installation and adjustment of the horizontal support force of the inner tank (14), a second rod (202) having a second pin hole (202a) at one end and a second screw portion (202b) at the other end, and a turnbuckle (203) having one end screwed to the first screw portion (201b) and the other end screwed to the second screw portion (202b) to finely adjust the center distance between the first pin hole (201a) and the second pin hole (202a) depending on the rotational operation direction. At this time, the first screw portion (201b) and the second screw portion (202b) are screwed to the turnbuckle (203) with different screw directions. Accordingly, the center distance between the first pinhole (201a) and the second pinhole (202a) can be adjusted according to the rotational operation direction of the turnbuckle (203), making it easy to align the center of the inner tube (14) with the center of the outer tube (12).

[0038] The upper horizontal sway bar (30) is connected in a polygonal closed curve shape by having one end pin-connected to the inner upper pin bracket (16a) and the other end pin-connected to the outer upper pin bracket (18a). At this time, one end of the upper horizontal sway bar (30) is connected through a pin connected to a sway bar connecting pin hole (162a) formed in the inner horizontal wing (162) of the inner upper pin bracket (16a). In addition, the other end of the upper horizontal sway bar (30) is connected through a pin connected to a sway bar connecting pin hole (182a) formed in the outer horizontal wing (182) of the outer upper pin bracket (18a) of the outer outer.

[0039] The lower horizontal sway bar (32) is connected in a polygonal closed curve shape by having one end pin-connected to the inner lower pin bracket (16b) and the other end pin-connected to the outer lower pin bracket (18b). At this time, one end of the lower horizontal sway bar (32) is connected through a pin connected to a sway bar connecting pin hole (162a) formed in the inner horizontal wing (162) of the inner lower pin bracket (16b). In addition, the other end of the lower horizontal sway bar (32) is connected through a pin connected to a sway bar connecting pin hole (182a) formed in the outer horizontal wing (182) of the outer lower pin bracket (18b) of the outer outer tank.

[0040] In this way, in the present invention, the inner tank (14) is horizontally supported in two rows by an upper horizontal sway bar (30) and a lower horizontal sway bar (32) respectively arranged at the upper and lower portions based on the equator line (X) of the spherical liquid hydrogen tank (10), thereby efficiently exerting strength against the torsional load generated in the inner tank (14).

[0041] Here, the upper horizontal sway bar (30) and the lower horizontal sway bar (32) can be installed in positions where they are aligned with each other when viewed from a plane, or can be installed in positions where they intersect each other as shown in Fig. 7.

[0042] While the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the presented embodiments, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications and variations can be made without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention. The present invention is not limited by such modifications and variations, but is instead limited by the appended claims.

[0043] According to the inner tank support system of the spherical liquefied hydrogen tank of the present invention, the horizontal load of the inner tank is resisted by the upper and lower horizontal sway bars installed in two rows, and the vertical load of the inner tank is stably supported on the outer tank side by the vertical tie bars arranged in a circular manner in the circumferential direction. In addition, the geometrical installation structure of the upper and lower horizontal sway bars and vertical tie bars arranged in two rows enables stable support force to be exerted on the outer tank side against the torsional load. In addition, the upper and lower horizontal sway bars and vertical tie bars have a pin joint structure, which can suppress the occurrence of concentrated load at the support connection portion and minimize heat loss of the inner tank support means, making it a very useful invention.

Claims

1. An inner tank support system of a spherical liquid hydrogen tank (10) for supporting an inner tank (14) inside an outer tank (12) supported on the ground through a support pillar (16), Upper and lower pin brackets (16a, 16b) for the inner tank are arranged in a circle at regular intervals in the circumferential direction on the outer surface of the inner tank (14) and are respectively located at the upper and lower portions based on the equator line (X) of the old liquid hydrogen tank (10); Upper and lower pin brackets (18a, 18b) for the outer tank are arranged in a circular arrangement with the same arrangement interval as the upper and lower pin brackets (16a, 16b) for the inner tank in the circumferential direction on the inner surface of the outer tank (12) based on the equator line (X) of the old liquefied hydrogen tank (10); A vertical tie bar (20) that is arranged in a circular arrangement in the circumferential direction, with one end pin-connected to an upper pin bracket (18a) for outer use and the other end pin-connected to a lower pin bracket (16b) for inner use, and arranged in a longitudinal direction; An upper horizontal sway bar (30) having one end pin-connected to an upper pin bracket (16a) for internal use and the other end pin-connected to an upper pin bracket (18a) for external use, and connected in a polygonal closed curve shape; An inner tank support system of a spherical liquid hydrogen tank, characterized by including a lower horizontal sway bar (32) which is pin-connected at one end to an inner tank lower pin bracket (16b) and at the other end to an outer tank lower pin bracket (18b) and connected in a polygonal closed curve shape.

2. In paragraph 1, An inner tank support system for a spherical liquid hydrogen tank, characterized in that the inner tank upper pin bracket (16a) is provided with an inner tank side horizontal wing (162) having a sway bar coupling pin hole (162a) for pin-coupling an end of an upper horizontal sway bar (30), the inner tank lower pin bracket (16b) includes an inner tank side vertical plate (161) having a tie bar coupling pin hole (161a) for pin-coupling an end of a vertical tie bar (20), and an inner tank side horizontal wing (162) having a sway bar coupling pin hole (162a) for pin-coupling an end of a lower horizontal sway bar (32) that is joined in a right angle direction to both sides of the inner tank side vertical plate (161).

3. In paragraph 1, An inner tank support system for a spherical liquid hydrogen tank, characterized in that an outer tank upper pin bracket (18a) includes an outer tank side vertical plate (181) having a tie bar coupling pin hole (181a) for pin-coupling an end of a vertical tie bar (20), an outer tank side horizontal wing (182) which is joined in a right angle direction to both sides of the outer tank side vertical plate (181) and has a sway bar coupling pin hole (182a) for pin-coupling an end of an upper horizontal sway bar (30), and an outer tank lower pin bracket (18b) includes an outer tank side horizontal wing (182) having a sway bar coupling pin hole (182a) for pin-coupling an end of a lower horizontal sway bar (32).

4. In paragraph 1, The vertical tie bar (20) A first rod (201) having a first pinhole (201a) at one end and a first screw portion (201b) at the other end, A second rod (202) having a second pinhole (202a) at one end and a second screw portion (202b) at the other end, An internal support system for a spherical liquid hydrogen tank, characterized in that it includes a turnbuckle (203) that is screw-connected at one end to a first screw portion (201b) and at the other end to a second screw portion (202b) and that finely adjusts the center distance between a first pin hole (201a) and a second pin hole (202a) depending on the direction of rotation.

5. In paragraph 1, An internal support system for a spherical liquid hydrogen tank, characterized in that the upper horizontal sway bar (30) and the lower horizontal sway bar (32) are installed in positions such that they are aligned with each other when viewed from a plane.

6. In paragraph 1, An internal support system for a spherical liquid hydrogen tank, characterized in that the upper horizontal sway bar (30) and the lower horizontal sway bar (32) are installed at positions such that they intersect each other when viewed from a plane.

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