Marine Installation Cable for Wear Element Transfer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing methods for installing wear elements on risers underwater either require costly prolonged use of installation vessels with ROVs or expose risers to damage from vessel movement.
Innovation Solution
A marine installation system using a transportation cable anchored to the seabed, allowing wear elements to be slid along the cable from a vessel-based crane to the riser, utilizing ROVs for attachment and installation without necessitating vessel shutdown or exposure to potential damage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a vessel crane is used to deploy wear elements to working ROVs, then the vessel must be located close to the worksite to limit the need for flying elements, but this requires full shutdown of all risers exposed to vessel impact from drift-off or drive-off
Solution Approach 1:
A transportation cable is introduced as an intermediary mechanism to move wear elements from the vessel crane to the ROV worksite. The cable is anchored to the seabed at a location远离 the vessel's impact zone, allowing element transport without requiring the vessel to be in close proximity to the risers during the actual installation operation.
Solution Approach 2:
The installation process is segmented into distinct phases: (1) positioning the vessel crane, (2) deploying the transportation cable anchored to the seabed, (3) transferring wear elements along the cable to the ROV, and (4) completing the installation. This segmentation allows the vessel to be positioned optimally for crane operations while the ROV performs the actual installation without vessel impact risk.
2Reliability
If a vessel is located outside the area where risers are exposed to vessel impact, then elements can be flown in by ROV, but this requires using an installation vessel with working ROVs on location for extremely long times, which is costly
Solution Approach 1:
The transportation cable is deployed and anchored to the seabed in advance, creating a pre-established transport pathway. This preliminary action allows the vessel crane to position itself optimally and then efficiently transfer wear elements along the pre-positioned cable to the ROV, reducing the overall installation time compared to direct crane-to-ROV deployment without cable anchoring.
3Ease of operation
If wear elements are transported along a transportation cable anchored to the seabed, then the vessel can be positioned optimally for crane operations, but the cable must be managed through the water column from the surface to the seabed
Solution Approach 1:
The transportation cable serves as an intermediary structure that simplifies the complex coordination between the vessel crane and the ROV worksite. By anchoring the cable to the seabed, it creates a stable, pre-positioned transport pathway that eliminates the need for real-time cable deployment and management during the critical installation operation.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This method enables efficient and cost-effective installation of wear elements on risers, reducing the risk of vessel impact damage and minimizing downtime, thus ensuring continuous production of hydrocarbons and other resources.
Implementation Method 1
allowing wear elements to slide along the cable from a vessel-based crane to the riser
Implementation Method 2
The cable 22 has an inclination in the vertical plane to allow sliding of wear elements 14 along the cable 22 either by negative or positive submerged weight
Data Source
AI summary
A marine installation system for installing an item on a riser includes a cable extending between two supporting points, the cable being inclined relative to the horizontal; a first ROV arranged to mount the item on the cable at a first position; and a second ROV arranged to remove the item from the cable at a second position, and to install the item on the riser.