Polygonal Load-Bearing Tanks for Precise Membrane Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
The construction of liquefied gas storage facilities with regular polygonal load-bearing structures is hindered by dimensional deviations from the ideal shape, complicating the alignment and connection of sealing membranes, which affects mechanical strength and thermal insulation.
Innovation Solution
The facility design ensures precise azimuth angle alignment between rows of insulating wall modules on vertical panels, using adjustment elements to compensate for structural deviations, and employs a marking out method to achieve high-precision alignment of corrugations in the sealing membranes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If dimensional tolerances are applied to the regular polygonal load-bearing structure, then manufacturing feasibility is improved, but alignment precision of sealing membrane corrugations deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The invention changes the parameter of azimuth angle alignment to be independent of the load-bearing structure's geometric dimensions. By defining the azimuth angle offset purely in terms of the number of vertical panels N (360°/N) rather than relying on physical measurements of the polygonal structure, the system achieves precise corrugation alignment despite dimensional tolerances in the concrete load-bearing structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention segments the alignment problem into two independent components: the geometric positioning of vertical panels (which can have tolerances) and the azimuth angle positioning of insulating wall modules (which requires precision). By decoupling these through the formulaic azimuth angle definition, each can be optimized independently.
2Reliability
If azimuth angle alignment is made independent of load-bearing structure dimensions, then corrugation connection continuity is improved, but dependency on ideal geometric shape is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The invention transforms the alignment parameter from a geometric measurement (dependent on ideal polygon shape) to a topological parameter (based on panel numbering and azimuth angle formula). This makes the system reliable even when the load-bearing structure deviates from ideal geometry due to manufacturing tolerances.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention accepts that the ideal geometric reference (perfect regular polygon) is a theoretical construct that cannot be physically realized. Instead, it uses a simpler, more robust reference system based on panel identification and angular calculation, which is easier to implement and more tolerant of real-world variations.
Data Source
AI summary
A liquefied gas storage facility has a sealed and thermally-insulating tank. A bottom wall of the tank includes a plurality of angular sectors which are images of each other through rotation by a predetermined angle about a vertical axis, the predetermined angle being equal to k.360°/N, where k is a positive integer. A vertical wall of the tank has a vertical row of planar insulating wall modules disposed on each vertical load-bearing section of a load-bearing structure of the tank. An azimuthal angular deviation with respect to said vertical axis between two rows of planar insulating wall modules disposed on two adjacent vertical load-bearing sections is equal to 360°/N, preferably with an accuracy better than 5 mm.