Ship Fluid Transfer Mast Guide Element for Emergency Disconnection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing systems for transferring liquefied natural gas between ships are complex, costly, and unsafe due to heavy emergency disconnection elements and hydraulic control circuits, and they struggle with flexible pipe alignment and premature disconnection issues.
Innovation Solution
A fluid transfer system featuring a mast with a guide element and emergency disconnection connecting devices that automatically separate when a threshold force is applied, eliminating the need for hydraulic control circuits and allowing for various configurations, with a braking device to control the rate of flexible pipe fall during disconnection.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If emergency disconnection connecting elements are made heavy to ensure safety and reliability, then the safety and reliability improve, but the complexity of maneuvering flexible pipes increases and connection operations take longer
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a guide element as an intermediary component between the flexible pipe and the mast. This guide element features a convex guide surface that directs the flexible pipe during disconnection operations, making it easier to maneuver the heavy emergency disconnection connecting elements without compromising safety.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the hydraulic control circuit system with a purely mechanical guide element system. The convex guide surface uses geometric constraints and force direction rather than hydraulic actuators to control the disconnection process, simplifying the overall system while maintaining reliability.
2Reliability
If hydraulic control circuits are added to control emergency disconnection means, then the control precision and reliability improve, but the cost and complexity of the transfer system increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent substitutes the hydraulic control circuit with a mechanical guide element that uses a convex guide surface. This surface passively guides the flexible pipe during disconnection through geometric constraints, eliminating the need for complex hydraulic control systems while maintaining reliable emergency disconnection functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide element operates autonomously without requiring external control systems. The convex guide surface automatically directs the flexible pipe along the correct path during disconnection operations, making the system self-regulating and eliminating the need for hydraulic control circuits.
3Reliability
If emergency disconnection connecting devices are positioned to handle pulling forces, then the reliability of disconnection improves, but premature disconnection occurs when subjected to pulling forces not in the separation direction
Solution Approach 1:
The guide element acts as an intermediary that filters and directs forces. The convex guide surface ensures that only forces applied in the correct direction (along the separation axis) can trigger disconnection, while absorbing or redirecting misaligned pulling forces that would otherwise cause premature disconnection.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide element provides localized force direction at the specific point where the flexible pipe contacts the convex guide surface. This localized geometric constraint ensures that the emergency disconnection connecting device only responds to properly directed separation forces rather than arbitrary pulling forces from any direction.
4Manufacturing precision
If flexible pipes are aligned for one particular manifold position, then the connection precision improves, but the adaptability to various facility configurations decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The guide element provides dynamic adaptability through its convex guide surface geometry. As the mast and flexible pipe move during operation, the guide surface continuously adjusts the force direction to maintain proper alignment, allowing the system to adapt to various manifold positions and facility configurations while maintaining connection precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide element with its convex guide surface serves multiple functions: it guides the flexible pipe during connection, directs forces during disconnection, and adapts to different manifold positions. This single component provides universal functionality that works across various facility configurations without requiring separate alignment mechanisms for each configuration.
Data Source
AI summary
A system for transferring fluid between a ship and a facility has a mast with a proximal end pivotally mounted on a deck of the ship and a distal end, a fluid-transfer line extending along the mast, a flexible pipe with a first end connected to the fluid-transfer line and a second end connected to a manifold of the facility, the flexible pipe being equipped with a connecting device having an emergency cut-off comprising two elements which are capable of automatically separating in a separation direction, when a separating force which is above a threshold is exerted, and a guide element supported by the mast, and comprising a convex surface for guiding the flexible pipe which is capable of absorbing a pulling force of the flexible pipe such that this force is exerted on the connecting device having an emergency cut-off in the separation direction.