Steam-Air Liner Assembly for Pipeline Curing Through Bends
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for installing liners in pipelines, such as excavation and 'cure-in-place' techniques, face challenges like high costs, time consumption, and difficulties with navigating transitional areas like bends and fittings, necessitating a more efficient and effective method for pipeline repair and reinforcement.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a liner assembly with an outer tubular liner and an inner inflatable bladder, where the bladder is expanded with a steam-air mixture to ensure firm contact with the pipeline surface, allowing continuous flow for curing, and then deflated for retrieval, along with a portable steam generator to control temperature and pressure for efficient curing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If excavation methods are used to install liners in pipelines, then the liner can be replaced or repaired, but the process becomes expensive, time consuming and disruptive
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the liner from the pipeline for off-site preparation (impregnation with curable compound) and then reinstalls it using a portable steam generator, avoiding the need for continuous excavation and reducing installation time while maintaining repair capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a portable steam generator as an intermediary device that can be positioned outside the pipeline to deliver steam through the liner, enabling curing without requiring excavation access points
2Ease of operation
If push-rods are used to move the liner along the pipeline, then the liner can be positioned, but transitional areas like bends and fittings create significant delivery problems
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces the mechanical push-rod system with a steam delivery system that can flexibly navigate bends and fittings, as steam naturally follows the pipeline contour without requiring mechanical pushing through transitions
3Productivity
If a winch and cable system is used to pull the liner along the pipeline, then the liner can be delivered to the desired location, but the equipment size and environmental impact increase
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the heavy winch and cable equipment from the installation process, replacing it with a portable steam generator that can be positioned outside the pipeline, significantly reducing equipment size and environmental impact while maintaining delivery efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces steam as an intermediary medium that can be delivered through flexible hoses to the liner, replacing the need for mechanical pulling equipment and reducing overall system complexity
4Manufacturing precision
If the liner is inflated with traditional methods, then contact with the pipeline surface is achieved, but consistent curing conditions and controlled temperature/pressure are difficult to maintain
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges the inflation function with the steam delivery function, so that the same steam that inflates the liner also provides the curing heat, ensuring consistent temperature and pressure conditions throughout the curing process
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements continuous steam flow through the liner during inflation and curing, maintaining constant temperature and pressure conditions without interruption, which ensures uniform curing throughout the liner material
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 reduces installation time, increases throughput, and allows for consistent curing conditions, enabling efficient repair and reinforcement of pipelines, including vertically-oriented sections, while minimizing equipment size and environmental impact.
Implementation Method 1
introducing steam into the inflatable bladder so that the inflatable bladder expands
Implementation Method 2
maintaining the liner assembly at a temperature sufficient for the curable compound to cure
Implementation Method 3
the tubular liner to cure
Data Source
AI summary
A steam generator for use with a liner assembly for pipeline repair or reinforcement, includes: a water heater configured to heat water to generate steam; a water feed conduit configured to convey water to the water heater; an air heater configured to generate heated air; an air supply conduit configured to convey pressurized air to the air heater; a heated air supply conduit configured to convey heated air from the air heater to the water heater to yield a steam-air mixture; and an output conduit configured to convey the steam-air mixture from the water heater. An automated steam generator system including the steam generator is also described.