Submarine Cable Protection Assembly to Prevent Overbending and Drop
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing submarine cable protection devices for offshore wind farms, particularly those with a bend limiter and J-shaped pipe, are prone to damage and failure due to non-rigid connections and structural weaknesses, leading to dropped components and ineffective protection against wave and current actions.
Innovation Solution
A submarine cable protection device comprising a traction assembly, standard bending protection section, and protection reinforcement section with high-strength polyurethane and reinforcement fibers or steel wires, which is assembled and fixed using a traction rope and retaining ring to prevent overbending and dropping, ensuring secure installation on a single pile foundation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a bend limiter with latch is used for bored single pile foundation, then the submarine cable protection device can be installed, but the device is prone to damage and dropping during installation and operation
Solution Approach 1:
The protection device is divided into multiple sections including a standard bending protection section and a protection reinforcement section, with the reinforcement section providing enhanced stability in the critical transition zone while maintaining installation convenience through modular assembly
Solution Approach 2:
The protection reinforcement section is specifically positioned at the bent section from submarine mud surface to wind turbine foundation where damage is most likely to occur, providing localized enhanced protection without compromising the entire device's installation ease
2Ease of operation
If a non-rigid connection is used between bend limiter and wind turbine foundation, then the device can be easily installed, but the entire device is likely to drop from the foundation under wave and current action
Solution Approach 1:
The protection reinforcement section uses composite structure with high-strength polyurethane outer wall and internal reinforcement fibers/steel wires, creating a material composite that provides both installation flexibility and connection strength to resist wave and current forces
3Strength
If the protection reinforcement section is made with high-strength polyurethane and reinforcement fibers, then the stress performance is enhanced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The reinforcement fibers and steel wires are nested within the high-strength polyurethane matrix in the protection reinforcement section, creating a composite structure that enhances stress performance while maintaining a unified, relatively simple external form
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
The solution effectively prevents the breaking and dropping of submarine cable protection devices, ensuring safe operation by providing enhanced stress performance and secure fixation, facilitating easy installation and maintenance with a reduced number of parts.
Implementation Method 1
the protection reinforcement section has an outer wall covered with high-strength polyurethane, and is internally provided with reinforcement fibers and/or steel wires to enhance the stress performance of the protection reinforcement section
Implementation Method 2
enabling a retaining ring at a rear end of the protection reinforcement section to abut against an outer wall of the reserved hole
Implementation Method 3
turning on a traction device for the single pile foundation to enable the submarine cable and the submarine cable protection device to pass through a reserved hole of the single pile foundation
Data Source
AI summary
A method for protecting a novel anti-drop submarine cable includes: assembling a traction assembly, a standard bending protection section and a protection reinforcement section sequentially to form a submarine-cable-protection device, and a submarine cable passing through it; connecting a traction rope of the traction assembly to a reserved traction rope pre-buried in a single pile foundation, and enabling the submarine cable and the submarine-cable-protection device by a traction device passing through a reserved hole of the foundation; moving the assembled sets forward until the traction rope is lifted and unmovable, enabling a retaining ring of the protection reinforcement section to abut against the reserved hole, installing the traction rope on the foundation by shackles; pulling the reserved traction rope to a proper length, fixing the submarine cable to installation base. The safety is ensured by avoiding dropping of the submarine-cable-protection device, and ensures the overbending protection of the submarine cable.