Subsea Control Umbilical Assembly Using Movable Spacers
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Solution Overview
Problem
The high cost and complexity of manufacturing subsea umbilicals, combined with the limited number of specialized manufacturers, lead to increased costs and vulnerability in offshore projects due to the need for dedicated factories and specialized equipment, making it challenging to produce and supply these critical components efficiently.
Innovation Solution
A subsea control bundle umbilical design featuring a carrier pipe with a bundle of tubes and cables supported by movable spacers, allowing for the use of abundant power and data cables and small-diameter steel alloy tubing, which can be assembled and installed using existing pipeline production facilities, reducing production costs and increasing global supply.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional umbilical manufacturing methods are used with specialized factories and continuous production lines, then manufacturing precision and reliability are improved, but device complexity and manufacturing cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The umbilical is divided into modular components (carrier pipe, functional elements, spacers, jackets) that can be manufactured separately using existing facilities and then assembled. This segmentation allows different components to be produced in different locations using different equipment, reducing the need for specialized continuous production lines while maintaining quality through standardized assembly procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention enables existing pipeline production facilities to manufacture umbilical components that were previously exclusively produced in specialized umbilical factories. The carrier pipe and functional elements can be produced using standard pipeline equipment, making the manufacturing capability universal and accessible to a broader range of facilities, thereby reducing supply chain vulnerability.
2Manufacturing precision
If dedicated specialized factories are established for umbilical production, then manufacturing precision is improved, but manufacturing cost and vulnerability to supply interruptions increase
Solution Approach 1:
Functional elements are pre-assembled into bundles with spacers before being inserted into the carrier pipe. This preliminary assembly can be performed using existing pipeline production facilities, and the modular nature of the components allows for precise assembly without requiring specialized continuous production lines. The pre-assembly approach maintains manufacturing precision while enabling broader facility accessibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The bundle of functional elements is inserted into the carrier pipe, creating a nested structure. This nesting approach allows the functional elements to be manufactured and prepared separately using existing facilities, then precisely positioned within the carrier pipe during assembly, maintaining manufacturing precision while reducing the need for specialized dedicated factories.
3Ease of manufacture
If small-diameter tubing is used to reduce cost, then manufacturing cost is reduced, but structural strength may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The umbilical employs a composite structure where small-diameter functional elements are protected and supported by the larger carrier pipe and outer jacket. The carrier pipe provides structural strength and protection to the smaller, less expensive functional element tubing, allowing the use of cost-effective small-diameter tubes while maintaining overall structural integrity through the composite design.
Solution Approach 2:
The carrier pipe acts as an intermediary structure that provides mechanical strength and protection to the small-diameter functional element tubing. This intermediary structure allows the functional elements to use smaller, less expensive tubing while the carrier pipe compensates for any strength limitations, enabling cost reduction without compromising overall umbilical strength.
Data Source
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AI summary
A subsea control bundle umbilical comprises: a carrier pipe; a bundle of elongate functional elements being tubes and/or cables that extend longitudinally within the carrier pipe; and spacers spaced apart longitudinally along the bundle. The spacers support the functional elements of the bundle and are movable longitudinally relative to the carrier pipe upon insertion during assembly, and also during installation of the umbilical and in use. As the umbilical does not convey production hydrocarbons flowing from a subsea well, any tubes within the carrier pipe have an inner diameter of no more than 70mm. Any such tubes contain only a control fluid or a service fluid for supporting production of hydrocarbons. Each spacer comprises a stack of blocks and an opening that extends along a longitudinal axis through the spacer at an interface between abutting blocks of the stack. Each opening receives a respective elongate functional element of the umbilical.