High Voltage Swivel Stacked Ring Conductor Debris Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing high voltage swivels for offshore applications face issues with debris-induced short circuits due to wear, requiring disassembly for maintenance, and have limitations in weight, alignment, and electrical contact efficiency.
Innovation Solution
The design features insulator members at a mutual distance in the circumferential direction, forming open conductor stacks that allow insulating oil to flow and prevent debris trapping, with support members for stable alignment and easy assembly/disassembly, and spring plates for even force distribution and optimal contact.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If solid annular insulator rings fully surround the conductors, then electrical insulation is improved, but debris can be trapped between conductors and insulators causing short circuits
Solution Approach 1:
The continuous solid insulator ring is segmented into multiple spaced-apart insulator members arranged in a stack. This segmentation creates gaps between insulator members that allow debris to escape, preventing debris accumulation while maintaining electrical insulation. The insulator members are positioned at axially spaced-apart locations along the conductor, providing both insulation and debris ejection pathways.
Solution Approach 2:
The insulator stack creates a porous-like structure with intentional gaps between insulator members. This allows the insulator assembly to perform dual functions: providing electrical insulation while simultaneously allowing fluid and debris passage. The gaps act as ejection pathways for wear debris, preventing it from becoming trapped between conductors and insulators.
2Reliability
If conductors are embedded in solid insulator rings, then electrical insulation is improved, but maintenance requires complete disassembly of the swivel
Solution Approach 1:
The conductor-insulator assembly is segmented into modular units that can be independently removed. Each conductor is associated with its own insulator members, forming separable modules. This modular segmentation allows maintenance personnel to access and replace individual conductor-insulator units without disassembling the entire swivel assembly, significantly improving maintenance accessibility while maintaining insulation integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The conductor is nested within the insulator members, with the conductor positioned centrally among the spaced-apart insulator components. This nested arrangement allows the inner conductor module to be extracted as a unit from the outer housing, enabling easy removal and replacement of conductors for maintenance without requiring complete disassembly of the swivel structure.
3Reliability
If concentric ring conductors make full contact, then current distribution is improved, but wear debris is generated and trapped
Solution Approach 1:
The continuous contact surface is segmented into multiple discrete contact zones between conductors, separated by the gaps between insulator members. This segmentation allows current to flow through multiple distributed contact points while the gaps between insulators provide ejection pathways for wear debris. The segmented structure maintains good current distribution while preventing debris accumulation that would occur with continuous contact.
Solution Approach 2:
The harmful wear debris is extracted from the contact zone through the gaps between insulator members. As conductors make contact and generate wear debris, the debris is continuously ejected through the spaces between the spaced-apart insulator members, preventing accumulation. This extraction mechanism removes the harmful byproduct of electrical contact while maintaining the beneficial full-circumference current distribution.
4Reliability
If insulator members are placed close together, then electrical insulation is improved, but weight and complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of using a continuous solid insulator ring, the design uses multiple insulator members spaced at specific intervals. This partial coverage approach provides sufficient electrical insulation at the critical locations where conductors are most vulnerable, while reducing the total amount of insulator material required. The spaced-apart arrangement maintains insulation effectiveness while significantly reducing weight compared to full solid ring construction.
Solution Approach 2:
The insulator system is segmented into discrete members positioned at key locations along the conductor rather than using continuous material. This segmentation reduces the total volume and weight of insulator material while maintaining electrical insulation effectiveness. The gaps between segments eliminate unnecessary material and reduce overall weight of the rotating assembly.
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 configuration reduces the risk of short circuits, minimizes wear, and provides a lightweight, stable swivel capable of handling large mechanical and electrodynamic loads, facilitating easy handling and maintenance while maintaining effective electrical contact.
Implementation Method 1
Insulating oil can freely flow through the open stacked conductor configuration which prevents occasional debris originating from wear to become trapped
Implementation Method 2
The conductors comprise concentric rings each having an annular metal contact surface via which the inner and outer conductors make full contact, such that the mechanical forces and electrodynamic forces as well as the currents are distributed evenly over the full circumference
Implementation Method 3
spring elements at the contact surfaces of the annular conductors... minimize wear and minimize debris
Data Source
AI summary
A high voltage swivel including an inner and an outer body, each body having at least a first and a second ring-shaped conductor element, the conductor elements including two spaced-apart end faces and a curved contact surface, the elements being mutually interconnected at opposing end faces via insulating members at axially spaced-apart positions, the inner and outer bodies being coaxial around a longitudinal axis, the contact surface of each inner conductor element being adjacent to and in electrical contact with an opposed contact surface of a corresponding outer conductor element, the inner and outer bodies being rotatable relative to one another around the longitudinal axis, each conductor element of the inner and outer body connected to a voltage line extending to an input terminal or an output terminal, the insulator members interconnecting the conductor elements situated at a mutual distance in the circumferential direction of the conductor element, the interconnected conductor elements of the inner and the outer body each being supported by a respective support member to form integral units such that the inner and outer bodies are adapted to be mutually decoupled or attached by relative displacement of the integral units in the direction of the longitudinal axis.