FIELD OF THE TECHNOLOGY
[0001] The present invention relates to wind power generation technology, and particularly
to a protection device, an offshore support platform and an offshore wind turbine
generator system.
BACKGROUND
[0002] As the most sophisticated technology suitable for large-scale development and with
great commercial potential in new energy field, wind power generation has made rapid
progress. The application of wind power generation technology has extended from land
to ocean, and offshore wind power generation is becoming the focus of development
in new energy field.
[0003] To make use of offshore wind energy, there is a need to erect an offshore support
platform on the seabed in offshore sea area and arrange a wind turbine generator on
the offshore support platform, and the wind turbine generator transforms wind energy
to electrical energy.
[0004] The load characteristics of an offshore wind turbine generator are different from
those of an onshore wind turbine generator, and the load acting on the offshore wind
turbine generator is very complicated. Apart from inertia, gravity load, aerodynamic
load and performance load similar to that of the onshore wind turbine generator, the
load on the offshore wind turbine generator further comprises wave load, offshore
ice load, ship impact load and etc, which directly or indirectly act on the offshore
support platform.
[0005] In the process of development of the present invention, the inventors found that
the conventional offshore support platform has technical disadvantages as below:
[0006] In practical application, the conventional offshore support platform will be subjected
to direct impact from the wave load, the transient impact of the wave load is very
large, which is able to severely damage the offshore support platform and influence
the stability of offshore support platform and operation safety of offshore wind turbine
generator system.
SUMMARY
[0007] One aspect of the present invention provides a protection device and an offshore
support platform, aiming to solve the disadvantages that the offshore support platform
in the prior art is easily damaged due to impulse of wave load. The protection device
and the offshore support platform are capable of weakening intensity of wave load
and improving the stability of offshore support platform and operation safety of offshore
wind turbine generator system.
[0008] Embodiments of the present invention provide a protection device, which comprises
at least two protection rings arranged from top to bottom with a spacing therebetween,
the protection rings are configured to surround the periphery of the support columns
of the offshore support platform.
[0009] Preferably, the diameters of the protection rings increase from upper protection
ring to lower protection ring.
[0010] Preferably, the protection device further comprises a first connection beam between
the protection rings.
[0011] Preferably, the number of the protection rings is two, three or four, or more.
[0012] Preferably, an outer annulus surface of the protection ring is a sloped surface inclined
to the center of the protection ring, and an outer ring edge of the protection ring
is lower than an inner ring edge of the protection ring.
[0013] Preferably, a cross section of the protection ring is of airfoil shape, and an outer
ring edge of the protection ring is lower than an inner ring edge of the protection
ring.
[0014] Preferably, the protection device further comprises a central circular pipe and a
reinforcement beam; the central circular pipe is located within the protection ring
and concentric with the protection ring, one end of the reinforcement beam is connected
to the protection ring and the other end of the reinforcement beam is connected to
the central circular pipe.
[0015] Preferably, the reinforcement beam is an oval pipe, and the long axis in the section
of the oval pipe is parallel to the horizontal plane.
[0016] Preferably, the offshore support platform is configured to support the offshore wind
turbine generator.
[0017] Still another aspect of the present invention provides an offshore support platform,
which comprises a support platform and a support column, the upper end of the support
column is connected to the support platform, the lower end of the support column is
inserted into the seabed, and the offshore support platform further comprises the
aforementioned protection device, the protection ring of the protection device is
connected to the support column.
[0018] Preferably, the offshore support platform further comprises a second connection beam;
the second connection beam is connected between the protection ring and the support
column.
[0019] Preferably, the second connection beam is an oval pipe, and the long axis in the
section of the oval pipe is parallel to the horizontal plane.
[0020] Yet still another aspect of the present invention provides an offshore wind turbine
generator system, which comprises an offshore wind turbine generator and an offshore
support platform; the offshore support platform comprises a support platform and a
support column, the upper end of the support column is connected to the support platform,
the lower end of the support column is inserted into the seabed; the offshore wind
turbine generator is provided on the offshore support platform, the offshore wind
turbine generator system further comprises the aforementioned protection device, and
the protection device is arranged on the periphery of the support column.
[0021] According to various aspects of the present invention, the protection device and
offshore support platform comprise at least two protection rings arranged with top
and bottom spacing, the protection rings can be arranged on the periphery of the support
column of the offshore support platform, the interaction between the protection rings
and wave can change the motion of water particles, thus significantly reducing the
height of wave, reducing the energy of wave, and thereby weakening intensity of wave
load on the support column of the offshore support platform and improving the stability
of offshore support platform and operation safety of offshore wind turbine generator
system.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0022] FIG.1 is a schematic diagram of the protection device according to a first embodiment
of the present invention;
[0023] FIG.2 is a view taken along line A-A in FIG. 1;
[0024] FIG.3 is a view taken along line B-B in FIG. 1;
[0025] FIG.4 is a cross-sectional view for the protection ring according to a second embodiment
of the present invention.
[0026] Reference Numerals:
1-support platform |
2-support column |
3-protection ring |
31-airfoil |
4-first connection beam |
5-central circular pipe |
6-reinforcement beam |
7-second connection beam |
|
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0027] As shown in FIGS.1-3, FIG.1 is a schematic diagram of the protection device according
to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG.2 is a view taken along line A-A
in FIG. 1; FIG.3 is a view taken along line B-B in FIG. 1.
[0028] A first embodiment of the present invention provides a protection device for an offshore
support platform, which comprises at least two protection rings 3 arranged from top
to bottom with a spacing therebetween, the protection rings 3 are configured to surround
the periphery of the support columns 2 of the offshore support platform, the protection
rings 3 can be fixedly connected to the support columns 2 via various types of connectors,
and the offshore support platform can be configured to support the offshore wind turbine
generator. The protection device further comprises a first connection beam 4 between
the protection rings 3, or a plurality of first connection beams 4 connecting in parallel
the protection rings 3 with spacing.
[0029] Number and spacing of protection rings 3 can be determined depending on the wave
size of the practical sea area, if the wave load of a sea area throughout the year
is big, then the number of the protection rings 3 is increased or the spacing between
the protection rings 3 is reduced, for better reducing energy of the wave. In particular,
in this embodiment, the number of the protection rings 3 can be three, and three protection
rings 3 can be concentrically arranged from top to bottom with spacing. Of course,
the number of protection rings 3 also can be two, four or more.
[0030] The diameters of different protection rings 3 can be the same or different, and the
cross-sectional dimension of different protection rings 3 can be the same or different,
for example, when the protection device is arranged on the periphery of the support
columns 2, the area of the surface of the protection rings 3 facing the sea waves
can be greater than that of the opposite surface of the protection rings 3 facing
away from the sea waves, so as to improve the capability of the protection rings 3
to weaken intensity of wave load.
[0031] In the protection device according to this embodiment, protection rings 3 can be
arranged to surround the periphery of the support columns 2 of the offshore support
platform, the interaction between the protection rings 3 and wave can change the motion
pattern of water particles, thus significantly reducing the height of wave, reducing
the energy of wave, and thereby weakening intensity of wave load on the support columns
2 of the offshore support platform and improving the stability of offshore support
platform and operation safety of offshore wind turbine generator system.
[0032] It should be noted that, further improvements to the protection device can be made
on the basis of the above embodiment.
[0033] In the protection rings 3 arranged with spacing, the diameters of different protection
rings 3 increase from upper protection ring to lower protection ring, and the diameters
of the protection rings 3 can gradually increase in proportion, so as to weaken intensity
of wave load even more. The protection rings 3 are arranged concentrically, such that
the protection rings 3 can be subjected to the wave load more evenly. That is to say,
there are vertical spacing and horizontal spacing between two neighboring protection
rings, and based on wave theory, the above structure can weaken the energy of wave
in the horizontal direction, improve the stability of offshore support platform and
operation safety of offshore wind turbine generator system.
[0034] Further, the outer annulus surface of the protection ring 3 is a sloped surface inclined
to the center of the protection ring 3, that is, the outer ring edge of the protection
ring is larger and lower than the inner ring edge, the sloped surface can be a sloping
plane, an arced surface, or other shaped surfaces inclining to the center of the protection
ring 3. When waves act on the outer annulus surface of the protection ring 3, a downward
component force can be generated to improve the stability of offshore support platform.
[0035] As shown in FIG.4, the cross section of the protection ring 3 can be made into an
airfoil shape 31, and the outer ring edge of the protection ring 3 is lower than inner
ring edge when installed. The cross section of the protection ring 3 is configured
into a structure of airfoil shape 31 or similar shape, such structure can reduce the
resistance of the protection ring 3 to the waves and improve the effect of weakening
wave energy. In addition, since the outer ring edge of the protection ring 3 is lower
than the inner ring edge, that is, the cross section of the protection ring 3 has
a downward angle, the above structure can generate a downward vertical pressure when
waves act on the outer annulus surface of the protection ring 3, thereby further improve
the stability of offshore support platform.
[0036] In addition, in order to further improve the overall rigidity of the protection device,
the protection device further comprises a central circular pipe 5 and a reinforcement
beam 6; the central circular pipe 5 is located within the protection ring 3 and concentric
with the protection ring 3, one end of the reinforcement beam 6 is connected to the
protection ring 3 and the other end of the reinforcement beam 6 is connected to the
central circular pipe 5. Further, the reinforcement beam 6 is an oval pipe, and the
long axis in the section of the oval pipe is parallel to the horizontal plane, that
is, the reinforcement beam 6 is arranged flat, which can reduce the resistance, and
the reinforcement beam 6 adopts an oval pipe to facilitate the welding with the protection
ring 3.
[0037] Also as shown in FIGs.1-3, a second embodiment of the present invention further provides
an offshore support platform, which comprises a support platform 1 and a support column
2, the upper end of the support column 2 is connected to the support platform 1, the
lower end of the support column 2 is inserted into the seabed, and the offshore support
platform further comprises the protection device described in the above embodiments,
the protection ring 3 of the protection device is connected to the support column
2. The offshore support platform further comprises a second connection beam 7; the
second connection beam 7 is connected between the protection ring 3 and the support
column 2.
[0038] Further, the second connection beam 7 can be an oval pipe, and the long axis in the
cross section of the oval pipe is parallel to the horizontal plane. The offshore support
platform is configured to support the offshore wind turbine generator.
[0039] In the offshore support platform according to this embodiment, protection rings 3
can be arranged on the periphery of the support column 2 of the offshore support platform,
the interaction between the protection rings 3 and wave can change the motion pattern
of water particles, thus significantly reducing the height of wave, reducing the wave
energy, and thereby weakening intensity of wave load on the support column 2 of the
offshore support platform and improving the stability of offshore support platform
and operation safety of offshore wind turbine generator system.
[0040] A third embodiment of the present invention provides an offshore wind turbine generator
system, which comprises an offshore wind turbine generator and an offshore support
platform; the offshore support platform comprises a support platform and a support
column, the upper end of the support column is connected to the support platform,
the lower end of the support column is inserted into the seabed; the offshore wind
turbine generator is provided on the offshore support platform, the offshore wind
turbine generator system further comprises the aforementioned protection device, and
the protection device is arranged on the periphery of the support column.
[0041] According to this embodiment, the offshore wind turbine generator system is provided
with a protection device, which is able to improve the stability of offshore support
platform and operation safety of offshore wind turbine generator system.
[0042] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are merely provided for describing
the technical solutions of the present invention, but not intended to limit the present
invention. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that although the present
invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments,
modifications can be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments,
or equivalent replacements can be made to some technical features in the technical
solutions, such modifications or replacements do not cause the essence of corresponding
technical solutions to depart from the spirit and scope of the embodiments of the
present invention.
1. A protection device for an offshore support platform, comprising at least two protection
rings arranged from top to bottom with a spacing therebetween, the protection rings
are configured to surround the periphery of the support columns of the offshore support
platform.
2. The protection device according to claim 1, characterized in that, the diameters of the protection rings increase from upper protection ring to lower
protection ring.
3. The protection device according to claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising a first
connection beam between the protection rings.
4. The protection device according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that, the number of the protection rings is two, three or four.
5. The protection device according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that, an outer annulus surface of the protection ring is a sloped surface inclined to
the center of the protection ring, and an outer ring edge of the protection ring is
lower than an inner ring edge of the protection ring.
6. The protection device according to claim 1 or claim 2, characterized in that, a cross section of the protection ring is of airfoil shape, and an outer ring edge
of the protection ring is lower than an inner ring edge of the protection ring.
7. The protection device according to claim 1 or claim 2, further comprising a central
circular pipe and a reinforcement beam; the central circular pipe is located within
the protection ring and concentric with the protection ring, one end of the reinforcement
beam is connected to the protection ring and the other end of the reinforcement beam
is connected to the central circular pipe.
8. The protection device according to claim 7, characterized in that, the reinforcement beam is an oval pipe, and the long axis in the cross section of
the oval pipe is parallel to the horizontal plane.
9. The protection device according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that, the offshore support platform is configured to support an offshore wind turbine
generator.
10. An offshore support platform, comprising a support platform and a support column,
the upper end of the support column is connected to the support platform, the lower
end of the support column is inserted into the seabed; wherein the offshore support
platform further comprises the protection device as recited in any one of claims 1-9,
and the protection ring of the protection device is connected to the support column.
11. The offshore support platform according to claim 10, further comprising a second connection
beam; the second connection beam is connected between the protection ring and the
support column.
12. The offshore support platform according to claim 11, characterized in that, the reinforcement beam is an oval pipe, and the long axis in the section of the
oval pipe is parallel to the horizontal plane.
13. The protection device according to any one of claims 9-12, characterized in that, the offshore support platform is configured to support an offshore wind turbine
generator.
14. An offshore wind turbine generator system, comprising an offshore wind turbine generator
and an offshore support platform, wherein
the offshore support platform comprises a support platform and a support column, the
upper end of the support column is connected to the support platform, the lower end
of the support column is inserted into the seabed;
the offshore wind turbine generator is provided on the offshore support platform,
the offshore wind turbine generator system further comprises the protection device
as recited in any one of claims 1-9, and the protection device is arranged on the
periphery of the support column.