This application is a national phase entry under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of International Application No. PCT/EP2014/073544, filed Nov. 3, 2014, which claims the benefit of German Application No. 10 2013 112 136.5, filed Nov. 5, 2013. The entire contents of each of the foregoing patent applications are hereby incorporated by reference.
Arrangement for repairing damage to the base of a container filled with water,
The invention relates to an arrangement for repairing damage to the base of a container filled with water.
Containers are used for storing, for example, radioactively contaminated water. Such containers usually have a container wall, a cover and a base, the latter being formed by a plurality of base elements joined together at least on two opposite sides with the aid of wall portions, which extend vertically into the container. These wall portions form a flange, at which the individual base elements are screwed together. Over time, these flange locations may be damaged, and the contaminated water can flow out of the container through said damaged locations. In order to avoid the environment of the container being contaminated by escaping water, it is therefore necessary to rectify the damage by sealing the damaged location. In order to be able to bring the adhesive to the damaged location, however, it would be necessary to let the water out of the container, but, for shielding or other reasons, this is not possible.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to specify an arrangement for repairing damage to the base of a container filled with water.
This object is achieved according to the invention by an arrangement having the features of patent claim 1. Accordingly, the arrangement comprises a guide arrangement, which can be placed on the base of the container. For this purpose, provision may be made for the guide arrangement to be able to be introduced into the container through an opening located on an upper side of the container.
The guide arrangement has a centering arrangement, which can center the guide arrangement between wall portions of the base elements. The guide arrangement also has a fixing arrangement, which can fix the guide arrangement on the base of the.
The arrangement comprises a carrier, which can be guided along the guide arrangement and on which at least one pivoting arm is arranged such that it can be pivoted between a transporting position, in which it is oriented perpendicularly to the plane of the base, and an operating position, in which it runs parallel to the plane of the base. The arrangement also comprises an accommodating element, which is arranged at a free end of the pivoting arm and is intended for accommodating adhesives, which can be used to cover over part of a wall portion of the base elements.
The arrangement according to the invention thus makes it possible for a region of the base, even a region located under water, to be repaired with adhesive by remote control. There is thus no need for the contaminated water to be let out. The guide arrangement can be used in order to move the carrier, on which the pivoting arm and the accommodating element are arranged, to the damaged location, and therefore, ultimately, the adhesive located in the accommodating element can seal the damage without a person having to enter into the interior of the container. In other words, the guide arrangement, in an operating position, forms a transporting route via which the adhesive can be transported to the damaged location from a site which can be accessed by a person.
In the case of a preferred embodiment of the invention, the guide arrangement is formed by a mast which, in an operating position, extends from the opening in the upper side of the container to the base of the latter.
If the mast is formed from a plurality of individual mast elements, it can be adapted to the desired dimensions, in particular heights, of the container which is to be repaired. Using a different number of mast elements and/or mast elements of different lengths allows the mast to be adapted individually to each specific case.
The centering arrangement preferably has two pivotable wings, on each of which are arranged fixing elements, which can be pushed against the wall portions.
In a preferred configuration of the invention, the fixing arrangement is formed by a magnet or a vacuum cup.
The operations of lowering the carrier and pivoting the pivoting arms can take place by means of a hoist.
In order that the carrier, with the pivoting arm and the accommodating element, can be guided through an opening that is as small as possible, the accommodating element is arranged such that it can be rotated between a transporting position, in which it is oriented perpendicularly to the plane of the base, and an operating position, in which it is oriented parallel to the plane of the base. In the transporting position, the accommodating element, which may be formed for example by an elongate U profile, is therefore in a vertical position, in which it can easily be moved through an opening. In order for the adhesive then to be positioned at the damaged location, it is only once it is located within the container that the accommodating element is rotated through 90° into a horizontal position, in which it is oriented parallel to the plane of the base of the container.
In order that the arrangement can be removed from the container again following the repair operation, the accommodating element can be released from the pivoting arm by means of an unlocking mechanism. The accommodating element and adhesive thus remain at the damaged location once repaired.
In order that different locations of the wall portions can be reached by the accommodating element and adhesive, the pivoting arm and accommodating element have arranged between them a movement element, by means of which the accommodating element, in the operating position, can be moved perpendicularly to the pivoting arm and to the guide arrangement, that is to say along the wall portions. The movement element is arranged on the pivoting arm such that it can be rotated preferably together with the accommodating element. The movement element is formed preferably by two telescopically movable rails.
In the case of a further preferred configuration of the invention, the arrangement additionally comprises a crane arrangement serving to support the guide arrangement, and all the other necessary components, and introduce these into the container and remove them therefrom. The crane arrangement here is configured such that it reduces to a desired amount the surface-area loading to which a cover provided is subjected by the arrangement. For this purpose, the crane arrangement may have, for example, a base plate, by means of which the weight of the arrangement as a whole is distributed over a certain surface area. It is also the case that the individual parts of the crane arrangement are of modular construction and can be dismantled into individual parts.
In order to explain the invention further, reference is made to the exemplary embodiment illustrated in the figures, in which:
The base 8 of the container is formed from a plurality of base elements 12, which are joined together on two opposite sides with the aid of wall portions 14, which extend vertically into the container 2. The respectively adjacent wall portions 14 of two neighboring base elements 12 here form a flange, which can be screw-connected by means of screws. It is at these flange locations in particular that damage occurs after the water 10 has been stored for a certain period of time, and it is necessary for said damage to be repaired and sealed so that it is not possible for any further contaminated water 10 to be able to run out of the container 2 into the environment surrounding the latter.
For the purpose of repairing the damage, use is made of the arrangement 16 according to the invention, which is illustrated in
As lowering of the guide arrangement 22 continues, the centering arrangement 26 is the first to come into contact with the base 8 of the container 2, as is illustrated in
Each of the wings 32 of the centering arrangement 26 have arranged on them two fixing elements 34, which can be pushed against the wall portions 14, and further transverse struts 36, for example by means of hydraulics, pneumatics or a motor. Such a situation is illustrated in
Next, a carrier 40 is lowered on the guide arrangement 22, said carrier being formed by two carriages and having arranged on it in this case two oppositely located pivoting arms 42, although only one can be seen in
The pivoting arms 42 are arranged on the carrier 40 such that they can be pivoted between a transporting position, which is shown in
In
Once the carrier 40, with the pivoting arms 42 and the accommodating elements 48 provided with adhesive 50, has been introduced into the container 2, as is shown in
The damaged location is thus repaired entirely by remote control, without anyone having to enter into the container 2. Furthermore, it is also the case that there is no need for the water 10 located in the container 2 to be let out.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
10 2013 112 136 | Nov 2013 | DE | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/EP2014/043544 | 11/3/2014 | WO | 00 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2015/067553 | 5/14/2015 | WO | A |
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
4584162 | Yoli | Apr 1986 | A |
4819524 | Tolino | Apr 1989 | A |
6219399 | Naruse et al. | Apr 2001 | B1 |
8371025 | Kramer et al. | Feb 2013 | B2 |
20100192368 | Kramer et al. | Aug 2010 | A1 |
20100242247 | Jones | Sep 2010 | A1 |
20130145594 | Krämer et al. | Jun 2013 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
1275775 | Dec 2000 | CN |
101802929 | Aug 2010 | CN |
202307165 | Jul 2012 | CN |
39 13 202 | Oct 1990 | DE |
3913202 | Oct 1990 | DE |
3916186 | Nov 1990 | DE |
694 04 121 | Oct 1997 | DE |
10 2008 014 544 | Sep 2009 | DE |
10 2012 205 013 | Jun 2013 | DE |
05-031591 | Sep 1993 | JP |
2003-156586 | May 2003 | JP |
2009-066635 | Apr 2009 | JP |
2018985 | Aug 1994 | RU |
Entry |
---|
International Application No. PCT/EP2014/073544 International Preliminary Report on Patentability dated May 19, 2016 (6 Pages). |
Notice of Allowance as received in Russian application 2016122236 dated Aug. 3, 2018. |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20160284432 A1 | Sep 2016 | US |