The invention relates to the field of construction, more specifically, to erection of individually located large building structures such as residential buildings, hotel complexes, industrial projects, airdromes, artificial islands etc., on the sea floor in shallow water or in another water basin.
There is a widely known method of creating building structures in water wherein a preset area of a water basin is filled with some inert material to exceed the water level and then a building structure is erected on the surface of the formed island used as a base.
However, this method is highly labour-consuming and not economical enough since it requires great quantities of inert material and loading the material on floating facilities and delivering it to a building site.
In addition, this method requires the creation of special consolidation to impede landslide and wash-out of the material as well as its sliding down below the water level.
There is a known method of creating building structures in water (U.S. Pat. No. 4,511,288), wherein ballastable modules are floated to a preset area of a water basin, then they are submerged in turn, each module is placed on top of a preceding one. Then a structure is erected on a module projecting from water, this module used as a base.
The main drawback of such method is the impossibility of using it for erecting stationary, large-sized heavy structures. This is determined by the fact that hollow ballastable modules can neither be used as a foundation for such a structure, nor carry such a foundation. Therefore in practice this method is only used for creating temporary structures intended, for example, for locating drilling rigs, platforms, for receiving aircraft and for locating other structures of this sort.
In addition, this method is not economical enough since it requires the use of great quantities of excessive metal (material of ballastable modules) which is of no direct relation to the structure being created.
Another drawback is the necessity of connecting the modules with one another under water which complicates the method significantly.
And, finally, availability of several modules placed one on top the other affects significantly the reliability of the structure when erected at seismically dangerous areas, at water area subject to heavy sea-ways and also in cases when subsidence of the sea floor is possible.
There is a known method of creating building structures in water (EP No. 0199690) wherein a pontoon is floated to a preset area of the water basin, the pontoon height exceeding the water depth in this area. Then the pontoon is submerged and its upper (projecting from water) surface can be used as a base for erecting the structure.
Reliability of such a structure in contrast to the one created by the preceding method is considerably higher and, besides, is free of the drawbacks connected with the necessity of implementing under-water work on connecting the modules with each other. However all other drawbacks still exist.
There is a known method of creating building structures in water (EP No. 0800600) wherein a pan-shaped block is floated to a preset area of the water basin, this block consisting of a bottom, a deck located above the bottom, and walls hermetically embracing the bottom around its perimeter. Then the block is submerged onto the basin floor by way of filling it with water. The distance between the deck and block bottom is so selected that after the block is submerged onto the bottom, the deck remains above the water level. Then the structure is erected on the deck used as a base.
This method, as well as the two preceding ones, cannot be used for creating stationary, large-sized heavy structures since the deck itself can neither be used as a foundation for such structures, nor carry such a foundation.
In addition, this method is not economical enough since it requires the use of great quantities of excessive material (under-water portion of the pan-shaped block) which is of no direct relation to the structure being created.
There is a known method of creating a building structure wherein piles are first driven into the sea floor. Then a foundation is installed on the piles, and after that the structure is erected.
A drawback of this method is its high labour consumption and low economic efficiency determined by necessity of creating a foundation and erecting all the members of the structure in this case the work is implemented from floating facilities, often under water.
An object of the invention is the task of finding a method of creating a building structure to be installed on the basin floor wherein the base for erecting the structure would be an element of such a block and this block would be placed on the basin floor in such a way, and would be fixed in position relative to it in such a manner, that this base could be used as a foundation for stationary, large-sized heavy structures and also to ensure the possibility of using the block elements as members of the structure being erected and thus to increase the economic efficiency of the method.
The set task is solved in such a way that a prefabricated pan-shaped block is floated to a preset water site where the structure is to be created. The block consists of a base member-a bottom and walls embracing hermetically the base member around its perimeter and forming working area. The depth of water site is less than the height of the block. The block is submerged onto the basin floor by means of filling with water at least a part of the working area, and as a result has the parts located above water level. Then the submerged block is fixed relative the basin floor, the water is removed from the zone where the construction work should be perform and the building structure is erected on the base member.
The present invention will be understood more fully from the detailed description given herein below and from the accompanying drawings of the preferred embodiment of the invention which, however, should not be construed as exhaustive to the invention but are for explanation and understanding only.
The essence of the invention is illustrated by drawings which are as follows:
FIG. 2—general view of the floating block, top view.
FIG. 3—section III-III in
FIG. 4—unit A in
FIG. 5—unit A in
FIG. 6-9—stages of erecting a building structure, according to the present invention.
FIG. 10—section III-III in
FIG. 11—another version of embodiment of the invention.
FIG. 12—general view of several blocks connected with each other, top view.
FIG. 13—unit B in
FIG. 14—section XIV-XIV in
The building structure is created in the following way.
Reinforced-concrete pan-shaped floating block 1 (
Block 1 (
In one version of the realization of the method of the block submergence can be provided by filling one part of the sections 5 with water and another part—with inert material with a high specific weight, say, with sand. It is expedient that this inert material could be used as building material in erecting the structure.
In one more version submergence can be provided by filling every single section 5.
To increase reliability of block 1 fixation against its possible displacement relative to basin floor 11 and also against its possible further submergence into the ground, piles 14 (
In one version the increase of reliability of block 1 fixation against its possible displacement relative to basin floor 11 is achieved not with the aid of process pipes 10 and piles 14. In this version walls 3 (
In one more version related to the use of piles 14 (
Erection of structure 15 is started in sections not filled with water (in the case, when such sections exist).
In one version of embodiment of the invention the lower parts of piles 14 are fixed in addition in the ground so as they are restrained from the displacement upward caused, for example, by the buoyancy force of water, Such fixation can be performed by one of the known methods, for example, by means of anchoring parts of the pile having a thicker cross-section in the bottom part (
In one more version of embodiment of the invention, erection of structure 15 after filling entire block 1 or part of its sections 5 with water is started only on the block portion projecting from water (not shown). In this version, similar to the one described above, after the weight of the structure erected has reached the value exceeding that of the buoyancy force acting on the block, water is pumped from the sections and the structure erection is completed.
In another version, through holes are made over the entire area of bedplate 2, may be installed communication pipes 17 (
If it is necessary to create building structures with the area larger to such a degree that one block does not allow to solve this problem, several similar blocks are used which are jointed with each other. In this case blocks 1 (
Various versions of realizing the proposed method within the claims are possible differing from those described above by the absence of partitions 4 in prefabricated block 1 or, on the contrary, by the availability in it of additional, differently oriented partitions which can be used as members of the structure erected, and also differing from the afore-described in elements and units and materials ensuring the implementation of this or that operation, method, in a technique of connecting the blocks with each other, etc.
The proposed method is highly economical since it allows to fabricate at factories, i.e. with minimum labour consumption, floatable blocks with the maximum number of elements (bedplates, upright and horizontal partitions, strengthening ribs, beams, tunnels for running communications, etc.) which are the members of the structures being erected. In this case the floating block is a means of transporting said pre-erected elements of the structures to a preset area of a water basin and at the same time is a zero cycle of construction of planned structures.
This method can be used for creating stationary, large-sized heavy structures practically of any dimensions and with no limitation to the weight, since a foundation of these structures are represented by monolythic concrete plates, resting on the basin floor and fixed reliably against displacement and submergence into the ground.
Although the invention has been described and illustrated with a certain degree of particularity, it is understood that the present disclosure has only been made by way of example, and that various modifications thereof may be resorted to by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, as hereinafter claimed.
This application is based upon and claims priority of co-pending, commonly assigned U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/049,302, filed Apr. 30, 2008, which is incorporated herein in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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61049302 | Apr 2008 | US |