CORDIS provides links to public deliverables and publications of HORIZON projects.
Links to deliverables and publications from FP7 projects, as well as links to some specific result types such as dataset and software, are dynamically retrieved from OpenAIRE .
Deliverables
Following identification of the wire string characteristics compliant with the adequate reliability for a sub bottom cutting operation, the various design variables identified were tested on the testing bench developed by TS Tecnospamec. After 1 year of dedicated testing, the goal was finally achieved. Being the development of the full-core and spiral diamond wire negatively effected by failure under cycling load, the new wire is based on the standard wire configuration with major improvements that provide a substantial increase in performance (ref. Report on diamond wire testing results).
The wire was developed by simulating underwater cutting of metal structures on the dedicated in-house test bench, therefore major applications are foreseen in the offshore decommissioning field and other specific heavy-duty application (nuclear plants decommissioning, heavy-reinforced concrete structures removal). Further potential development is envisaged with support from research institutes (metallic materials, welding technology). Control hardware / software for assisting / managing of diamond wire cutting process was also studied and developed at prototype stage: further inputs from testing are necessary to develop reliable solutions.
Equipment for managing the scraps produced during cutting (Wire Waste Management System) was developed and proposed to UKAEA for the decommissioning of a nuclear plant.
The dredging system consists in a self-sinking device, which permits the insertion of the pile into the seabed soil, allows extraction the pile and at the same time permits the containment of the contaminated soil. This containment process constitutes a major novelty compared to the mass excavation, which is the currently employed technique in the field of offshore demolitions. This also presents the major technical barrier, as fluidization the soil and it s containment are usually performed by a drilling rig, whilst in the present case they must be integrated into a cost efficient and portable tool. For these reasons possible standalone applications if this device reside mainly in the general field of drill cutting stabilization, recovery or relocation. Furthermore, the insertion technique, consisting in twin guide tubes, could be applied to installation of self-sinking anchor piles or similar.
Following identification of the wire string carachteristics compliant with the adequate reliability for a sub bottom cutting operation, the various design variables identified were tested on the testing bench developed by TS Tecnospamec. After 1 year of dedicated testing, the goal was finally achieved.
Being the development of the full-core and spiral diamond wire negatively effected by failure under cycling load, the new wire is based on the standard wire configuration with major improvements that provide a substantial increase in performance (ref. Report on diamond wire testing results). The wire was developed by simulating underwater cutting of metal structures on the dedicated in-house test bench, therefore major applications are foreseen in the offshore decommissioning field and other specific heavy-duty application (nuclear plants decommissioning, heavy-reinforced concrete structures removal). Further potential development is envisaged with support from research institutes (metallic materials, welding technology). Control hardware / software for assisting / managing of diamond wire cutting process was also studied and developed at prototype stage: further inputs from testing are necessary to develop reliable solutions. Equipment for managing the scraps produced during cutting (Wire Waste Management System) was developed and proposed to UKAEA for the decommissioning of a nuclear plant.
Envisaged results are mainly expected in the medium term and are targeted to the improvement of the technology for ''Infrastructures Decommissioning'' applied to sensitive areas like Offshore Removals, Harbours reconditioning, Dangerous Sites Plants like Nuclear Plants decommissioning.
Other significant perspectives where the project outcomes can contribute to the technological progress orientated to the promotion of skills and increased competencies for infrastructures decommissioning are: re-design of Offshore Installations for a full compatibility with the new removal technologies; development of new cutting applications and for ''Onshore'' utilisation; ''re-use'' concept of the removed structure and machineries, as key part of the exportable disposal package. High profile and positive impacts of the SBC project like environment and food resources, employment and competencies through education & training, Health & Safety at work are expected within the process of implementation and standardisation of the EU Environmental regulations. Expected outputs and benefits are envisaged for the environment and related resources within the process of improvement of the working condition and the globalisation of knowledge and information on the ecology in the today's Economy. Positive impacts directly linked to the system utilisation are the reconditioning and restoration of the original ecosystem in contaminated sites, which can be expected in the medium-long term. A wide range of applications in the tele-operation, remotely controlled platforms and dredging systems in the medium term are envisaged with subsequent impacts as for the easy-operator training/operation and fault avoidance. Technical and economical positive effects are envisaged in the medium term range, in connection with the process of industrialisation and operation of the system, the manufacturing and sale of single components (diamond string, dredging system, work deployment platform) for market applications alternative to the offshore field as mentioned above. Special mention shall also be made for the market applications for the marble (quarries) cutting industry, in consequence of the �re-use� of the removed structures or in application of the remote control technology in hostile and dangerous sites. The new market strategy to be developed for the SBC will benefit of the possibility to provide the service to both categories of Offshore Contractors involved in the removal of the sub-sea installations. The competitiveness of the system for sale purposes compared to other technologies (like abrasive or explosives) will mainly depend on the time/cost saving factor and the environmental impact. However, the cost of the cutting service is to be kept in line with the market offer often heavily influenced by the Oil sales policies. In this regard the SBC project has received much attention, in particular in the form of sponsorships for existing project demo activities: several oil Operators (End Users), TotalFinaElf, Shell, BP Amoco, Amerada Hess, have funded, with a free sponsorship, 40% of the demo activities. Furthermore offshore Contractors (Direct Users) such as Halliburton Subsea and Coflexip Stena Offshore have expressed the availability to finance an ''Sbc Industrialisation Project'', a follow-up to the project demo activities consisting in development of a Full Scale Industrial Prototype, and an industrial production and servicing. Other users of the system or its key-components (Diamond String, Dredging, Remote Control Station etc.) are all subjects potentially involved in the Decommissioning market in general like Harbour and Maritime Authorities, Treatment, Petrochemical and Nuclear Plants, Civil Infrastructures Consortia (bridges, roads. buildings) etc. In this field interest has already been expressed for dangerous sites clearance by UKAEA, for civil demolitions (the RO RO Jetty, in Porto Marghera) and for petrochemical plants.
By utilising a safe remotely operated process and clean technologies the SBC has a direct impact on quality of life through the: benefits to the Marine Environment and resources; benefits to Food industry as a direct consequence of the above; hazard elimination and an appropriate risk control policy; selection of technological resources with the highest Health and Safety standards; information having direct impacts on Health and Safety; research, design and operation of new safe working systems; provision of environmentally safe services and products for the control and disposal of wastes; design, manufacturing and operation or sale of new and safe working systems, ecological products/services.
It is envisioned that the theoretical algorithms and the software developed will initiate the further application of modern fault diagnosis and control techniques by the undersea engineering community, as well as the other industrial sectors relevant to the project. No commercial exploitation is scheduled. It is foreseen that the theoretical algorithms and the software developed by the academic Institutes will be exploited in three ways:
- The produced material will be employed in future research and educational activities of the participating Institutes and Universities. This includes demonstration of the software and the application to postgraduate courses, as well as further improvement through final-year thesis of students at the under- and postgraduate level.
-The non-confidential parts of the software will be shared with other collaborating research groups. The comments received will help further elaborate the results and generally advance research and improve applications in the field.
-The algorithms and the software will be further developed through new European and National projects.
The Deploying platform consists of a support platform, a rectangular H-beam/square pipe construction acting as a base for handling the SBC tool and equipped for anchoring the SBC to the bottom soil, and a main frame that acts as a tool base for the twin pipes with tilt function for tool positioning and penetration feed movement for the excavating system.
Under the platform are located suction anchors; two in front and one at the rear end of the platform. The suction anchors are detachable for transportation and for emergency release by ROV. Each suction anchor is equipped with a jet pump powered by the medium pressure system and independently controlled. The jet pumps are placed on the support platform structure close to each suction anchor. The tilt lift is driven by a hydraulic cylinder. Alternative application potentials for the support platform include other applications that need a platform on the seabed.
There has been contact with another company that needs a similar construction for dredging or maintenance of offshore constructions with need of more stability and strength than a ROV can offer.
The power system includes various units: the main electric power supply for starting / powering / protection against overloading of the various equipments, the surface hydraulic power pack equipped with three electro-hydraulic pumps, the surface umbilical termination unit with cable and hoses connectors, the composite umbilical including powering hoses (hydraulic) and cables (electric power, coaxial, signals), a sub sea umbilical termination unit (junction box) with water block / oil block, the voltage / current transformer, the on-board valve packs for management of the hydraulic power, the hot stabs for ROV emergency recovery operations.
The drive unit of the umbilical winch is hydraulic with automatic hydraulically operated parking brakes. The winch skid base is equipped for welding or bolting to ships deck. The winch can be operated locally or remotely. Hydrakraft has major benefits of developing such a powering system, as transmission of power for tools with high power requirements to large water depths requires high voltage, and currently there is not any commercial product at the market of this kind of powering systems. The key innovation regards the assembly of existing technology into new demanding fields of use.
In the next years CUT marketing strategy will be focusing on the following goals: investigate the numerous abandonment opportunities in the USA and in the Campus Basin in Brazil in addition to the Norwegian and North Sea imminent decommissioning projects already mentioned; perform a structured advertising program combined with editorials in the appropriate trade journals such as Offshore Engineer and Roustabout Magazine; disseminate the Sbc technology through the various CUT representatives worldwide (Norway, USA, Singapore, Brazil) by meeting key-people for decommissioning activities and supply the various power point type presentations and interactive demonstration of the Sbc technology on CD ROM. Advertise the web sites www.subbottomcutter.com and www.cut-group.com including short simulation of the Sbc operation such as the ones actually included in the CD-ROM distributed at exhibitions.
Several simulation environments have been set up in order to foresee the machine behaviour in a virtual reality reconstructing the real world operation environment and to bring the due modification optimising the SBC performances.
The reference parts sub-assembly and machine models have been realised with reference to:
- Their shapes and static behaviour in the different operative modes;
- The motion kinematics and dynamics and multi-body analysis. Finite elements codes allowed the execution of structural elements (machine frame, twin pipe assembly
) checks in the worst operative conditions enlightening the critical areas, i.e. zones characterised by high stress concentration and excessive elastic deflection of the structure due to the load conditions and constraints. Moreover, multi-body analysis tools have been used to simulate the machine mechanisms static and dynamic behaviour and to properly size the electric and hydraulic actuators reproducing the real world conditions. New software modules have been specifically developed and integrated within the multi-body tools with the aim of taking into account effects typical of the marine environment and of the application. Simulation models and tests have been mainly focussed on the standing and positioning operative modes introducing suitable working hypotheses neglecting the contribution of the generalised forces that are very small if compared to the most significant ones. The so obtained approximate model result still heavy for the numerous parts involved but has the advantage to be fairly easy to handle and simulations not too much time consuming. Some detailed multi-body models of the diamond wire have been assembled in ADAMS environment and let to foresee the macroscopic and microscopic behaviour of the diamonded tool during cut operations.
This result will offer to the cutting machinery designer the knowledge of the dynamic behaviour of different types and configurations of the diamond wire string, making possible to design radical innovative cutting machines, based on the ''a priori'' knowledge of the cutting string physical behaviour. The results of the simulations allow predicting the force distribution on the beads/leg contact surfaces. Moreover, the models allow foreseeing the force intensification due to the collision of the incoming bead against the cutting surface. Simulation results have been double-checked with experimental assessment performed on the testing bench facility.
It is envisioned that the theoretical algorithms and the software developed will initiate the further application of modern fault diagnosis and control techniques by the undersea engineering community, as well as the other industrial sectors relevant to the project. No commercial exploitation is scheduled. It is foreseen that the theoretical algorithms and the software developed by the academic Institutes will be exploited in three ways: -The produced material will be employed in future research and educational activities of the participating Institutes and Universities. This includes demonstration of the software and the application to postgraduate courses, as well as further improvement through final-year thesis of students at the under- and postgraduate level. -The non-confidential parts of the software will be shared with other collaborating research groups. The comments received will help further elaborate the results and generally advance research and improve applications in the field. -The algorithms and the software will be further developed through new European and National projects.
The power system includes various units: the main electric power supply for starting / powering / protection against overloading of the various equipments, the surface hydraulic power pack equipped with three electro-hydraulic pumps, the surface umbilical termination unit with cable and hoses connectors, the composite umbilical including powering hoses (hydraulic) and cables (electric power, coaxial, signals), a sub sea umbilical termination unit (junction box) with water block / oil block, the voltage / current transformer, the on-board valve packs for management of the hydraulic power, the hot stabs for ROV emergency recovery operations. The drive unit of the umbilical winch is hydraulic with automatic hydraulically operated parking brakes. The winch skid base is equipped for welding or bolting to ships deck. The winch can be operated locally or remotely. Hydrakraft has major benefits of developing such a powering system, as transmission of power for tools with high power requirements to large water depths requires high voltage, and currently there is not any commercial product at the market of this kind of powering systems.
The key innovation regards the assembly of existing technology into new demanding fields of use.
Envisaged results are mainly expected in the medium term and are targeted to the improvement of the technology for ''Infrastructures Decommissioning'' applied to sensitive areas like Offshore Removals, Harbours reconditioning, Dangerous Sites Plants like Nuclear Plants decommissioning. Other significant perspectives where the project outcomes can contribute to the technological progress orientated to the promotion of skills and increased competencies for infrastructures decommissioning are: re-design of Offshore Installations for a full compatibility with the new removal technologies; development of new cutting applications and for ''Onshore'' utilisation; ''re-use'' concept of the removed structure and machineries, as key part of the exportable disposal package.
High profile and positive impacts of the SBC project like environment and food resources, employment and competencies through education and training, Health & Safety at work are expected within the process of implementation and standardisation of the EU Environmental regulations. Expected outputs and benefits are envisaged for the environment and related resources within the process of improvement of the working condition and the globalisation of knowledge and information on the ecology in the today's economy. Positive impacts directly linked to the system utilisation are the reconditioning and restoration of the original ecosystem in contaminated sites, which can be expected in the medium-long term. A wide range of applications in the tele-operation, remotely controlled platforms and dredging systems in the medium term are envisaged with subsequent impacts as for the easy-operator training/operation and fault avoidance.
Technical and economical positive effects are envisaged in the medium term range, in connection with the process of industrialisation and operation of the system, the manufacturing and sale of single components (diamond string, dredging system, work deployment platform) for market applications alternative to the offshore field as mentioned above. Special mention shall also be made for the market applications for the marble (quarries) cutting industry, in consequence of the ''re-use'' of the removed structures or in application of the remote control technology in hostile and dangerous sites. The new market strategy to be developed for the SBC will benefit of the possibility to provide the service to both categories of Offshore Contractors involved in the removal of the sub-sea installations.
The competitiveness of the system for sale purposes compared to other technologies (like abrasive or explosives) will mainly depend on the time/cost saving factor and the environmental impact. However, the cost of the cutting service is to be kept in line with the market offer often heavily influenced by the Oil sales policies. In this regard the SBC project has received much attention, in particular in the form of sponsorships for existing project demo activities: several oil Operators (End Users), TotalFinaElf, Shell, BP Amoco, Amerada Hess, have funded, with a free sponsorship, 40% of the demo activities. Furthermore offshore Contractors (Direct Users) such as Halliburton Sub-sea and Coflexip Stena Offshore have expressed the availability to finance an ''Sbc Industrialisation Project'', a follow-up to the project demo activities consisting in development of a Full Scale Industrial Prototype, and an industrial production and servicing. Other users of the system or its key-components (Diamond String, Dredging, Remote Control Station etc.) are all subjects potentially involved in the Decommissioning market in general like Harbour and Maritime Authorities, Treatment, Petrochemical and Nuclear Plants, Civil Infrastructures Consortia (bridges, roads. buildings) etc. In this field interest has already been expressed for dangerous sites clearance by UKAEA, for civil demolitions (the RORO Jetty, in Porto Marghera) and for petro-chemical plants.
By utilising a safe remotely operated process and clean technologies the SBC has a direct impact on quality of life through the: benefits to the Marine Environment and resources; benefits to Food industry as a direct consequence of the above; hazard elimination and an appropriate risk control policy; selection of technological resources with the highest Health and Safety standards; information having direct impacts on Health and Safety; research, design and operation of new safe working systems; provision of environmentally safe services and products for the control and disposal of wastes; design, manufacturing and operation or sale of new and safe working systems, ecological products/services.
Several simulation environments have been set up in order to foresee the machine behaviour in a virtual reality reconstructing the real world operation environment and to bring the due modification optimising the SBC performances.
The reference parts sub-assembly and machine models have been realised with reference to:
- Their shapes and static behaviour in the different operative modes;
- The motion kinematics and dynamics and multi-body analysis.
Finite elements codes allowed the execution of structural elements (machine frame, twin pipe assembly) checks in the worst operative conditions enlightening the critical areas, i.e. zones characterised by high stress concentration and excessive elastic deflection of the structure due to the load conditions and constraints. Moreover, multi-body analysis tools have been used to simulate the machine mechanisms static and dynamic behaviour and to properly size the electric and hydraulic actuators reproducing the real world conditions. New software modules have been specifically developed and integrated within the multi-body tools with the aim of taking into account effects typical of the marine environment and of the application. Simulation models and tests have been mainly focussed on the standing and positioning operative modes introducing suitable working hypotheses neglecting the contribution of the generalised forces that are very small if compared to the most significant ones. The so obtained approximate model result still heavy for the numerous parts involved but has the advantage to be fairly easy to handle and simulations not too much time consuming. Some detailed multi-body models of the diamond wire have been assembled in ADAMS environment and let to foresee the macroscopic and microscopic behaviour of the diamonded tool during cut operations. This result will offer to the cutting machinery designer the knowledge of the dynamic behaviour of different types and configurations of the diamond wire string, making possible to design radical innovative cutting machines, based on the ''a prior'' knowledge of the cutting string physical behaviour. The results of the simulations allow predicting the force distribution on the beads/leg contact surfaces.
Moreover, the models allow foreseeing the force intensification due to the collision of the incoming bead against the cutting surface. Simulation results have been double-checked with experimental assessment performed on the testing bench facility.
The Deploying platform consists of a support platform, a rectangular H-beam/square pipe construction acting as a base for handling the SBC tool and equipped for anchoring the SBC to the bottom soil, and a main frame that acts as a tool base for the twin pipes with tilt function for tool positioning and penetration feed movement for the excavating system.
Under the platform are located suction anchors; two in front and one at the rear end of the platform. The suction anchors are detachable for transportation and for emergency release by ROV. Each suction anchor is equipped with a jet pump powered by the medium pressure system and independently controlled. The jet pumps are placed on the support platform structure close to each suction anchor. The tilt lift is driven by a hydraulic cylinder. Alternative application potentials for the support platform include other applications that need a platform on the seabed.
There has been contact with another company that needs a similar construction for dredging or maintenance of offshore constructions with need of more stability and strength than a ROV can offer.
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