EP0032086B1 - Water pumping installation with a regulable floating water intake - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a pumping installation for pumping water on a site likely to present a significant tidal range, comprising a pumping device located on the ground, a floating head of water intake and a pipe system connecting the floating head of water intake to the pumping apparatus, the piping system comprising a ground pipe connected to the pumping apparatus and a flexible and flexible cuff which connects said floating head to the ground pipe and which allows a vertical movement of said floating head as a result of a variation in the water level, said floating head comprising a suction chamber with a water inlet opening and a sealed box forming a float, which is mounted above above the suction chamber.

FR-A-1 283 671 already discloses a pumping installation of the above-mentioned type. It is an installation intended for the depletion of water in mines, quarries, excavations and others, in which the strainer, i.e. the intake head, is designed to be able to float in a vertical position in the liquid being pumped. However, in this known installation, no means are provided for adjusting the level or the depth at which the water inlet opening of the water intake head operates below the level of the water.

• - distance minimum d'enfoncement de la tête de prise d'eau proprement dite par rapport à la surface de l'eau d'environ 1,50 mètre pour éviter d'aspirer les corps flottants,
• - niveau minimum de la tête de prise d'eau par rapport au fond déterminé pour éviter d'aspirer des matériaux constitutifs du fond marin ou du lit de la rivière.

However, certain pumping installations intended to be used on a site likely to present a significant tidal range, of the order of six meters, must meet the following requirements:

• - minimum insertion distance of the water intake head itself from the surface of the water of about 1.50 meters to avoid sucking the floating bodies,
• - minimum level of the water intake head relative to the determined bottom to avoid sucking up materials constituting the seabed or the river bed.

Furthermore, from patent DE-B-1 528 871, a water pumping installation is known in which the water intake head is immersed at a determined and adjustable depth under a float which also supports the pumping. However, this second known installation is not satisfactory insofar as it requires a large float to be able to also support the pumping apparatus. This drawback is all the more annoying for large power installations which would then impose, because of the weight and volume of the water intake head and of the pumping apparatus, a very large float which is difficult to anchor in certain sites due to its disproportionate dimensions.

Furthermore, in this second known installation, the depth at which the water intake head operates below the water level, is adjusted by means of telescopic arms which connect said head and the pumping apparatus to the float. . Such an adjustment technique is also not satisfactory insofar as it calls upon mechanical members which are subject to corrosion and to various incrustations, especially in the marine environment.

The present invention aims to provide a water pumping installation meeting the above-mentioned requirements, without having the drawbacks of the second known installation.

To this end, the water pumping installation according to the invention is characterized in that the floating head comprises means for adjusting its level of flotation by varying its weight in the water, so that, in operation , its water inlet opening remains at the desired depth below the water level regardless of the water level.

According to one embodiment of the invention, said adjustment means may comprise a ballast compartment providing a fixed ballasting function, and at least one other sealed box capable of receiving through a filling orifice a mass of ballast having a weight which is chosen to determine the desired level of buoyancy of said floating head. The suction chamber has an elongated cross section and has an upper wall, a lower wall and two side walls, an open front end, which forms said water inlet opening, and an open rear end, which is connected to a rigid evacuation pipe which is itself connected, at its rear end, to the flexible cuff. A grille can be mounted at the open front end of the suction chamber. The waterproof case forming a float is fixed to the upper wall of the suction chamber, the ballast compartment is fixed to the lower wall of said chamber and another waterproof case is fixed to each of the two side walls of the chamber.

The suction chamber is preferably shaped like a pyramid trunk with a rectangular base, to cause a gradual acceleration of the speed of flow of the water.

For example, the entrance to the suction chamber is 2 m high for immersion at a depth of 1.50 m, the water suction speed is 0.50 m / s to the grid to avoid sucking the floating bodies and reaches 2.40 m / s in the evacuation pipe so that the settling of sand or mud is reduced.

• La figure 1 montre en élévation latérale une vue d'ensemble de la tête de prise d'eau, de la manchette souple et du départ de la canalisation à terre de l'installation de pompage.
• La figure 2 montre à plus grande échelle la tête de prise d'eau vue en coupe faite suivant la ligne II-Il de la figure 3.
• Les figures 3 et 4 sont respectivement des vues de face et de dessus correspondantes.

A preferred embodiment of the water pumping installation which is the subject of the present invention will be described in more detail below, for reference, with reference to the appended drawing, in which:

• Figure 1 shows in side elevation an overview of the water intake head, the flexible cuff and the start of the earth pipe from the pumping installation.
• FIG. 2 shows on a larger scale the water intake head seen in section made along line II-II of FIG. 3.
• Figures 3 and 4 are respectively front and corresponding top views.

FIG. 1 shows a floating water intake head 1 secured to its rigid discharge pipe 2, itself connected to the earth pipe 3 by a flexible and flexible cuff 4.

The head of the water intake has a suction chamber 5 (FIG. 2) of generally truncated pyramid shape, the side facing the water is provided with grids 6 and the opposite side extended by a rigid discharge pipe. 2.

The suction chamber 5 is surmounted by a waterproof box shaped as a float 7, its lower part supports a ballast compartment 8 and its lateral faces each carry a waterproof box 9 (FIG. 3) intended to be more or less ballasted according to the buoyancy level sought for the head; these boxes 9 have for this purpose a filling orifice 10 at their top (Figure 4).

The vertical guiding of the water intake head according to the drawdown, necessary to resist the force of the current, is ensured by two concrete piles 11 anchored to the ground respectively on either side of the head, the latter having the along its lateral faces a sliding surface preferably constituted by a shoe 12 in oak.

To overcome any risk of tilting, the water intake head is guyed by a tube 13 rigidly connecting its upper end to the rear end of its discharge pipe 2.

It is, of course, moreover that many modifications can be made to the embodiment of the water intake head which has been described above, with reference to the appended drawing, without departing from the scope of the present invention, the scope of protection of which is determined by the content of the claims; thus in particular that its vertical guidance could be achieved, instead of the above-mentioned piles 11, by chains connecting said head to the bank.

Claims (8)

1. Pumping installation for pumping water at a site which is subject to substantial variation in water level, comprising a pumping apparatus situated on land, a buoyant water-inlet head (1) and a pipe system (3, 4) connecting the buoyant water-inlet head (1) to the pumping apparatus, the pipe system (3, 4) comprising a pipe (3) to land connected to the pumping apparatus and a flexible and pliable sleeve which joins said buoyant head (1) to the land pipe (3) and which allows a vertical movement of said buoyant head (1) caused by a variation in the water level, said buoyant head (1) comprising an intake chamber (5) with a water-inlet opening and a water-tight casing (7) forming a float which is disposed above the intake chamber (5), characterised in that the buoyant head (1) comprises means for adjusting its flotation level by variation of its weight in the water, in such a way that, in operation, its water-inlet opening remains at the desired depth beneath the water level, whatever the water level may be.

2. Pumping installation according to Claim 1, characterised in that said adjusting means (8, 9, 10) comprise a ballast compartment (8) ensuring a fixed ballasting function, and at least another watertight casing (9) able to receive through a filling orifice (10) a quantity of ballast having a weight which is selected so as to determine the desired flotation level of said buoyant head (1).

3. Pumping installation according to Claim 2, characterised in that the intake chamber (5) has a cross-section of oblong shape and comprises an upper wall, a lower wall and two side walls, an open front end which forms said water-inlet opening, and an open rear end which is connected to a rigid outlet pipe (2) which is itself connected, at its rear end, to the pliable sleeve (4), in that a grille (6) is fitted at the open front end of the intake chamber (5), and in that the watertight casing (7) forming a float is fixed to the upper wall of the intake chamber (5), the ballast compartment (8) is fixed to the lower wall of said chamber (5) and another watertight casing (9) is fixed to each of the two side walls of the chamber (5).

4. Pumping installation according to Claim 3, characterised in that said intake chamber (5) has approximately the shape of a truncated pyramid with rectangular base.

5. Pumping installation according to any one of Claims 1 to 4, characterised in that it further comprises guide means (11, 12) associated with the buoyant head (1) for guiding its vertical movement caused by variations in the water level and for resisting the transverse forces of water currents.

6. Pumping installation according to Claim 5, characterised in that the guide means (11, 12) comprise two concrete piles (11) respectively disposed on either side of the buoyant head (1), and slides (12) which are fixed to the buoyant head (1) on either side thereof and which are in sliding contact respectively with the two piles (11).

7. Pumping installation according to Claim 5, characterised in that the guide means are constituted by chains which connect the buoyant head (1) to land.

8. Pumping installation according to any one of Claims 3 to 7, characterised in that a bracing tube (13) rigidly connects the upper part of the buoyant head (1) to the rear end of the outlet pipe (2).

Images