WO2021245091A1

WO2021245091A1 - Thermally insulating sealed tank built into a load-bearing structure

Info

Publication number: WO2021245091A1
Application number: PCT/EP2021/064691
Authority: WO
Inventors: Johan Bougault
Original assignee: Gaztransport Et Technigaz
Priority date: 2020-06-03
Filing date: 2021-06-01
Publication date: 2021-12-09
Also published as: CN115715358A; FR3111178B1; FR3111178A1; JP2023527911A; KR20230019471A

Abstract

A tank wall comprises a thermally insulating barrier attached to the supporting wall and a sealed membrane supported by the thermally insulating barrier, the supporting wall supporting retaining members (21, 22) cooperating with edges of the insulating panels (3) of the row, the retaining members comprising first retaining members (21) arranged at first edges parallel to the first direction, the first retaining members (21) being arranged in line with the strakes (12) straddling the row and the adjacent rows, the retaining members comprising second retaining members (22) arranged at second edges parallel to the second direction, the second retaining members (22) being arranged at a distance from the corners of the insulating panels of the row and in line with the or each strake (11) that rests entirely on the row.

Description

Sealed and thermally insulating tank integrated into a supporting structure

The invention relates to the field of sealed and thermally insulating tanks integrated into a supporting structure for containing a cold fluid, in particular membrane tanks for containing liquefied gases, in particular combustible gases.

Sealed and thermally insulating tanks can be used in different industries to store cold products. For example, in the energy sector, liquefied natural gas (LNG) is a liquid with a high methane content that can be stored at atmospheric pressure at around -163 ° C in terrestrial storage tanks or in on-board tanks. in floating structures. Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) can be stored at a temperature between -50 ° C and 0 ° C.

In the case of a floating structure, the tank may be intended for the transport of liquefied gas or to receive liquefied gas serving as fuel for the propulsion of the floating structure.

Watertight and thermally insulating tanks are known, with membranes, integrated into the double hull of a ship. For example, publication WO-A-2014096600 teaches such a tank in which a thermally insulating barrier comprises a set of heat-insulating elements of generally parallelepiped shape juxtaposed on the supporting structure to form a substantially uniform support surface for the waterproof membrane, and retaining members attached to the supporting structure between the juxtaposed heat-insulating elements and cooperating with the heat-insulating elements to retain the heat-insulating elements against the supporting structure. Each heat-insulating element is retained by four mechanical couplers arranged at the corners of the heat-insulating elements.

This publication indicates that the thermal gradient within the heat insulating elements can cause phenomena of differential expansion within the bonded assemblies of polymer foam with other rigid materials, for example plywood, likely to cause stresses tending to bend the heat insulating elements. .

An object of the invention is to design a tank wall structure, and in particular an insulating barrier structure, offering advantageous properties in terms of thermal insulation, mechanical strength and the support of a tight tight membrane.

For this, the invention provides a sealed and thermally insulating tank integrated into a supporting structure, said tank comprising a tank wall fixed to a supporting wall of the supporting structure,
in which the tank wall comprises a thermally insulating barrier fixed to the load-bearing wall and a waterproof membrane carried by said thermally insulating barrier,
wherein the thermally insulating barrier comprises a plurality of rows parallel to a first direction, a row comprising a plurality of juxtaposed parallelepipedal insulating panels, the rows being juxtaposed in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction in a repeated pattern,
in which the waterproof membrane comprises a plurality of metal strakes parallel to the first direction, a strakes comprising a flat central portion resting on an upper surface of the insulating panels and two raised edges projecting inwardly of the tank with respect to the portion central, the strakes being juxtaposed in the second direction in a repeated pattern and welded together in a sealed manner at the level of the raised edges,
wherein the size of the repeating pattern of the rows is an integer multiple greater than or equal to two of the size of the repeating pattern of the strakes in the second direction, the strakes which rest on a row being arranged so that at least one said strake rests entirely on said row and at least two strakes are arranged straddling the row and two adjacent rows located on either side of said row, the raised edges of said strakes being offset in the second direction with respect to the edges of said row,
and wherein the load-bearing wall carries first and second retainers cooperating with first and second edges of the insulation panels of said row to retain the insulation panels of said row on the load-bearing wall, the first retainers being disposed at the level of first edges, the first edges being parallel to the first direction, the first retaining members being arranged in line with the strakes arranged astride the row and the adjacent rows, the second retaining members being arranged at the level of second edges, the second edges being parallel to the second direction, the second retaining members being arranged at a distance from the corners of the insulating panels of the row and to the right of said or each strake which rests entirely on said row.

Retaining members are thus arranged to the right of each of the strakes which rest on the row, namely the first retaining members to the right of the two strakes arranged straddling the row and the two adjacent rows and the second retaining members to the right of each strake which rests entirely on the row. This arrangement of the retaining members makes it possible to standardize the distribution of the forces exerted on the insulating panels and to limit the defects in the flatness of the support surface that they form for the waterproof membrane. These flatness defects can have various causes, in particular the deformation of the hull under ballast loading. In addition, differential thermal expansion or differential thermal contraction is liable to create slight deformations of the insulation panels in bending, as described in WO-A-2014096600, when the vessel wall is subjected to a temperature gradient in the direction of thickness. By arranging at least the second retaining members at a distance from the corners, rather than at the corners of the insulation panel, the length available to undergo bending is limited, which limits the deflection, that is to say the displacement which results. of this bending in the thickness direction of the vessel wall. This distribution of the retaining members thus makes it possible to reduce the deformation of the insulating panels and the vertical steps between adjacent insulating panels.

This arrangement of the retaining members can be applied to a row or to each row or to a subset of the rows, for example to every other row within the thermally insulating barrier.

According to embodiments, such a tank may include one or more of the following arrangements.

Preferably, the first retainers are disposed at a distance from the corners of the insulating panels in the row.

Likewise, by arranging the first retaining members at a distance from the corners, rather than at the corners of the insulating panel, the length available to undergo bending is limited, which limits the deflection, that is to say the displacement which results from this bending in the thickness direction of the vessel wall.

According to one embodiment, the raised edges of said strakes are offset in the second direction by a distance equal to half the dimension of the repeated pattern of strakes relative to the edges of the row, the second retaining members being distant from the corners. insulating panels of a distance equal to the dimension of the repeated pattern of strakes or to a whole multiple of this dimension.

Thus, the retaining members arranged at the level of the second edges of the insulating panels are in line with a median line of the strakes resting entirely on the row, which standardizes the distribution of the forces exerted on the insulating panels.

According to one embodiment, the dimension of the repeated pattern of the rows is twice the dimension of the repeated pattern of the strakes in the second direction, the second retaining members being arranged in the middle of the second edges.

According to another embodiment, the size of the repeating pattern of the rows is greater than twice the size of the repeating pattern of the strakes in the second direction, and several second retainers mutually spaced a distance equal to the size of the repeating pattern. strakes are arranged along a second edge.

According to one embodiment, the parallelepipedal insulating panels of the row are juxtaposed in a repeated pattern in the first direction, the dimension of the repeated pattern in the first direction is twice the dimension of the repeated pattern of the strakes in the second direction, and first retainers are arranged in the middle of the first edges.

According to another embodiment, the parallelepipedal insulating panels of the row are juxtaposed in a repeated pattern in the first direction, the dimension of the repeated pattern in the first direction is an integer multiple greater than two of the dimension of the repeated pattern of the strakes in the first direction. the second direction, and a plurality of first retainers spaced apart by a distance equal to the size of the repeated pattern of strakes are arranged along a first edge.

Thanks to these arrangements, the retaining members can be distributed in the form of a regular network on the load-bearing wall, for example in the form of a network of the cubic family with a centered face, which facilitates construction and standardizes the distribution of the forces exerted on the insulating panels and on the waterproof membrane that they support.

Parallelepipedal insulating panels can have various structures. According to one embodiment, the parallelepipedal insulating panels have a square shape. According to one embodiment, an insulating panel comprises a base plate resting against the load-bearing wall, for example by means of cords of polymerizable mastic, a cover plate parallel to the base plate and a layer of insulating polymer foam taken. sandwiched between the bottom plate and the cover plate. According to one embodiment, an intermediate plate parallel to the bottom plate is interposed in the thickness of the layer of insulating polymer foam and divides it into two layers. Such a structure is advantageous in that it makes it possible to limit the bending forces generated by the differential contraction of the materials of the insulating panel.

Thanks to the cords of polymerizable mastic, the flatness of the parallelepipedal insulating panel is improved and its carrying is ensured. In one embodiment, a non-adhesive sheet is inserted between the load-bearing wall and the beads of polymerizable mastic to prevent the beads of polymerizable mastic from adhering to the load-bearing wall. Conversely, in another embodiment, this non-adhesive sheet is omitted so that the parallelepipedal insulating panels are glued to the bearing wall by means of cords of polymerizable mastic.

The retainers can be made in different ways. According to one embodiment, the second retaining member comprises an axis rod fixed perpendicularly to the supporting wall in a gap between two parallelepipedal insulating panels of the row and an elongated attachment piece having a central part mounted to pivot on the rod. axle and two end portions extending transversely to the axle rod on either side thereof, the attachment piece being pivotable between a release position in which the attachment piece is oriented parallel to the second direction and a retaining position in which the attachment piece is oriented parallel or obliquely to the first direction, said two parallelepipedal insulating panels having lateral housings for receiving the end portions of the attachment piece in the retaining position, so that the attachment in the retaining position stops the two parallelepiped insulating panels ic in the direction of the thickness of the vessel wall.

According to one embodiment, the first retaining member comprises an axis rod fixed perpendicularly to the load-bearing wall in a gap between two rows and an elongated attachment piece having a central part mounted to pivot on the axis rod and two end portions extending transversely to the axle rod on either side thereof, the attachment piece being pivotable between a release position in which the attachment piece is oriented parallel to the first direction and a retaining position in which the attachment piece is oriented parallel or obliquely to the second direction, two parallelepipedal insulating panels located on either side of the gap having lateral housings to receive the end parts of the the attachment piece in the retaining position, so that the attachment in the retaining position stops the two parallelepipedal insulation panels in s the direction of thickness of the vessel wall.

In one embodiment, the end portions of the attachment piece in the retaining position cooperate with an upper surface of a bottom plate of the parallelepipedal insulation panels.

According to one embodiment, the axle rod also carries a nut screwed onto an end portion of the axle rod opposite the bearing wall and elastic washers arranged between the nut and the central part of the part. attachment.

According to one embodiment, anchoring wings anchored to the insulating panels and parallel to the first direction are arranged between the juxtaposed strakes to retain the waterproof membrane on the insulating barrier.

According to one embodiment, the thermally insulating barrier is a secondary insulating barrier and the waterproof membrane is a secondary waterproof membrane, the vessel wall further comprising a primary waterproof membrane intended to be in contact with a product contained in the vessel and a primary insulating barrier arranged between the primary waterproof membrane and the secondary waterproof membrane.

According to one embodiment, the first and second retaining members are first and second secondary retaining members, the tank further comprising primary retaining members placed on the insulating panels of said row at locations located on at least the one of a first line parallel to the first direction and located in line with at least one said second secondary retaining member and a second line parallel to the second direction and located in line with at least one said first secondary retaining member. The primary retainers are preferably placed at the intersections of the first and second lines.

Such a tank can be part of an onshore storage installation, a storage installation placed on a seabed, for example to store LNG or be installed in a floating, coastal or deep-water structure, in particular an LNG vessel, a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU), a floating production and remote storage unit (FPSO) and others.

According to one embodiment, a ship for transporting a cold liquid product comprises a double hull and a above-mentioned tank integrated into the double hull. According to one embodiment, the double shell comprises an internal shell forming the supporting structure of the tank.

According to one embodiment, the invention also provides a method of loading or unloading such a ship, in which a cold liquid product is conveyed through insulated pipes from or to a floating or terrestrial storage installation to or from the vessel tank.

According to one embodiment, the invention also provides a transfer system for a cold liquid product, the system comprising the aforementioned vessel, insulated pipes arranged so as to connect the tank installed in the hull of the vessel to a floating storage installation. or terrestrial and a pump for driving a flow of cold liquid product through the insulated pipes from or towards the floating or terrestrial storage installation towards or from the vessel of the vessel.

The invention will be better understood, and other aims, details, characteristics and advantages thereof will emerge more clearly during the following description of several particular embodiments of the invention, given solely by way of illustration and not by way of limitation. , with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The is a schematic top view of a tank wall according to a first embodiment.

The is an enlarged perspective view of a mechanical coupler of the vessel wall of the in a restrained position.

The is a view analogous to showing the mechanical coupler in a release position.

The is a perspective view of a tank wall according to a second embodiment, the waterproof membrane being omitted.

The is a cutaway perspective view of a vessel wall according to a third embodiment.

The is a cut-away schematic representation of an LNG vessel tank and a loading / unloading terminal for this tank.

The shows a sealed and thermally insulating tank wall 1 in top view to show the structure of this wall. Such a structure can be implemented over large surfaces having various orientations, for example to cover the bottom, ceiling and side walls of a polyhedral tank. The orientation of the is therefore not limiting in this regard.

The vessel wall 1 is attached to a supporting wall 2. By convention, a position located closer to the interior of the tank will be called “above” and a position located closer to the supporting wall 2 “below”. regardless of the orientation of the tank wall with respect to the earth's gravity field.

The vessel wall comprises at least one insulating barrier and a waterproof membrane 10 (which is shown partially transparent on the as a didactic measure) retained on top of the insulating barrier. The insulating barrier consists of a plurality of parallelepipedal insulating panels 3 which are arranged side by side, in the form of several rows A, B parallel to each other, so as to substantially cover the internal surface of the supporting wall 2. To allow the flatness of the waterproof membrane 10, the beads of mastic 29 (shown in the ) are installed between the load-bearing wall 2 and the lower surface of the insulating panels 3. These cords of mastic 29 are for example glued to the lower surface of the insulating panel 3. According to one embodiment, the cords of mastic can be corrugated cords. as described in FR-A-2931535. Wedges, not shown, can also be provided on the supporting wall 2 to support the corners of the insulating panels 3.

The insulating panel 3 comprises for example a block of foam 42 made of high density polymer, in particular polyurethane with or without glass fibers, sandwiched between two flat plates, for example made of plywood, namely base plate 41 and base plate. cover 44. For example, the foam block has a density of the order of 130 kg / m ³ . Other structures are also possible.

Rows A and B of the insulation panels 3 extend in a first direction and are separated by a gap 4 which also extends in the first direction. Within row B, the insulating panels 3 are separated in a substantially regular manner by interstices 5 which extend in a second direction. The insulating panels 3 have two edges parallel to the first direction and along which the first retaining members 21 are arranged. The insulating panels 3 have two edges parallel to the second direction and along which the second retaining members 22 are arranged.

According to one embodiment, the beads of mastic 29 do not adhere to the supporting wall 2. For this, a film, not shown, for example made of kraft paper or plastic, is interposed between the beads of mastic 29 and the supporting wall 2. The retaining

members

21 and 22 are here arranged four in number per insulating panel 3 and serve to retain the insulating panels 3 to the supporting wall 2. They can be produced in different ways.

According to another embodiment, the cords of mastic 29 also adhere to the bearing wall 2 to retain the insulating panels 3 by gluing. In this case, the retaining

members

21 and 22 serve to retain the insulating panels 3 to the supporting wall 2 in a redundant manner with the aforementioned bonding, but above all during the period of polymerization of the mastic during the manufacture of the tank.

The waterproof membrane 10 comprises a continuous ply of

strakes

11, 12, metallic, with raised edges, the length of which corresponds to the first direction and the width of which corresponds to the second direction. The

strakes

11, 12 are welded by their raised edges on welding supports not shown which are fixed in the grooves 13 formed on the cover plates 44 of the insulating panels 3. The strakes 21 are, for example, made of Invar ®: that is to say an alloy of iron and nickel, the coefficient of expansion of which is typically between 1.2.10 ^-6 and 2.10 ^-6 K ^-1 . It is also possible to use alloys of iron and manganese, the coefficient of expansion of which is typically of the order of 7 to 9.10 ^-6 K ^-1 .

The insulating barrier can be built on surfaces of any size by periodically repeating the rows of insulating panels A, B and the

metal strakes

11 and 12 in the second direction. In the first direction, the rows of insulation boards A, B and the

metal strakes

11 and 12 can extend to any length, as needed. As the dimension of the periodic pattern of rows A, B is equal to twice the width of a

strake

11, 12 and the longitudinal edges of the

strakes

11, 12 are offset by half the width in the second direction with respect to edges of rows A, B, it follows that a row A is covered by a strake 11 which rests entirely on it and two strakes 12 which rest astride row A and the two adjacent rows. Only the adjacent row B is shown here.

As a variant, the offset of the

strakes

11, 12 could be different from a half-width, but this offset cannot be zero in order to be able to produce the grooves 13.

By placing the retaining

members

21 and 22 in the middle of the four edges of the insulating panels 3, which here have a square section, the advantage is obtained that a substantially equal number of retaining members is located in line with each of the strakes. 11 and 12.

In addition, compared to an anchoring made at the four corners of the insulating panel 3, the anchoring by the retaining

members

21 and 22 arranged in the middle of the edges of the insulating panel 3 has the advantage of limiting the length of the panel liable to flex. under the effect of ballast loading and / or thermal gradient. This length is here limited to the distance between a retaining

member

21 or 22 and a wedge, ie the half-length of the side. Conversely, the distance between two retainers is the entire length of the side if the retainers are arranged at the corners of the insulating panel 3.

If the dimension of the insulating panel 3 in the second direction (width direction of strakes 11, 12) is larger, for example increased by a strake width, there will be a second strake 11 resting entirely on the row. In this case, several retaining members 22 can be provided that are mutually spaced along the edge of the insulating panel 3, in order to always position a retaining member 22 in line with each of the strakes 11 resting entirely on the row.

With reference to Figures 2 and 3, an embodiment of the

retainers

21 and 22 in the form of a mechanical coupler is described below.

This mechanical coupler comprises a threaded rod 31 which extends perpendicularly to the bearing wall 2 and the lower end of which is housed in a sleeve 30, optionally forming a ball, itself welded to the bearing wall 2. The threaded rod 31 could also be directly welded to the load-bearing wall 2.

On the rod 31 are successively engaged a retaining part 32, pivoting, elastic washers 34 and a nut 33, produced in the form of a split nut to prevent its loosening by vibrations. On the , the retaining part 32 is oriented parallel to the

gap

4 or 5 in which the coupler is arranged, and it therefore does not cooperate with the insulating panels 3. In the retaining position illustrated on the figure , the retainer 32 has been rotated approximately 90 ° around the rod 31, which constitutes an axis engaged through the central portion 36, so that the end tab 35 of the retainer 32 has entered into a housing 43 of the insulating panel 3 to stop the latter in the thickness direction. If the retainer 32 is symmetrical as shown, the second end tab 35 of the retainer 32 can achieve the same effect for a second insulating panel 3 (not shown) located on the other side of the gap.

Here the housing 43 is a groove machined in the foam block 42 and which uncovers an upper surface of the bottom panel 41. Thus the end tab 35 has a flat shape parallel with the bottom panel 41 and can engage with it. this on a sufficient surface to avoid degrading it by punching.

With reference to the , there is shown a second embodiment of the insulating barrier. Here, the housings for receiving the end tabs 35 of the retaining part 32 are made in the form of wells 143 passing through the entire thickness of the foam block 42 and of the cover plate 44. Thus, the locking of the insulating panel 3 is carried out here, not by pivoting of the retaining part 32, but by bringing the latter from above onto the rod 31. The well 143 then makes it possible to bring and tighten the nut 33 on the rod 31.

The also shows a series of beads of mastic 29 arranged on the supporting wall 2 at the location of an insulating panel 3. This representation is didactic and does not necessarily correspond to the way in which the beads of mastic 29 are mounted in the tank.

The technique described above for producing a tank wall having a single waterproof membrane can also be used in different types of tanks, for example to constitute a double membrane tank for liquefied natural gas (LNG) in an onshore installation or in a tank. floating structure such as an LNG carrier or other. In this context, it can be considered that the waterproof membrane 10 illustrated in the preceding figures is a secondary waterproof membrane, and that a primary insulating barrier as well as a primary waterproof membrane, not shown, must still be added to this secondary waterproof membrane. . In this way, this technique can also be applied to tanks having a plurality of thermally insulating barrier and superimposed waterproof membranes.

For this, the and the also show primary retainers 46 which may optionally be provided on the cover panels 44 to be able to secure the primary insulating barrier. More precisely, the shows a first line I parallel to the first direction and located to the right of the retaining members 22 and a second line II parallel to the second direction and located to the right of the retaining members 21. As illustrated, the primary retaining members 46 are located preferably on the cover panels 44 at the intersection of lines I and II. It will be understood that a series of parallel lines I can be drawn in the same way on several successive rows. It will be understood that a series of parallel lines II can be traced in the same way on several successive insulating panels in a row.

Alternatively, the primary retaining members can be positioned at another location on the insulating panels 3, for example on lines I or on lines II.

A third embodiment of the flat vessel wall, more particularly suitable for a double membrane vessel, will now be described with reference to .

On the , there is shown in cut-away view the multilayer structure of a sealed and thermally insulating tank wall 101. Elements similar or identical to the previous embodiments bear the same reference numeral and will not be described again.

A primary insulating barrier 53 made up of primary insulating panels 54 has been added on the secondary membrane formed of

strakes

11, 12 and solder supports 55. A primary waterproof membrane 51 has been added on the primary insulating barrier 53. Other details of the primary insulating barrier 53 and / or of the primary waterproof membrane 51 can be found, for example, in publication WO-A-2019234360.

With reference to the , a cutaway view of an LNG carrier 70 shows a sealed and insulated tank 71 of generally prismatic shape mounted in the double hull 72 of the ship. The wall of the vessel 71 comprises a primary sealed barrier intended to be in contact with the liquefied gas contained in the vessel, a secondary sealed barrier arranged between the primary sealed barrier and the double hull 72 of the vessel, and two insulating barriers arranged respectively between the primary watertight barrier and the secondary watertight barrier and between the secondary watertight barrier and the double hull 72. In a simplified variant, the ship has a single hull.

In a manner known per se, loading / unloading pipes 73 arranged on the upper deck of the ship can be connected, by means of suitable connectors, to a maritime or port terminal for transferring a cargo of liquefied gas from or to the tank 71.

The shows an example of a maritime terminal comprising a loading and unloading station 75, an underwater pipe 76 and an onshore installation 77. The loading and unloading station 75 is a fixed off-shore installation comprising a movable arm 74 and a tower 78 which supports the movable arm 74. The movable arm 74 carries a bundle of insulated flexible pipes 79 which can be connected to the loading / unloading pipes 73. The movable arm 74 can be swiveled and adapts to all sizes of LNG carriers. A connecting pipe, not shown, extends inside the tower 78. The loading and unloading station 75 allows the loading and unloading of the LNG carrier 70 from or to the onshore installation 77. The latter comprises liquefied gas storage tanks 80 and connecting pipes 81 connected by the underwater pipe 76 to the loading or unloading station 75. The underwater pipe 76 allows the transfer of the liquefied gas between the loading or unloading station 75 and the installation on land 77 over a great distance, for example 5 km, which makes it possible to keep the LNG carrier 70 at a great distance from the coast during loading and unloading operations.

To generate the pressure necessary for the transfer of the liquefied gas, pumps on board the ship 70 and / or pumps fitted to the shore installation 77 and / or pumps fitted to the loading and unloading station 75 are used.

Although the invention has been described in connection with several particular embodiments, it is obvious that it is in no way limited thereto and that it comprises all the technical equivalents of the means described as well as their combinations if these come within the scope of the invention.

The use of the verb "to include", "to understand" or "to include" and its conjugates does not exclude the presence of other elements or other steps than those set out in a claim. The use of the indefinite article "a" or "a" for an element or a stage does not exclude, unless otherwise indicated, the presence of a plurality of such elements or stages.

In the claims, any reference sign in parentheses cannot be interpreted as a limitation of the claim.

Claims

Sealed and thermally insulating tank integrated into a supporting structure, said tank comprising a tank wall (1, 101) fixed to a supporting wall (2) of the supporting structure,
in which the tank wall comprises a thermally insulating barrier fixed to the load-bearing wall and a waterproof membrane carried by said thermally insulating barrier,
wherein the thermally insulating barrier comprises a plurality of rows (A, B, C) parallel to a first direction, a row comprising a plurality of parallelepipedal insulating panels (3) juxtaposed, the rows being juxtaposed in a second direction perpendicular to the first direction in a repeated pattern,
wherein the waterproof membrane comprises a plurality of metal strakes (11, 12) parallel to the first direction, a strakes (11, 12) comprising a flat central portion resting on an upper surface of the insulating panels and two raised edges projecting towards the 'inside the tank with respect to the central portion, the strakes being juxtaposed in the second direction in a repeated pattern and welded together in a sealed manner at the level of the raised edges,
wherein the size of the repeating pattern of the rows is an integer multiple greater than or equal to two of the size of the repeating pattern of the strakes in the second direction, the strakes which rest on a row being arranged so that at least one said strake ( 11) rests entirely on said row and at least two strakes (12) are arranged straddling the row and two adjacent rows located on either side of said row, the raised edges of said strakes being offset in the second direction with respect to at the edges of said row,
and wherein the supporting wall carries first and second retaining members (21, 22) cooperating with first and second edges of the insulation panels (3) of said row to retain the insulation panels of said row on the supporting wall, the first retaining members (21) being arranged at the level of the first edges, the first edges being parallel to the first direction, the first retaining members (21) being arranged in line with the strakes (12) arranged straddling the row and the rows adjacent, the second retainers (22) being disposed at the second edges, the second edges being parallel to the second direction, the second retainers (22) being disposed at a distance from the corners of the insulation panels of the row and at right of said or each strake (11) which rests entirely on said row.
Tank according to Claim 1, in which the first retaining members (21) are arranged at a distance from the corners of the insulating panels (3) of the row.
Tank according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the raised edges of said strakes (11, 12) are offset in the second direction by a distance equal to half the dimension of the repeated pattern of strakes relative to the edges of the row, the second retaining members (22) being spaced from the corners of the insulating panels by a distance equal to the dimension of the repeated pattern of the strakes or to an integer multiple of this dimension.
Tank according to one of claims 1 to 3, in which the dimension of the repeated pattern of the rows (A, B, C) is twice the dimension of the repeated pattern of the strakes (11, 12) in the second direction, the second members retainer (22) being arranged in the middle of the second edges.
Tank according to one of claims 1 to 3, in which the dimension of the repeating pattern of the rows is greater than twice the dimension of the repeating pattern of the strakes in the second direction, and in which a plurality of second retaining members mutually spaced apart at distance equal to the dimension of the repeated pattern strakes are arranged along a second edge.
Tank according to one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the parallelepipedal insulating panels (3) of the row are juxtaposed in a repeated pattern in the first direction, wherein the dimension of the repeated pattern in the first direction is twice the dimension of the repeated pattern of strakes (11, 12) in the second direction, and in which the first retaining members (21) are arranged in the middle of the first edges.
Tank according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the parallelepipedal insulating panels (3) have a square shape.
Tank according to one of claims 1 to 7, in which the second retaining member (22) comprises an axis rod (30, 31) fixed perpendicularly to the supporting wall (2) in a gap (5) between two panels parallelepiped insulators (3) of the row and an elongated attachment piece (32) having a central part (36) pivotally mounted on the axle rod and two end parts (35) extending transversely to the rod d 'axis on either side thereof, the attachment piece (32) being pivotable between a release position in which the attachment piece is oriented parallel to the second direction and a retaining position in which the attachment piece is oriented parallel or obliquely to the first direction, said two parallelepipedal insulating panels (3) having lateral housings (43, 143) for receiving the end parts (35) of the attachment piece in the position retainer, so that the part The attachment (32) in the retaining position stops the two parallelepipedal insulating panels in the thickness direction of the vessel wall.
Tank according to one of claims 1 to 8, in which the first retaining member (21) comprises an axis rod (30, 31) fixed perpendicularly to the supporting wall (2) in a gap (4) between two rows (A, B) and an elongated attachment piece (32) having a central portion (36) pivotally mounted on the axle rod and two end parts (35) extending transversely to the axle rod. on either side thereof, the attachment piece being pivotable between a release position in which the attachment piece (32) is oriented parallel to the first direction and a retaining position in which the attachment piece (32) is oriented parallel to the first direction. attachment is oriented parallel or obliquely to the second direction, two parallelepipedal insulating panels (3) located on either side of the gap (4) having lateral housings (43, 143) to receive the end parts (35 ) of the attachment part in the retaining position, so that the part attachment (32) in the retaining position stops the two parallelepiped insulating panels in the thickness direction of the vessel wall.
A vessel according to any of claims 8 and 9, wherein the end portions (35) of the attachment part in the retaining position cooperate with an upper surface of a bottom plate (41) of the insulation boards. parallelepipedic (3).
Tank according to any one of claims 8 to 10, wherein the axle rod (30, 31) further carries a nut (33) screwed onto an end portion of the axle rod opposite to the supporting wall and spring washers (34) arranged between the nut (33) and the central part (36) of the attachment piece.
Tank according to one of claims 1 to 11, in which anchoring wings (51) anchored to the insulating panels and parallel to the first direction are arranged between the strakes (11, 12) juxtaposed to retain the waterproof membrane on the barrier insulating.
Tank according to one of claims 1 to 12, in which the thermally insulating barrier is a secondary insulating barrier and the waterproof membrane is a secondary waterproof membrane, the vessel wall further comprising a primary waterproof membrane (51) intended to be in contact with a product contained in the tank and a primary insulating barrier (53) arranged between the primary waterproof membrane and the secondary waterproof membrane (10).
Tank according to claim 13, wherein the first and second retainers (21, 22) are first and second secondary retainers, the vessel further comprising primary retainers placed on the insulating panels (3) of said vessel. row at locations located on at least one of a first line (A) parallel to the first direction and located in line with a said second secondary retainer (22) and a second line (B) parallel to the second direction and located in line with a said first secondary retaining member (21).
A vessel (70) for transporting a fluid, the vessel comprising a double hull (72) and a tank (71) according to any one of claims 1 to 14 integrated in the double hull (72).
A transfer system for a fluid, the system comprising a vessel (70) according to claim 15, insulated pipelines (73, 79, 76, 81) arranged to connect the vessel (71) to a floating storage facility or terrestrial (77) and a pump for driving a fluid through insulated pipelines from or towards the floating or terrestrial storage facility to or from the vessel of the vessel.
A method of loading or unloading a ship (70) according to claim 15, wherein a fluid is conveyed through insulated pipelines (73, 79, 76, 81) from or to a floating or onshore storage facility (77) to or from the vessel (71).