SYSTEM FOR CURING AND/OR INSPECTING A PIPELINE LINING AND METHOD FOR CURING AND/OR INSPECTING A PIPELINE LINING

Abstract

The invention relates to a system (10) for curing and/or inspecting a pipeline lining (30) positioned in a pipeline (20), the pipeline lining (30) comprising an outer plastics material layer and an inner fiber composite layer, the fiber composite layer comprising a plastics material which is to be cured and/or which is at least partially cured. In accordance with the invention, the system (10) comprises at least one high-frequency unit (40) which comprises at least one microwave-generator unit (41) and at least one microwave-transmitting antenna (42) for curing a plastics material which is to be cured, at least the at least one microwave-transmitting antenna (42) being movable in the pipeline (20) by means of a transporting device (60).

Claims

1. A system for curing and/or inspecting a pipeline lining positioned in a pipeline, the pipeline lining comprising an outer plastics material layer and an inner fiber composite layer, the fiber composite layer comprising a plastics material which is to be cured and/or which is at least partially cured, characterised by at least one high-frequency unit which comprises at least one microwave-generator unit and at least one microwave-transmitting antenna for curing a plastics material which is to be cured, at least the at least one microwave-transmitting antenna being movable in the pipeline by means of a transporting device.

2. The system according to claim 1 characterised in that the high-frequency unit comprises at least two microwave-generator units, especially at least three microwave-generator units, especially at least four microwave-generator units and/or the at least one microwave-generator unit generates 100-1000 W of microwave power, and/or the high-frequency unit comprises at least three microwave-transmitting antennas.

3. The system according to claim 1, characterised in that the high-frequency unit comprises at least one solid-state microwave-generator unit.

4. The system according to claim 1, characterised by at least one infrared sensor and/or at least one temperature sensor and/or at least one pressure sensor and/or at least one moisture sensor and/or at least one position sensor and/or at least one travel measurement sensor and/or at least one gyro sensor.

5. The system according to claim 1, characterised in that the transporting device comprises at least one front portion and one rear portion, the front portion and the rear portion being able to be structurally separate from one another.

6. The system according to claim 5, characterised in that the front portion and/or the rear portion comprises at least two, preferably at least three leg elements, which are preferably prestressed by means of a spring.

7. The system according to claim 5, characterised by at least one camera, preferably with a lighting unit which is formed in the region of the front portion, and/or at least one camera, preferably with a lighting unit which is formed in the region of the rear portion.

8. The system according to claim 1, characterised in that the transporting device has at least one traction wire, at least one fastening device being configured for attachment of the traction wire.

9. The system according to claim 8, characterised by a position-determining unit, which is preferably a LIDAR system and/or an ultrasound system and/or an image acquisition unit and/or an encoder on the traction wire of the transporting device, and/or a diameter-sensing unit, especially an optical diameter-sensing unit or an ultrasound diameter-sensing unit.

10. The system according to claim 1, characterised in that the plastics material to be cured is a thermally curing plastics material, especially an epoxy resin or an unsaturated polyester resin (UP resin) or a vinyl ester (VE) and/or the pipeline lining is hose-like and/or the fiber composite layer comprises glass fibers.

11. The system according to claim 1, characterised in that the at least one microwave-transmitting antenna is a slot antenna or a monopole antenna or a patch antenna or a dipole antenna or a horn radiator.

12. The system according to claim 1, characterised in that the at least one microwave-transmitting antenna is actuated or actuatable by a radiation-emitting control unit.

13. The system according to claim 1, characterised by a plurality of microwave-transmitting antennas, which are actuated or actuatable separately from one another by at least one radiation-emitting control unit.

14. The system according to claim 1, characterised by a recording unit for storing ambient parameters and/or the energy consumption and/or process sequence data.

15. The system according to claim 1, characterised by at least one air-cooling unit.

16. A method for curing and/or inspecting a pipeline lining positioned in a pipeline, wherein the pipeline lining comprises an outer plastics material layer and an inner fiber composite layer, wherein the fiber composite layer comprises a plastics material which is to be cured and/or which is at least partially cured, wherein the method is performed using a system according to claim 1 and at least parts of the system are introduced into the pipeline in such a way that these parts of the system are surrounded by the pipeline lining, especially spaced apart therefrom, wherein the plastics material of the fiber composite layer is cured on account of the microwaves emitted by the at least one microwave-transmitting antenna and/or the at least partially cured plastics material is inspected in respect of its degree of cross-linking.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterised in that the degree of curing of the plastics material which is to be cured is set by controlling the at least one microwave-transmitting antenna by means of a radiation-emitting control unit.

18. The method according to claim 16, characterised in that the frequency and/or microwave energy of the microwaves emitted by the at least one microwave-transmitting antenna is set and/or controlled depending on the detected ambient parameters.

19. The method according to claim 16, characterised in that the degree of cross-linking of the at least partially cured plastics material is determined by means of an infrared sensor and the detection of the temperature change of the plastics material being cured.

20. The method according to claim 16, characterised in that the diameter values of the pipeline and/or of the pipeline lining are determined by means of a diameter-sensing unit.

21. The method according to claim 16, characterised in that a two-stage, especially a three-stage heating process is performed by means of at least one microwave-transmitting antenna, preferably by means of a plurality of microwave-transmitting antennas.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterised in that the two-stage especially three-stage heating process is controlled depending on detected ambient parameters and/or depending on detected exothermic energy and/or depending on a/the detected degree of cross-linking of the at least partially cured plastics material.

23. The method according to claim 16, characterised in that a plurality of microwave-transmitting antennas are actuated separately from one another.

Description

[0109] The invention will be explained in greater detail hereinafter on the basis of an exemplary embodiment with reference to the appended schematic drawing.

[0110] FIG. 1 shows a possible embodiment of the system 10 according to the invention for curing and/or inspecting a pipeline lining. The system 10 according to the invention according to the FIGURE is already located in the pipeline 20. In addition, a pipeline lining 30 is already located in the pipeline 20.

[0111] The pipeline lining 30 bears against the inner face of the pipeline 20. The pipeline lining 30 consists in turn of an outer plastics material layer and an inner fiber composite layer. The fiber composite layer comprises a plastics material which is to be cured and/or which is at least partially cured.

[0112] In the shown example, a pipeline module corresponds to the entire system 10.

[0113] The system 10 comprises at least one high-frequency unit 40, which in turn comprises at least one microwave-generator unit 41. Furthermore, the high-frequency unit 40 in the shown example comprises two microwave-transmitting antennas. Alternatively, it is possible that the high-frequency unit 40 is formed structurally separately. It is thus possible that the microwave-generator unit 41 remains outside the pipeline 20.

[0114] In the present exemplary embodiment, the microwave-transmitting antennas 42 are transported by means of a transporting device 60. The transporting device 60 has a front portion 61 and a rear portion 62. The front portion 61 is understood to be the part of the system 10 or of the transporting device 60 that is arranged at the front or first in the movement direction R of the system 10.

[0115] By contrast, the rear portion 62 is understood to be the portion of the transporting device 60 that is arranged at the rear or last in the movement direction R. The transporting device 60 can comprise further, intermediate portions. In the present case, the front portion 61, the rear portion 62 and the traction wires 66 and 66′ serve to transport the system 10.

[0116] Leg elements 63 are formed both on the front portion 61 and the rear portion 62. Rollers 64 are formed at the ends of the leg elements 63 and point in the direction of the pipeline 20. The system 10 is therefore moved and centred within the pipeline 20.

[0117] The front traction wire 66 is attached to a fastening device 67. The fastening device 67 can be an eyelet. By contrast, the rear traction wire 66′ is arranged on the fastening device 67′. The system 10 is transported into the pipeline 20 by means of the front traction wire 66. The system 10 can be removed from the pipeline 20 with the aid of the rear traction wire 66′.

[0118] The leg elements 63 are preferably prestressed. This can be achieved for example by means of a spring (not shown). With the aid of a prestress of the leg elements 63, it is possible that the diameters formed by the leg elements 63 can be adapted to the diameters or inner diameters of the pipeline 20.

[0119] A communications line 80 can additionally be attached to the rear portion 62. This communications line 80 serves for power supply and for data exchange. The data exchange is necessary especially in order to control the system 10 during the state in which the system is located in the pipeline 20.

[0120] In the FIGURE it can also be seen that the system 10 has a radiation-emitting control unit 45. This radiation-emitting control unit 45 serves to regulate the microwaves RF emitted by the microwave-transmitting antennas 42.

[0121] The system 10 furthermore comprises a sensor unit 50. This is a component that comprises a plurality of sensors. The component 50 has two infrared sensors 51. For example, the degree of cross-linking of the at least partially cured plastics material can be detected with the aid of the emitted infrared radiation IR. This detection is based on the sensing of the temperature change of the plastics material to be cured.

[0122] In addition, the sensor unit 50 has a temperature sensor 52 which measures the ambient temperature.

[0123] A diameter-sensing unit 65 is furthermore formed on the front portion 61. Data of this kind are determined with the aid of this diameter-sensing unit and are sent via the line 81 to the radiation-emitting control unit 45. The microwaves RF to be emitted can be adapted or regulated depending on the determined diameter values.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0124] 10 system [0125] 20 pipeline [0126] 30 pipeline lining [0127] 40 high-frequency unit [0128] 41 microwave-generator unit [0129] 42 microwave-transmitting antenna [0130] 45 radiation-emitting control unit [0131] 50 sensor unit [0132] 51 infrared sensor [0133] 52 temperature sensor [0134] 60 transporting device [0135] 61 front portion [0136] 62 rear portion [0137] 63 leg element [0138] 64 roller [0139] 65 diameter-sensing unit [0140] 66, 66′ traction wire [0141] 67, 67′ fastening device [0142] 80 communications line [0143] 81 line [0144] R movement direction [0145] RF microwave [0146] IR infrared radiation