Suspension System for an Inner Container Mounted for Thermal Insulation in an Outer Container and Container Arrangement

Abstract

Suspension system for an inner container mounted for thermal insulation in an outer container. Rod-shaped fixed bearing securing elements of a fixed bearing system engage the outer container and the inner container and can be stressed in tension and compression. Fixed bearing securing elements engage the inner container while being arranged so as to be distributed in an annular installation space between the inner container and outer container, and they engage the outer container while being distributed in the annular installation space. A floating bearing system with a floating bearing ring and annularly distributed floating bearing securing elements can be arranged in the outer container to support the inner container. The floating bearing securing elements can be stressed in tension by tension springs and/or in compression by compression springs and engage the floating bearing ring and the inner container or the outer container.

Claims

1. A container suspension system for suspending an inner container within an outer container, comprising: an outer container; an inner container mounted for thermal insulation in the outer container, the inner container having a first end, a second end opposite the first end, and a length extending between the first end and the second end; an annular installation space defined between the inner container and the outer container; and a plurality of rod-shaped fixed bearing securing elements, each engaging the outer container at an outer container contact point and the inner container at an inner container contact point, and which are capable of being stressed in tension and in compression, the fixed bearing securing elements being arranged so as to be distributed in the annular installation space, wherein the inner container contact points are located radially closer to an outer circumference of the inner container than to a longitudinal axis of the inner container and the outer container contact points are located radially closer to an outer circumference of the outer container than to a longitudinal axis of the outer container, wherein the fixed bearing securing elements are oblique to the longitudinal axis of the inner container and are neither parallel nor normal to the longitudinal axis of the inner container.

2. The container suspension system of claim 1, wherein the fixed bearing securing elements are not aligned along any axes that intersect the longitudinal axis of the inner container.

3. The container suspension system of claim 1, wherein the inner container contact points are located on a normal plane relative to the longitudinal axis of the inner container.

4. The container suspension system of claim 1, wherein the outer container contact points are located on a normal plane relative to the longitudinal axis of the outer container.

5. The container suspension system of claim 1, wherein the inner container contact points are axially further away from a center of the inner container than the outer container contact points.

6. The container suspension system of claim 1, wherein the inner container contact points are axially closer to a center of the inner container than the outer container contact points.

7. The container suspension system of claim 1, wherein the outer container and the inner container are arranged with coaxial longitudinal container axes.

8. The container suspension system of claim 1, wherein the fixed bearing securing elements are attached to the inner container along the outer circumference of the inner container and are attached to the outer container along an inner circumference of the outer container.

9. The container suspension system of claim 1, wherein the fixed bearing securing elements are formed from fibre-reinforced materials.

10. The container suspension system of claim 9, wherein the fibre-reinforced materials are selected from aramide fibres, carbon fibres, glass fibres, basalt fibres or combinations thereof, and optionally comprising aramide fibres which, in sections, are mixed with glass fibres.

11. The container suspension system of claim 1, further comprising a floating bearing system disposed within the outer container and supporting the inner container, the floating bearing system comprising: a floating bearing ring, and a plurality of distributed, rod-shaped floating bearing securing elements, which are capable of being stressed in tension and in compression, each engaging the floating bearing ring at a floating bearing ring contact point and the inner container or the outer container at a respective inner container or outer container contact point, wherein the floating bearing securing elements are arranged in the annular installation space.

12. The container suspension system of claim 11, wherein the floating bearing securing elements are oblique to the longitudinal axis of the inner container and are neither parallel nor normal to the longitudinal axis of the inner container, the floating bearing securing elements being mirrored, always in pairs, at a plane including the longitudinal axis of the inner container.

13. The container suspension system of claim 11, wherein the floating bearing securing elements are engaged with the inner container, and wherein the inner container contact points of the floating bearing securing elements are closer to a center of the inner container than the floating bearing ring contact points.

14. The container suspension system of claim 11, wherein the floating bearing securing elements are formed from fibre-reinforced materials.

15. The container suspension system of claim 14, wherein the fibre-reinforced materials are selected from aramid fibres, carbon fibres, glass fibres, basalt fibres or combinations thereof, and optionally comprising aramid fibres which, in sections, are mixed with glass fibres.

16. The container suspension system of claim 11, wherein the floating bearing system is disposed at the second end of the inner container and is configured to permit axial movement of the inner container.

17. The container suspension system of claim 1, further comprising at least one radiation shield arranged between the outer container and the inner container.

18. A container suspension system, comprising: an outer container; an inner container mounted within the outer container, the inner container having a first end, a second end opposite the first end, and a length extending between the first end and the second end; an annular installation space defined between the inner container and the outer container; a plurality of fixed bearing securing elements coupling the inner container to the outer container, the fixed bearing securing elements attaching to the inner container at the first end of the inner container; and a floating bearing disposed within the installation space, the floating bearing including a floating bearing ring and a plurality of floating bearing securing elements coupling the inner container to the floating bearing ring, the floating bearing securing elements attaching to the inner container at the second end of the inner container, the floating bearing configured to permit axial movement of the inner container.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] The invention is now illustrated further on the basis of exemplary embodiments with reference to the drawings.

[0031] FIG. 1 shows a schematic longitudinal view of a container arrangement according to the invention.

[0032] FIG. 2 shows a geometric annular installation space in which the securing elements of the suspension system according to the invention are arranged.

[0033] FIGS. 3 to 5 show variants for positioning the fixed bearing securing elements within the annular installation space.

[0034] FIG. 6 shows a schematic longitudinal view of a further embodiment of a container arrangement according to the invention.

[0035] FIG. 7 shows a schematic longitudinal view of an alternative embodiment of a container arrangement according to the invention.

[0036] FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B show a particularly advantageous embodiment of a floating bearing of the suspension system according to the invention.

[0037] FIG. 9A and FIG. 9B show a fixed bearing of the suspension system according to the invention in a front view and in an isometric view.

[0038] FIG. 10A and FIG. 10B show a further embodiment of a fixed bearing of the suspension system according to the invention in a front view and in an isometric view.

[0039] FIG. 11 shows a schematic longitudinal view of an alternative embodiment of a container arrangement according to the invention.

[0040] FIG. 12 shows a schematic longitudinal view of a further embodiment of a container arrangement according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] FIG. 1 shows a container arrangement 20 comprising an outer container 1 and an inner container 2 mounted for thermal insulation in the outer container 1 for accommodating cryogenic media and/or devices, which are interconnected by a suspension system generally indicated by 3. The thermal insulation of the inner container 2 against the outer container 1 is effected by evacuating the space between the two containers. The outer container 1 exhibits a central longitudinal axis L1; the inner container 2 exhibits a central longitudinal axis L2 on which the centre point Z of the inner container 2 is located. The two longitudinal axes L1, L2 are arranged coaxially. The filling of the inner container occurs through at least one line 6. Between the outer container 1 and the inner container 2, a radiation shield 4 is arranged which is mounted directly to fixed bearing securing elements 5. Optionally, further radiation shields may be provided which surround each other, wherein the further radiation shields can be mounted either to an adjacent radiation shield or also to the fixed bearing securing elements 5.

[0042] The suspension system 3 of the container arrangement 20 consists of a single fixed bearing 30 comprising rod-shaped fixed bearing securing elements 5 which engage, on the one hand, the outer container 1 and, on the other hand, the inner container 2 and which can be stressed in tension and in compression, with the fixed bearing securing elements 5 engaging the outer wall 2a of the inner container 2 directly or indirectly (e.g., via a tethering ring), while being annularly distributed at the circumferential region of the inner container 2. Also in the further embodiments described below and depicted in the drawings, the fixed bearing securing elements 5 are designed in the form of rods. The contact points 5a of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 at the outer wall 2a are located in an annularly distributed manner on a plane orthogonal to the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container 2. The fixed bearing securing elements 5 engage with further contact points 5b the circumferential region of the inner wall la of the outer container 1 either directly oras shown in FIG. 1indirectly via a tethering ring 5b.

[0043] The fixed bearing securing elements 5 are rigid elements made of fibre-reinforced materials, preferably comprising aramide fibres, carbon fibres, glass fibres, basalt fibres or combinations thereof, particularly preferably comprising aramide fibres which, in sections, are mixed with glass fibres. The fixed bearing securing elements 5 are secured to the outer container 1 and the inner container 2 by screws, rivets, bolts, which have the advantage of being rotatable, gluing, clamping, hooking etc.

[0044] Since only a single fixed bearing 30 is provided, the inner container 2 is suspended in the outer container 1 in a freely cantilevered manner. Since the fixed bearing securing elements 5 engage the outer circumference of the inner container 2 and the inner circumference of the outer container 1, very high forces can be supported. Thus, in comparison to the prior art larger inner containers 2 without floating bearings can be designed. The free space between the inner container 2 and the outer container 1 is evacuated. Since the line 6 is guided through said vacuum, the thermal insulation capacity of the container arrangement 20 is additionally improved.

[0045] The fixed bearing securing elements 5 are oblique to the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container 2 and are mirrored, always in pairs, at a plane including the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container. The contact points 5a of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 at the inner container 2 are axially closer to the centre Z of the inner container 2 than the contact points 5b of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 at the outer container 1.

[0046] In geometric terms, the fixed bearing securing elements 5 are arranged in an annular installation space 7 defined between the outer wall 2a of the inner container 2 and the inner wall la of the outer container 1, as illustrated in particular in FIG. 2.

[0047] FIGS. 3 to 5 show parts of geometric variation possibilities for positioning the fixed bearing securing elements 5 within the annular installation space of the fixed bearing.

[0048] FIG. 3 shows a fixed bearing 31 wherein the contact points 5a of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 at the inner container 2 are located on a peripheral circle which is defined in the area of the transition from the peripheral wall 2a to the front wall 2b. The contact points 5b of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 are located on a peripheral circle at the inner wall la of the outer container 1 and are axially further away from the centre of the inner container than the contact points 5a at the inner container 2. Generally speaking, the contact points 5b are radially (arrow r2) closer to the circumference (arrow RA) of the outer container 1 than to the longitudinal axis L1 thereof, wherein, in the illustrated special case, the length of the arrows RA and r2 is the same, since the contact points 5b are located directly at the circumference of the inner wall 1a of the outer container 1.

[0049] FIG. 4 shows a fixed bearing 32 in which the contact points 5a of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 at the inner container 2 are located on a circle defined at the front wall 2b. It should be noted that the contact points 5a are radially (arrow r1) closer to the circumference (arrow RI) of the inner container 2 than to the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container. The contact points 5b of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 are located on a peripheral circle at the inner wall la of the outer container 1 and are positioned axially closer to the centre of the inner container 2 than the contact points 5a at the inner container 2.

[0050] FIG. 5 shows a fixed bearing 33 similar to FIG. 4, wherein the contact points 5b of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 are likewise located on a peripheral circle at the inner wall la of the outer container 1. Furthermore, the contact points 5b at the outer container 1 are positioned axially closer to the centre of the inner container 2 than the contact points 5a at the inner container 2. In contrast to FIG. 4, in said embodiment of the fixed bearing 33 according to FIG. 5, the circular line on which the contact points 5a are located at the inner container 2 are defined at the outer peripheral wall 2a.

[0051] FIG. 6 shows a container arrangement 21 comprising the outer container 1 with a longitudinal axis L1 and the inner container 2 with a longitudinal axis L2, which is mounted for thermal insulation in the outer container 1. The two containers 1, 2 are arranged coaxially to each other and interconnected by a suspension system comprising the above-described fixed bearing 31 and, in addition, a floating bearing 41. The floating bearing 41 has a floating bearing ring 10 which is made of a rigid material such as a fibre-reinforced synthetic material or metal or, respectively, metal alloys and is mounted so as to be axially displaceable (see double arrow) along the inner wall 1a of the outer container 1. Rod-shaped floating bearing securing elements 11, which can be stressed in tension and in compression, engage, on the one hand, the floating bearing ring 10 and, on the other hand, the inner container 2, while being distributed annularly. The floating bearing ring 10 is prestressed by means of tension springs 12 engaging the outer container 1 directly or indirectly. From a geometric point of view (analogously to the illustration of FIG. 2), the floating bearing securing elements 11 are arranged in an annular installation space extending essentially around the circumference of the inner container 2. The floating bearing securing elements 11 are manufactured from a material as rigid as possible. Very suitable are fibre-reinforced materials, preferably comprising aramide fibres, carbon fibres, glass fibres, basalt fibres or combinations thereof, particularly preferably comprising aramide fibres which, in sections, are mixed with glass fibres.

[0052] The floating bearing securing elements 11 are oblique to the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container 2 and are mirrored, always in pairs, at a plane including the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container. The contact points 11a of the floating bearing securing elements 11 at the inner container 2 are closer to the centre Z of the inner container 2 than the contact points 11b of the securing elements 11 at the floating bearing ring 10.

[0053] FIG. 7 shows a variant of a container arrangement 22 comprising the outer container 1 and the inner container 2 mounted for thermal insulation in the outer container 1. In said variant, the suspension system, which interconnects the two containers 1, 2, comprises the fixed bearing 32 as described above on the basis of FIG. 4 and, in addition, a variant of a floating bearing 42 in whichunlike in FIG. 6the floating bearing ring 10 is arranged above the inner container 2 and is pre-biased by compression springs 13 engaging the outer container 1 directly or indirectly. The floating bearing securing elements 11 engage, on the one hand, the floating bearing ring 10 and, on the other hand, the front wall 2b of the inner container 2 in proximity to the circumference, while being distributed annularly. The floating bearing securing elements 11 are oblique to the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container 2. The contact points 11a of the floating bearing securing elements 11 at the inner container 2 are, from an axial point of view, further away from the centre Z of the inner container 2 than the contact points 11b of the securing elements 11 at the floating bearing ring 10.

[0054] In FIG. 8A and FIG. 8B, a particularly advantageous embodiment of a floating bearing 43 is illustrated, wherein the floating bearing securing elements 11 are connected to the inner container 2 and the floating bearing ring 10 in a geometric installation space which is roughly cylindrical. Said embodiment provides the major advantage that, in case of a dynamic load FD which is transverse to the longitudinal axis L2, the inner container 2 will indeed be deflected in the direction of the dynamic load (reference symbol D), but, due to the roughly cylindrical installation space, the deflection D will lead to practically no inclination of the floating bearing ring 10, as can be seen in FIG. 8B.

[0055] In FIGS. 9A and 9B, a fixed bearing 35 equivalent to FIG. 1 is illustrated in a front view and in an isometric view. The contact points 5b of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 are located on a peripheral circle at the inner wall la of the outer container 1, while being distributed annularly. The contact points 5a of the fixed bearing securing elements 5 are located at the inner container 2 on a circle defined at the outer wall 2a. The fixed bearing securing elements 5 are oblique to the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container 2, the longitudinal axis L2 including the centre Z, and are mirrored, always in pairs, at a plane including the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container, see, e.g., plane x.

[0056] In FIGS. 10A and 10B, a fixed bearing 36 is illustrated in a front view and in an isometric view. In this case, the fixed bearing securing elements 5 are arranged radially between the outer container 1 and the inner container 2 and are distributed evenly across the circumference. The fixed bearing securing elements 5 form a cone with a cone angle of, e.g., 45? and are themselves, of course, located in a solid angle of 45? with respect to the longitudinal axis L2 of the inner container 2 and with respect to the coaxial longitudinal axis L1 of the outer container 1. The radial arrangement displays less rigidity against torsion of the outer container 1 relative to the inner container 2 than the previously described implementations of fixed bearings.

[0057] FIG. 11 shows a container arrangement 21 similar to FIG. 6 comprising the outer container 1 with a longitudinal axis L1 and the inner container 2 with a longitudinal axis L2, which is mounted for thermal insulation in the outer container 1. The two containers 1, 2 are arranged coaxially to each other and are interconnected by a suspension system comprising the above-described fixed bearing 31 and, in addition, a floating bearing 44. The floating bearing 44 has a floating bearing ring 10 made of a rigid material such as a fibre-reinforced synthetic material or metal or, respectively, a metal alloy. Floating bearing securing elements 11, which can be stressed in tension and in compression, engage, on the one hand, the floating bearing ring 10 with contact points 11a and, on the other hand, the outer container 1 via contact points 11b, while being distributed annularly, and thus keep the floating bearing ring 10 in a defined position. The inner container 2 is arranged displaceably in the floating bearing ring 10 (symbolized by a double arrow), wherein, in said embodiment, a cylindrical appendage of the inner container 2 is mounted displaceably in the floating bearing ring 10. The inner container 2 is prestressed by tension springs 12 engaging the inner container 2 and the floating bearing ring 10. The floating bearing securing elements 11 are manufactured from a material as rigid as possible. Very suitable are fibre-reinforced materials, preferably comprising aramide fibres, carbon fibres, glass fibres, basalt fibres or combinations thereof, particularly preferably comprising aramide fibres which, in sections, are mixed with glass fibres. The contact points 11b of the floating bearing securing elements 11 at the outer container 1 are axially further away from the centre Z of the inner container 2 than the contact points 11a of the floating bearing securing elements 11 at the floating bearing ring 10.

[0058] FIG. 12 shows a further embodiment of a container arrangement 22 according to the invention which is similar to the embodiment of FIG. 11, but differs therefrom in a design of the fixed bearing 32 as described above on the basis of FIG. 7 and in a variant of the floating bearing 45. The floating bearing 45 has a floating bearing ring 10 made of a rigid material such as a fibre-reinforced synthetic material or metal or, respectively, a metal alloy. Floating bearing securing elements 11, which can be stressed in tension and in compression, engage, on the one hand, the floating bearing ring 10 with contact points 11a and, on the other hand, the outer container 1 via contact points 11b, while being distributed annularly, and thus keep the floating bearing ring 10 in a defined position. The inner container 2 is arranged displaceably in the floating bearing ring 10 with an appendage (symbolized by a double arrow). The inner container 2 is prestressed by compression springs 13 engaging the inner container 2 and the floating bearing ring 10. The contact points 11a of the floating bearing securing elements 11 at the floating bearing ring 10 are axially further away from the centre Z of the inner container 2 than the contact points 11b of the floating bearing securing elements 11 at the outer container 1.

[0059] Fibre-reinforced parts can normally be stressed in tension more than in compression. The tension springs 12 and the compression springs 13 serve for factoring in those different load capacities in tension and in compression.