Pile installation
AssigneeItrec B.V.
InventorsPieter Dirk Melis Van Duivendijk, Eric Romeijn
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A pile driving method for driving a hollow tubular pile having a vertical centreline, a top end and an open foot end vertically into the soil, e.g. into the seabed, e.g. a large diameter pile having an outer diameter at the open foot end of at least 5 meters, e.g. a monopile of an offshore wind turbine, wherein use is made of a pile driving system, wherein the system includes at least one hammer device and a torsional vibration drive.
Claims27
A pile driving system for driving a hollow tubular pile having a central longitudinal axis, a top end, and an open foot end vertically into the soil, wherein the pile driving system comprises:
- at least one hammer device configured to transfer energy from the respective hammer device to the top of the pile at a respective frequency along a pile drive axis, wherein the pile drive axis is parallel to, the central longitudinal axis of the pile;
- and
- a torsional vibration drive,
- wherein the torsional vibration drive comprises at least one vibratory pile driver device, that engages on the pile or on the hammer device, and
- wherein each vibratory pile driver device of the torsional vibration drive is configured and operated simultaneously with the operation of the at least one hammer device to apply an alternating force at a respective vibration frequency about the pile drive axis.
A pile driving method for driving a hollow tubular pile having a vertical centreline, a top end and an open foot end vertically into the soil wherein use is made of a pile driving system, wherein the method comprises the steps of:
- setting up the pile with the open foot in the sea floor, while supporting the pile above water in a radial direction using a pile guide mounted on a vessel;
- generating an axial pile driving force along a pile drive axis, using at least one hammer device, wherein the pile drive axis is to be aligned with the vertical centreline of the pile, to drive the pile into the seafloor;
- generating a torsional force about the pile drive axis, using the torsional vibration drive, to rotate the pile about the vertical centreline to reduce friction between the pile and the seafloor;
- and
- allowing free movement of the torsional vibration drive along the pile drive axis to prevent the direct transfer of impact forces from the impact hammer to the torsional vibration drive, and limiting free movement of the torsional vibration drive about the pile drive axis to enable direct transfer of the torsional forces from the torsional vibration drive to the impact hammer or the pile.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.