Double walled tube segment and method for producing said tube segment
AssigneeTata Steel Nederland Technology B.V.
InventorTessa Virginia VAN KOL
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A double-walled tube section for constructing a double-walled tube segment suitable for underpressure applications such as an evacuated tube transport system.
Claims17
A double-walled tube segment suitable for underpressure applications or near vacuum applications comprising elongated curved outer shell parts, interlayer shell parts and an inner wall (IW), wherein
- the elongated curved outer shell parts form the outer wall (OW) of the double-walled tube segment and consist of thin sheet, wherein the elongated curved outer shell part comprises a curved central portion and a flange along one of the long edges wherein the flange is folded towards the interior of the double-walled tube segment and wherein the centre of the radius of curvature R of the elongated curved outer shell parts lies inside the double-walled tube segment;
- wherein the interlayer shell parts consist of thin sheet and comprise a rectangular portion having short edges and long edges and a flange on at least one of the short edges, wherein the flange is folded towards the exterior of the double-walled tube segment, wherein the flange has a curved upper edge with the same radius of curvature as the radius of curvature of the curved central portion of the elongated curved outer shell parts, and wherein the curved edge is provided with an additional flange with the same radius of curvature as the radius of curvature of the curved central portion of the elongated curved outer shell parts;
- wherein the inner wall (IW) of the double-walled tube segment is a regular N-facetted polygonal tube consisting of thin sheet;
- wherein the rectangular portions of the interlayer shell parts are fixedly connected to the facets of the outside of the IW;
- wherein the inner surface of the curved central portion of the elongated curved outer shell parts are joined to the interlayer shell parts at least at the additional flange of the interlayer shell part to form the outer wall (OW).
A method to produce a double-walled tube segment for constructing a double-walled tube segment suitable for underpressure applications or near vacuum applications wherein the double-walled tube segment comprises elongated curved outer shell parts consisting of thin sheet and comprising a curved central portion and a flange along one of the long edges wherein the flange is folded towards the interior of the double-walled tube segment and wherein the centre of the radius of curvature R of the elongated curved outer shell parts lies inside the double-walled tube segment,
- interlayer shell parts consisting of thin sheet and comprising a rectangular portion having short edges and long edges and a flange on at least one of the short edges,
- wherein the flange is folded towards the exterior of the double-walled tube segment, wherein the flange has a curved upper edge with the same radius of curvature as the radius of curvature of the curved central portion of the elongated curved outer shell parts, and wherein the curved upper edge is provided with an additional flange with the same radius of curvature as the radius of curvature of the curved central portion of the elongated curved outer shell parts, and
- an inner wall (IW) which is a regular N-facetted polygonal tube, wherein the method comprises the following steps:
- Providing an internal support jig for temporarily supporting and holding the inner wall (IW);
- Joining a plurality of interlayer shell parts onto the facets of the polygonal outer surface of the tube segment to cover the facets of the polygonal outer surface of the tube whereby the flanges of all interlayer shell parts are circumferentially aligned so as to form complete annular ribs around the internal wall of the tube segment;
- Forming the outer surface of the tube segment by joining the curved central portion of the elongated curved outer shell parts to the additional flanges of the interlayer shell parts;
- Removing the internal support jig.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.