Cable or flexible pipe with improved tensile elements

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11107604-B2
Application number	US-201716484092-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 8, 2017
Priority date	Feb 8, 2017
Publication date	Aug 31, 2021
Grant date	Aug 31, 2021

Abstract

A cable includes an elongated tensile element having a cross section area and including a fibre reinforced polymer composite core having an elastic modulus of at least 70 GPa and a sheath at least partially covering the composite core. The sheath is made of metal and is at least 30% of the cross section area of the tensile element.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A cable comprising:
a cable core;
a protection layer around the cable core;
a plurality of elongated tensile elements around the protection layer, the plurality of elongated tensile elements each having a cross section area and including a fibre reinforced polymer composite core and a sheath at least partially covering the composite core, the fibre reinforced polymer composite core having an elastic modulus of at least 70 GPa, the sheath being made of metal and being at least 30% of the cross section area of the tensile element.

2. The cable of claim 1 , wherein the protection layer includes one or more armour layers and the plurality of elongated tensile elements are disposed in the one or more armour layers to provide an armour.

3. The cable of claim 1 wherein the cross section area of the elongated tensile element has a flat shape that includes a first axis and a second axis, the second axis being shorter than the first axis.

4. The cable of claim 3 wherein the fibre reinforced polymeric composite core has a thickness of at most 80% of a thickness of the elongated tensile element.

5. The cable of claim 3 wherein the fibre reinforced polymeric composite core is provided substantially centred at a neutral bending axis of the elongated tensile element.

6. The cable of claim 1 , wherein the fibre reinforced polymer composite core comprises one or more of carbon fibres, aramid fibres, glass fibres.

7. The cable of claim 6 , wherein the elongated tensile element comprises a carbon fibre reinforced polymer composite core surrounded by an electrically insulating layer.

8. The cable of claim 7 , configured for submarine applications.

9. The cable of claim 1 , wherein the fibre reinforced polymer composite core comprises a matrix selected from an epoxy matrix or a thermoplastic matrix.

10. The cable of claim 1 , wherein the fibre reinforced polymer composite core has a longitudinal axis and fibres embedded in a polymeric matrix, longitudinal axes of the fibres substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the fibre reinforced polymer composite core.

11. The cable of claim 1 , where the fibre reinforced polymer composite core has an elastic modulus of at least 100 GPa.

12. The cable of claim 1 , wherein the sheath is made of steel.

13. The cable of claim 1 , wherein the sheath and the fibre reinforced polymer composite core are bounded together by one or more of an adhesive bond or a mechanical bond.

14. The cable of claim 1 , wherein the sheath is at most 85% of the cross section area of the tensile element.

15. The cable of claim 1 , wherein the elongated tensile element has a substantially rectangular cross section.

16. A pipe comprising:
a carcass; and
a first armour layer and a second armour layer surrounding the carcass, each of the first armour layer and the second armour layer including a plurality of long-pitch helical windings of elongated tensile elements, an elongated tensile element having a cross section area and including a fibre reinforced polymer composite core and a metal sheath at least partially covering the fibre reinforced polymer composite core, the helical windings of the first armour layer extending along a first winding direction, and the helical windings of the second armour layer extending along a second winding direction that is opposite to the first winding direction.

17. The cable pipe of claim 16 , wherein the fibre reinforced polymer composite core has an elastic modulus of at least 70 GPa.

18. The pipe of claim 16 , wherein the sheath constitutes at least 30% of the cross section area of the elongated tensile element.

19. The pipe of claim 16 , wherein the fibre reinforced polymeric composite core is provided substantially centred at a neutral bending axis of the elongated tensile element.

20. The pipe of claim 16 , wherein the elongated tensile element has a substantially rectangular cross section.

Assignees

• Prysmian Spa

Inventors

• Parris Donald Ray
• Bechis Massimo

Classifications

• D07B2501/2007

  Elevators · CPC title

• D07B1/147

  comprising electric conductors or elements for information transfer (D07B1/145 takes precedence) · CPC title

• F16L11/083

  three or more layers · CPC title

• H01B7/045

  attached to marine objects, e.g. buoys, diving equipment, aquatic probes, marine towline · CPC title

• F16L33/01

  specially adapted for hoses having a multi-layer wall · CPC title