Fluent material handling – with receiver or receiver coacting mea – With means to move supply means and/or receiver to – from or... – With movable support for hose connected head or supply
Reexamination Certificate
2002-07-02
2003-10-14
Maust, Timothy L. (Department: 3751)
Fluent material handling, with receiver or receiver coacting mea
With means to move supply means and/or receiver to, from or...
With movable support for hose connected head or supply
C141S387000, C441S004000, C114S230130, C114S230260
Reexamination Certificate
active
06631745
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to mooring systems for offshore floating terminals. In particular, the invention relates to an apparatus and method by which a steel catenary riser is connected to a turret of a floating storage and/or production vessel while simultaneously fluidly coupling the riser to a flowline in the turret.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Flexible riser hang-off systems have been proposed for hanging off Steel Catenary Risers (SCRs) from offshore terminals.
FIG. 1
of the attached drawings shows a typical prior art receptacle/flexjoint assembly
10
for an SCR
12
where a “flexjoint” (a proprietary product of Oil States Industries Inc.) assembly
11
is hung off the side
14
of a production platform by a receptacle frame
13
. A sealed fluid coupling between riser
12
and a platform flowline
7
is accomplished. Other prior art riser hang-off assemblies
10
A,
10
B,
10
C with pull-in hardware
16
are illustrated in
FIGS. 2 through 4
.
FIG. 2
shows a prior art hang-off arrangement known as a LYNX™ system. An I-tube
60
is mounted in an opening of a mono-buoy structure
150
. A pull in head
16
is secured to a frustro-conical shaped connecter
8
and flex joint
11
A secured to the top of the riser
12
. A sealed connection is made at I-tube seal
9
, when the riser is pulled up into the I-tube
60
.
FIG. 3
shows another prior art hang-off arrangement where a riser
12
is pulled alongside a platform
14
for sealed fluid connection to a platform flowline. The arrangement of
FIG. 3
, known as an Alligator Rigid Riser Pull-on System, also includes a flex joint assembly
11
A, a pull-in head
16
and coupling devices for sealingly coupling riser
12
to a platform flow line.
FIG. 4
shows a prior art hang-off system known as a hydraulic rigid riser pull-in system, also having a flex-joint assembly
11
B, a pull-in head
16
and an arrangement for providing a sealed connection between the riser
12
and flow lines of the structure.
While flexible riser hang-off systems such as
10
,
10
A,
10
B and
10
C have been proposed for production platforms, a problem remains for pulling in and connecting SCRs to flowlines of a turret of an offshore terminal such as a Floating Storage and Offloading vessel (FSO) or Floating Production Storage and Offloading vessel (FPSO). The problem concerns connection of the Steel Catenary Riser to the flowline within the mooring turret without costly and dangerous intervention by deep sea divers.
3. Identification of Objects of the Invention
A primary object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus for connecting a SCR to a flowline within a turret of a FSO/FPSO that will minimize intervention by divers.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object identified above, along with other features and advantages of the invention, is embodied in an arrangement with a flexjoint and a hydraulic connector hung from the bottom end of the turret and fluidly coupled to production piping (e.g., a flowline) within the turret. A pull-in line run through the production piping, flexjoint and hydraulic connector, includes a riser pull-in head which latches to a riser connector hub installed in the upper end of the riser. In operation, the pull-in line pulls the riser (SCR) to the hydraulic connector for operational securement to the end of the turret flowline.
REFERENCES:
patent: 4281614 (1981-08-01), McNary et al.
patent: 5372531 (1994-12-01), Boatman et al.
Boatman L. Terry
Fontenot William L.
Garnero Charles L.
Lindblade Stephen P.
Salyer Brent A.
Andrews & Kurth LLP
Bush, Esq. Gary L.
FMC Technologies Inc.
Maust Timothy L.
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