HK1087753B - Wind energy plant - Google Patents

Description

Wind energy plant

Technical Field

The invention relates to an offshore or onshore wind energy plant. Such offshore wind energy plants have been built, while at the present time more offshore wind energy plants are being planned. Whenever an artificial building is built at sea, the corresponding structure of the building below the waterline is provided with a coating protecting the building. In particular, it is known that the outside of ships is provided with a protective coating (TBT) which is not only chemically very problematic, but also prevents as much as possible the attachment of marine animals and marine plants (shellfish, barnacles and other marine life) to offshore wind energy plants.

Background

The prior art can now be referred to in general by the following publications: DE 19946899; DE 2719081 and DE 29814313.

DE 19946899 provides a common example of an offshore installation of a wind energy plant, but does not relate in detail to the underwater structure of such a plant. In contrast, DE 19946899 relates to the following: such offshore wind energy plants usually require a trestle or an offshore quay so that the vessel, in particular a ship, can ensure supply and transport services.

DE 2719081 relates to a ladder for accessing a swimming pool. The ladder includes two ladder side panels, each of which extends beyond the edge of the swimming pool, rises, returns, and leads back to the edge of the swimming pool to rest in pairs. The ladder side plates are connected by ladders attached thereto. The respective ends of the ladder side plates are mounted to the swimming pool wall or the swimming pool rim, respectively.

DE 29814313 also relates generally to a ladder and more particularly to several methods for securely holding the ladder against collapsing while in use.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention now proposes a method for treating an offshore wind energy plant which is in full contrast to the treatment methods hitherto adopted for buildings located in the ocean, in particular which does not provide for example an external structure preventing the attachment of marine animals and plants, but rather which greatly promotes the attachment of marine organisms.

The invention is based on the fact that: the tower construction of an offshore wind energy plant or other types of structures of the wind energy plant located below the water line is particularly well protected by the settlement of a large amount of marine organisms thereon. Given that for example the surface of a structure below the waterline of an offshore wind energy plant is covered with shellfish, the growth of such shellfish already provides excellent protection against the impact of sea waves, while also forming a natural layer against the attack of relatively corrosive sea water.

Thus, preferably, the structure of the offshore wind energy plant below the water line will be provided with a first protective layer preventing water penetration into the structure, and then another construction, for example a very rough layer with a relatively large roughness, for example the roughness of a natural granite or sandstone cliff or sandstone, is applied on the protective layer, which may greatly facilitate the growth of marine animals and plants. Another protective layer may be provided between the two layers described above to prevent marine animals and plants growing on the other construction from damaging the first protective layer on the construction itself.

The layer for promoting the establishment of marine animals and plants thereon should be such that shellfish, barnacles or other marine animals and plants can be formed thereon in large quantities in a very short time, i.e. less than one year.

As an alternative to the above-described, but also as a supplement to the above-described, a receiving device can be provided in the lower region of the tower of the wind energy installation. Such a containment device may be used to: for example in the case of offshore wind energy plants, shellfish nets, such as oyster and fish breeding nets or other shellfish and fish breeding devices, are accommodated or held thereon. Thus, the wind energy plant can advantageously promote the breeding of fish, shellfish, clams and similar species to a greater extent. The offshore wind energy plant according to the invention thus offers the possibility of using the plant for the above-mentioned marine production. As is known, the water quality of open sea is generally better than in areas close to shore, and the offshore wind energy plant according to the invention can be used for the purpose of maritime production in addition to the generation of electricity, which increases the use of the wind energy plant as a whole.

Detailed Description

It can also be achieved in this way if the housing device can house rods, pipes or other devices to hold a net in the offshore area: in case the net is moved up and down with the tide by means of buoys, the net installation in question always floats at the same height in the water. Figure 1 shows an example of this aspect, in which the containment device has a roll-and-slide structure on which is suspended a net structure, said net structure being held by a counterweight at the same height in the sea.

If desired, the entire device can be lifted out of the water by means of a suitable cable arrangement and hinge construction.

Finally, the feed required by the marine organisms can be stored in a space in the wind power plant, and furthermore, an automatic feed from this space can be effected by means of an automatic feed supply. For this purpose, for example, a screw propulsion assembly is provided, by means of which the food from the feed bin in the wind power plant can be transferred to the feeding device.

In the case of an onshore wind energy plant, another possible option is: a climbing ladder (known from general hunters) is accommodated in the lower region of the tower of the wind energy installation by means of the receiving device.

It is particularly advantageous if the receiving device is designed such that the hidden ladder or the object received by it can be guided or fixed to the tower at a desired location.

In rural areas, the beasts do not generally recognize wind energy equipment as a dangerous threat. The animals are only aware of the rotatable parts of the wind power plant, i.e. the uppermost region with the rotating rotor or rotating gantry, if at all. It is therefore more advantageous to mount the hidden ladder in the lowermost region of the wind energy plant tower, since the attention-shifting effect of the rotor and the frame arrangement means: a person sitting on the hidden ladder is less likely to be detected by the beast.

It is also particularly advantageous if the lowermost region of the wind power plant tower has a green or grayish green paint layer (tower color configuration) which is very close to the surroundings. The color of the hidden ladder should correspond to the color of the lower region of the tower.

The construction according to the invention has the advantages that: the ladder can be adjusted to any desired position, i.e. any position around the tower. Said area is recessed at the location where a staircase or a door is provided, which staircase and door are accessible from the outside, to allow access to the inside of the device at any time.

The lower end of the ladder is spaced from the ground to prevent lightning strikes from passing through the ladder under any circumstances. For this purpose, the receiving device is preferably designed such that: between the hidden ladder and the tower made of metal, a bridge made of plastic material is provided. This is ensured in the case of a plastic ring arranged between the tower and the receiving device.

Furthermore, the hidden ladder is preferably provided with a roof, which in turn is preferably made of metal, so that a faraday cage-like shielded inner space is formed in the hidden ladder.

In order to increase the distance between the lower end of the ladder and the ground, the end of the ladder may also be designed to be foldable, so that, after the hidden ladder has been lifted, the lower end is pivoted upwards, whereby the distance between the lower end of the ladder and the ground is correspondingly increased.

Drawings

Fig. 1 shows a view of the lower region of a wind power installation. It can be seen from it that: in this lower region, a circumferentially extending receiving device 20 is provided, which extends over all or part of the circumference of the tower 10.

Fig. 2 shows how the receiving means 20 receives a climbing ladder. To this end, the receiving device 20 generally comprises an L-shaped guide rail which surrounds the periphery of the tower 10, and a hidden ladder 30 can be fitted therein by means of a suitable fitting portion and fixed to the guide rail, for example by means of screws 70. The ladder 30 is in turn supported against the tower 10 in the middle area. The concealment ladder 30 can be placed at any location around the circumference of the tower 10.

Fig. 3 shows how a receiving device 20 in the lower region of the tower 10 receives a carrier 30' on which, for example, a shellfish basket 40 is suspended, which can be moved up and down by means of a cable 50 and a corresponding winch 60. It should be understood that numerous other variations are possible for the housing device 20, however, such variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. The receptacle 20 may also include fixed attachment points to which the various objects shown may be secured by screws 70, cotter pins, or other fastening means.

Claims (9)

1. An offshore wind energy plant comprising an underwater construction provided with a first protective layer preventing water penetration into the underwater construction and provided on the outside with a further coarse structure having a relatively large roughness being one of the roughness of a natural granite or sandstone cliff or sandstone, said further coarse structure promoting marine animal and plant growth providing natural protection against sea wave impact and corrosive sea water attack.

2. The offshore wind energy plant of claim 1, wherein: the other rough structure is configured to artificially or naturally promote the growth of shellfish, or the crustacean is easily stood and fixed thereon.

3. The offshore wind energy plant of claim 1, wherein: a second protective layer is arranged between the first protective layer and the further coarse structure to prevent marine animals and plants growing on the further coarse structure from damaging the first protective layer on the underwater construction.

4. The offshore wind energy plant of claim 1 further comprising a tower provided with a suspension device at the water line on which the shellfish net is suspended.

5. The offshore wind energy plant according to claim 1, further comprising a tower, a lower region of which above the ground is provided with a receiving device for receiving a net holder.

6. The offshore wind energy plant of claim 5, characterized in that: the receiving means is a guide rail which completely or partially surrounds the tower of the wind power installation and engages the net holder such that the net holder is located at a desired position around the circumference of the tower.

7. The offshore wind energy plant of claim 6, wherein: said net holder is provided with a means for fixing the net holder in a given position in the receiving means.

8. The offshore wind energy plant of claim 5 or 6, characterized in that: the receiving means is connected to the tower by one of a screw, cotter pin or other fastening means.

9. The offshore wind energy plant of claim 5, characterized in that: the receiving means has hook members with which the net holder is suspendedly engaged.