Numéro : 2285 - Year : 1996
Dock floating and lock dams in composite materials
D. LUCAS, D C N -LORIENT
J. FIOLEAU, D C N -LORIENT
P. PARNEIX, D C N -LORIENT
Dry dock gates (or floating dams) have been built first of wood, then of steel, the only technologies perrnitting to respond on a long tcrrn basis to thc strains which these rathcr odd-looking ships undergo. Designed for a life cycle of 50 to 80 years, steel dock gates' undergo extremely severe corrosion, resulting in high maintenance costs and even hazards. For instance, the removal of oxygen from air by oxidation in a confined spacc has already caused accidents which havc occasionnally been fatal.
The idea of building these dams of composite rnaterials thus suggested itsclf particularly for a manufacturer like DCN Lorient which has already many naval structures of composite to its credit (minehunters, patrol boats, superstructures for submarines and surface ships). After having completed several designs and validated the concept through calculations, DCN Lorient chose to develop a composite gate for a 13 rn wide dock.
Following a detailed analysis of the technical and economic reasons leading to the selection of composite material, the article describes the design process for dry dock gates in composite rnaterials, the architectural options and thc construction of a prototype.
The concept can be extended to marine or river lock dams. Lower maintenance costs ar a major argument there again and should be associated to savings in weights which facilitate maintenance and rnanoeuvers. Along the same lines, the last part of the article covers the development of prototype lock dams designed according to a modular concept.
Advanced search
Year