Conical piled monopod

• US 8,821,071 B2
• Filed: 10/20/2011
• Issued: 09/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Conocophillips Company (ConocoPhillips)
• Original Assignee: Conocophillips Company (ConocoPhillips)
• Inventors: Aurora, Ravi P., Ramsey, Thomas E., Shafer, Randall S., Noble, Peter G., Westerman, Ted H., Berta, Dominique P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Pinnock, Tara M.
• Application Number:
  US13/277,755
• Publication Number:
  US 20120128433A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,048 Days
• Field of Search: 405/203, 405/211, 405/217, 405/227, 114/40
• US Class Current: 405/217
• CPC Class Codes: E02B 17/0021 against ice-loads
• CPC Class Codes: E02B 17/025 Reinforced concrete structures E02B17/021 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E02B 17/027 steel structures E02B17/021 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: E02B 2017/0065 Monopile structures
• CPC Class Codes: E02B 2017/0069 Gravity structures
• CPC Class Codes: E02B 2017/0073 Details of sea bottom engaging footing
• CPC Class Codes: E02B 2017/0086 Large footings connecting several legs or serving as a reservoir for the storage of oil or gas

Abstract

A conical piled monopod provides a fixed, ice worthy structure used in cold weather offshore environments for accessing hydrocarbon deposits under the seafloor.

Claims

1. A conical piled monopod structure for use in ice prone offshore environment wherein the conical piled monopod comprises:

a body with a base at the bottom and a top deck at the top wherein the base is attached to pilings that are driven into a muddy seafloor when the conical piled monopod structure is installed for use, a shoulder, a neckline and an inclined faceted ice engaging surface around the body extending from the shoulder to the neckline where the ice-engaging surface is inclined from a wider lower region at the shoulder to a narrower neckline and has sides corresponding in number to sides of a polygon shape defined by the shoulder and where the shoulder is arranged to be below the sea surface and the neckline is arranged to be above the sea surface wherein the top deck at the top of the body is at least 60 meters across and the monopod structure has a density of less than about 0.20 tonnes/m³.

2. The conical piled monopod structure according to claim 1 wherein the pilings are greater than or equal to 35 meters below the base.

3. The conical piled monopod structure according to claim 1 wherein the pilings are greater than or equal to 60 meters below the base.

4. The conical piled monopod structure according to claim 1 wherein the deck is at least 65 meters across.

5. The conical piled monopod structure according to claim 1 wherein the deck is at least 75 meters across.

6. The conical piled monopod structure according to claim 1 wherein the pilings are hollow tubes or pipe structures with a diameter greater than or equal to 1 meter.

7. The conical piled monopod structure according to claim 1 wherein the pilings are greater than or equal to 2 meters in diameter.

8. The conical piled monopod structure according to claim 1 wherein the polygon shape has at least six sides.

9. The conical piled monopod structure according to claim 1 wherein the pilings are swaged to the base for carrying weight of the structure.

10. The conical piled monopod structure according to claim 1 wherein the pilings are each a hollow tube deformed to seat into a peripheral channel along a perforation through the base where the tube passes.

11. A method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location with a muddy seabed in an ice prone offshore environment, where the method comprises:

providing a monopod structure having a body, a base at the bottom and a deck at the top that is at least 75 meters across and wherein the body has a density of less than about 0.20 tonnes/m³;

floating the monopod structure to the hydrocarbon production location;

lowering the base to the seabed where the body is relatively vertically upright and the deck is above the sea surface and relatively level;

driving pilings through apertures in the base to hold the monopod structure in place against the forces of wind, sea and ice; and

arranging for a faceted sloped ice-engaging surface to extend from below the sea surface to above the sea surface so as to bend ice that comes in contact with the monopod structure and cause the ice to break, resulting in reduced lateral forces on the structure compared to a vertical faced surface, wherein the faceted sloped ice-engaging surface has sides corresponding in number to sides of a polygon shape defined by a perimeter of the monopod structure.

12. The method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location in an ice prone offshore environment according to claim 11 wherein the pilings extend greater than or equal to 35 meters into the seafloor.

13. The method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location in an ice prone offshore environment according to claim 11 wherein the pilings extend greater than or equal to 50 meters into the seafloor.

14. The method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location in an ice prone offshore environment according to claim 11 wherein the deck is at least 65 meters across.

15. The method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location in an ice prone offshore environment according to claim 11 wherein the deck is at least 75 meters across.

16. The method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location in an ice prone offshore environment according to claim 11 wherein the pilings are greater than or equal to 1 meter in diameter.

17. The method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location in an ice prone offshore environment according to claim 11 wherein the pilings are greater than or equal to 2 meters in diameter.

18. The method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location in an ice prone offshore environment according to claim 11 wherein the polygon shape has at least six sides.

19. The method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location in an ice prone offshore environment according to claim 11 further comprising swaging the pilings to the base for carrying weight of the structure.

20. The method for providing a structure at a hydrocarbon production location in an ice prone offshore environment according to claim 11 further comprising inserting a swaging tool into the pilings and deforming the pilings into peripheral channels along perforations through the base where the pilings pass.