China once again proved that the country strives to be the first in everything. Recently, the world's largest ship elevator was launched at full capacity at the largest hydroelectric power plant in the world, the Three Gorges. And although this idea is not at all new, the ship lift really surprised me, because dry cargo ships and tourist boats are lifted to a height of 113 meters within half an hour, instead of 3-4 hours of locking. And this is also a world record.
Once again, Chinese engineers and architects proved that China is ahead of the rest. This time they surprised with a gigantic elevator that can lift a gigantic ship to a height of 113 meters in a matter of minutes so that it continues on its way. And this event took place in Hubei province at the largest gravity dam hydroelectric power station in the world, the Three Gorges, located on the Yangtze River. A demonstration experiment was carried out in 2016, when it was possible to demonstrate the ultra-high-speed lifting of a cargo ship. It took only 8 minutes for the multi-ton dry cargo ship to be lifted to the headwaters (the canal adjacent to the hydraulic structure).
Recall: The Three Gorges Power Plant is not only the largest and most complex hydraulic structure in the world, but also the heaviest man-made object in terms of weight. The reinforced concrete dam, which has a solid structure, weighs approximately 65.5 million tons at a length of 2309 m and a height of 181 meters. Its creation took a record amount of concrete (as for the construction of one object) - 27.2 million cubic meters and 463 thousand cubic meters. tons of steel. During the construction of the dam, 102.6 million cubic meters of soil were moved. At the same time, its performance also broke the world record. In 2020, during heavy rainfall, electricity generation reached 111.8 billion kWh.
If we talk about the innovative ship lift, which was required to be introduced in one of the sections of the dam, in order to ships could continue their journey at a more dynamic pace, then it can truly be called a marvel of engineering thoughts. It is even difficult to imagine what an elevator should be like in order to raise / lower a gigantic ship with cargo and water, when their total weight reaches 3 thousand tons. tons and even to a height of 113 meters.
>>>>Ideas for life | NOVATE.RU<<<<
The specialists of the international company SKF and the Changjiang Institute of Geodesy, Planning, Design and Research managed to solve this super-task. They designed a structure consisting of four reinforced concrete pillars 169 meters high, between which a pool chamber 120 meters long and 18 meters wide was installed. Its depth is 3.5 m, which allows even large dry cargo ships to be placed in a kind of elevator cabin. In order to safely and quickly raise the chamber with the pool, water and the vessel itself weighing 15.5 thousand tons. tons, a system of counterweights, reinforced by electric motors, is provided to reduce the load on mechanisms and cables. If we talk about the height of the ascent / descent, then it will always depend only on the water level in the lower and upper channels that lead to and from the elevator.
According to the authors of Novate.ru, the process of lifting by an elevator now takes only 30-40 minutes, against 3-4 hours of locking, which all ships without exception had to go through. Although some liners and bulk carriers will not be able to experience the innovative implementation, for technical reasons they will need to go through the five-stage locking as before. According to the developers, the final launch of the elevator system will increase the throughput hydraulic structure up to 6 million tons per year, which will have a positive impact on the economy and profitability enterprises.
Notable: Chinese engineers are not pioneers in this matter. So, for example, at the Krasnoyarsk hydroelectric power station (on the Yenisei River) in 1976, the first and only ship lift in the USSR and Russia was built, which could transport ships weighing up to 1.5 thousand tons. tons. The maximum lifting height of the Krasnoyarsk elevator is 104 m, the length of the pool is 113 m, the width is 26 m, and the depth is 2.2 m.
This is not the only unique project that could be implemented in China. AND following 8 progressive innovations and ambitious developments, are clear evidence of this.
A source: https://novate.ru/blogs/261121/61371/