Abstract: A system for removing halocarbon gas components from waste anesthetic gases using the resource of cold oxygen from liquid oxygen which is stored cryogenically at a healthcare facility. The oxygen is warmed while cooling of waste anesthetic gases from anesthetizing locations of a healthcare facility. Two heat exchangers/condensers are provided. In the first, the waste gas is cooled to about 0° C. thereby condensing any water vapor in the waste gas. In the second, the waste gas is further cooled to about −150° C. thereby condensing and liquefying the halocarbon gas components, which are removed to a tank for recycling and/or destruction. The remainder of the waste gases (e.g., nitrogen, oxygen and nitrous oxide) are vented to the atmosphere. The warmed oxygen is piped to the healthcare facility for its normal uses after it has been warmed by the waste anesthetic gases in the two heat exchangers/condensers.

Abstract: A weld shield device for facilitating end-to-end welding of two pipe segments having fiberglass liners. The weld shield device includes an insulation material applied about the outer surface of a sleeve body. The sleeve body helps establish a welding gap between the two pipe segments. The insulation material reduces the heat transfer from the welding operations to the fiberglass liners. Additionally, a method of joining two pipe segments with fiberglass liners is provided, which includes connecting a first end of a weld shield device to a first pipe segment and connecting a second pipe segment to the second end of the weld shield device with the weld shield device being partially in a cutout portion of the fiberglass liner. Then, the two pipe segments are welded together. Insulation material on the weld shield device reduces the heat transfer from the welding operations to the fiberglass liners.

Abstract: A tubing spool has an internal landing profile for a reduced diameter tubing hanger which is arranged and dimensioned to pass through the bore of a slimbore marine riser and BOP of a subsea completion system. The tubing spool is arranged and designed for securement to a wellhead at the sea floor. The tubing hanger is arranged and designed to be sealingly positioned in the tubing spool landing profile and has a production bore and a relatively large multiplicity of electrical and hydraulic passages which terminate at a top end of the hanger with vertically extending electrical and hydraulic couplers. A passage is provided, independent of the tubing hanger, which provides communication from above the tubing hanger to the well annulus below the hanger. The tubing spool may have a slim bore BOP or a conventional xmas tree attached at its top end.

Abstract: An arrangement for suspending a Single Point Mooring Turret from its corresponding vessel, by transmitting a circumferentially uniform axial vertical load without moment through the interface of motion between the vessel and turret, by decoupling mooring system loads, inertial loads and hull deflection induced loads, from transmission across that interface. The arrangement supports the turret through a pendular suspension system which includes bogies, having one or more wheels or rollers per bogie, which roll around the circumference of the moonpool on a rail to allow the bogies to rotate in a horizontal plane which is perpendicular to the center line of the moonpool, and to decouple the bearing loads from radial hull deflection due to ovaling caused by rough seas. Radial flexure is achieved by suspending the turret from the bogie through rocker arms and chains, cables, rods or columns between the bogies and a riser support structure of the turret.

Abstract: An improved turret for a turret mooring arrangement characterized by the turret including an upper section and a lower section which are coupled together by a flex joint. The turret mooring arrangement also includes a turret insert tube with a lower section that is rotatably coupled to the vessel by a radial bearing assembly. The radial bearing assembly includes an outer member having an outer profile arranged and designed to cooperate with a complementary profile in the interior of the turret insert tube so that the outer member is turned by the turret insert tube when the vessel rotates about said turret, without fixed attachment of the outer member to the turret insert tube. Methods of installing a turret and lower bearing assembly within a turret insert tube of a vessel are also disclosed.

Abstract: A buoyant hybrid riser/tension (BHRT) member moors a floating body on the sea surface to a pipeline terminated at a submerged structure. The BHRT includes one or more conduits, one or more tension members, and buoyancy. The conduits provide fluid communication from the pipeline at the submerged structure the tension member absorbs the mooring load and the buoyancy cooperates with the tension member to produce a soft restoring force for mooring the floating body to the submerged structure. The BHRT lower end connection allows angular, but not torsional displacement with respect to the submerged structure. In one arrangement of the BHRT lower end, localized flexing is allowed in the separate conductors via bend stiffeners. At the BHRT upper end, several arrangements for the connection between the BHRT and floating body are provided. In one arrangement, a rigid connection is established between a male coupler at an upper end of the BHRT and a female coupler on the floating body.

Abstract: A submerged flowline termination buoy supports flowlines below the sea's dynamic wave zone. An export hose, connected to the flowline at a submerged connection assembly which is supported from the termination buoy, is selectively connected to a dynamically positioned shuttle tanker above the buoy. The export hose is allowed to weathervane and is marked with a marker buoy when it is not connected to the shuttle tanker. The marker buoy is anchored to the export hose with a swivel to allow uninterrupted weathervaning of the hose.

Abstract: An externally actuatable tieback connector for establishing fluid communication and force resisting connection of a conduit to a subsea wellhead having an internal locking geometry. The tieback connector has a body structure that is adapted for landing on a wellhead, with a part thereof extending into the wellhead and carrying a split lock ring. A lock energizing element, moveable relative to the body structure, has a locking position expanding the lock ring into locking and pre-load force transmitting engagement with the internal locking geometry of the wellhead and an unlocking position releasing the tieback connector from the wellhead. One or more drive members extend from the lock energizing element and are exposed externally of the connector body and wellhead for engagement and actuating movement by a lock actuating tool such as a ROV or the like.

Abstract: An arrangement and pull-in method for fluidly coupling a steel riser to a flowline of a turret on a FSO/FPSO. The riser is pulled into a connector by a pull-in line inside the flowline. A pull-in head is releasable secured inside the upper end of the riser. The pull-in head is released from the riser after the riser is locked into the connector. A flex joint is placed above the connector to provide alignment of the connector to the riser during installation.

Abstract: Connection arrangements for a male probe and female receiver for selective connection of a spider buoy with a turret for mooring a vessel in offshore waters. A resilient member is provided in the male probe to absorb forces on the probe as it is being pulled into the receiver. A seal is provided between surfaces of the probe and the receiver to seal seawater from the interior of the turret. Contact rings at the bottom opening of the receiver and at the base of the male probe are machined of hardened strengthened steel and test assembled together prior to bolting of the rings to the receiver and the spider buoy respectively.

Abstract: An omni direction vehicle with a frame having a round surface about its perimeter with no apparatus mounted on the frame extending beyond the perimeter. Two independent drive wheels located on an axis through the center of the frame are mounted at the same distance from a central vertical axis through the frame. Each wheel is powered independently of the other and can rotate at variable speeds in either direction. The vehicle is capable of movement in any direction by rotating the axis of the drive wheels to a position which is perpendicular to the desired direction of travel. The vehicle can spin about its vertical axis such that the axis of the drive wheels can be oriented at any direction without changing the original footprint of the space that the frame occupies over the ground. Thus, the vehicle requires a zero turning radius and requires only the space it occupies to change its forward orientation.

Abstract: A single hoisting mechanism is positioned on a turret of either an external or an internal turret mooring system for a FSO or FPSO vessel and is releasably securable to each of a plurality of anchor leg chains. The mechanism is mounted for angular rotation about the center-line of the turret in order that the hoist can be angularly aligned and selectively engaged with each of the anchor leg chains or riser/umbilicals spaced around the turret.

Abstract: A method and apparatus provide reserved bandwidth and QOS/COS virtual circuit connections in a network using both conventional and novel reservation protocols and frame formats. An apparatus according to the invention includes an enterprise control point that communicates with switches via a reserved signaling channel. The switches have been upgraded or replaced to include enhanced functionality. The enhanced switches detect packets that include requests for reserved connections according to existing reservation protocols such as RSVP and IEEE 802.1P/Q. Such detected packets are forwarded to the enterprise control point for processing via a reserved signaling channel. The enterprise control point identifies a path within the network that can satisfy the requested QOS/COS and reserves the requested resources all along the path from beginning to end.

Abstract: A system for floating hydrocarbon production systems such as a FPSO that requires a remote mooring terminal for transferring fluids to shuttle tankers. The system includes a single point mooring buoy, such as a CALM floating on the sea surface. Mooring legs anchor the CALM buoy to the sea floor. A submerged Flowline Termination Buoy (FTB) is supported by tension members from the CALM, but with no direct support from the sea floor. A submerged weight is suspended by the FTB and the CALM buoy. The submerged flowlines from the FSPO are supported by the FTB. Flexible hoses fluidly connect the flowlines to the CALM buoy.

Abstract: An improved peripherally inserted catheter with its soft ferule including a “ball-like” structure between the soft exterior tube and the soft ferule. A clamp is also provided which is characterized by a clamping force sufficient to clamp the exterior soft tube but insufficient to crimp the inner tube of the ferule for the situation where the clamp were to creep onto the ferule. A sterile screw assembly is coupled to the end of the ferule in another arrangement.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for stabilizing and preserving water soluble solid chemical used in erosion feeders for sanitizing water. Outside ambient air is forced through the chemical stored in a feeder chamber. Depending on the temperature of outside ambient air, the air may be heated before being introduced into the feeder.

Abstract: A system for automatic control of dissolution rates of chemical tablets for water purification for constant flow rate systems. The system includes a treating unit which does not depend upon variable flow rates of water to obtain predetermined variable concentrations of purifying chemical solution. The system includes sensors and a computer for generating control signals to the treating unit for automatically varying the chemical dissolution rate.

Abstract: A safety device for firefighters or rescue personnel including a container or bag 10 having a pack of safety line 12 therein formed from flat fabric webbing folded into a plurality of accordion folds or laps and deployed from a lower end of the bag 10. One embodiment (FIGS. 1-3) is hand carried, while another embodiment (FIGS. 4-5) is secured to the body of the firefighter.