Agustin de Betancourt’s Mechanical Dredger in the Port of Kronstadt: Analysis through Computer-Aided Engineering
Fecha
2018-08-10
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Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute (MDPI)
Resumen
This article analyzes the first self-propelled floating dredging machine designed and
executed by Agustín de Betancourt in 1810 to dredge the port of Kronstadt (Russia). With this
objective, a study of computer-aided engineering (CAE) has been carried out using the parametric
software Autodesk Inventor Professional, consisting of a static analysis using the finite element
method, of the 3D model which is reliable under operating conditions. The results have shown that
the system of inertia drums proposed by Betancourt manages to dissipate the tensions between the
different elements, locating the highest stresses in the links of the bucket rosary, specifically at the
point of contact between links. Similarly, the maximum displacements and the greatest deformations
(always associated with these points of greater stress), are far from reaching the limits of breakage
of the material used in its construction, as well as the safety coefficient of the invention, confirming
that the mechanism was oversized, as was generally the case at the time. This analysis highlights
the talent of the Spanish engineer and his mastery of mechanics, in an invention, the first of its kind
worldwide, which served the Russian Empire for many years.
Descripción
Palabras clave
Agustín de Betancourt, mechanical engineering, mechanical dredger, computer-aided design, computer-aided engineering, static analysis, finite-element method, Autodesk Inventor Professional
Citación
Rojas-Sola, J.I.; De la Morena-De la Fuente, E. Agustin de Betancourt’s Mechanical Dredger in the Port of Kronstadt: Analysis through Computer-Aided Engineering. Appl. Sci. 2018, 8, 1338. https://doi.org/10.3390/app8081338