SDT, announces its participation in Maintenance 2024, the premier meeting place for production-oriented maintenance in one of Europe’s industrial hotspots. At this prestigious event in Antwerp, professionals from asset-intensive industries will have the opportunity to explore the cutting-edge technologies and services offered by SDT, heralding a new era in maintenance management and production quality.
In-depth Insights with Ultrasonic Technology
SDT is renowned for its pioneering ultrasonic solutions that enable businesses to gain in-depth insights into the health of their machinery and installations. By facilitating early detection of potential failures, SDT not only offers a means for predictive maintenance but also contributes to significant energy cost reductions and improvements in overall product quality. All the while, ensuring the reliability of production facilities.
A Spectrum of Solutions with Atlas Inspection
Discover how our ultrasonic solutions and the products from Atlas Inspection can transform your business by revolutionizing your maintenance strategies. Attendees will be able to visit SDT’s booth for demonstrations and detailed information on how these technologies can be integrated into their current maintenance strategies. The portfolio includes a wide array of solutions designed to meet the specific needs of various industries, from oil and gas to energy production and beyond.
Innovation, Automation, and Virtual Reality
With a flavor of innovation, Maintenance 2024 provides the perfect backdrop for SDT to unveil its latest developments in ultrasonic maintenance and inspection. The focus extends beyond proven methods to the future of maintenance through automation and virtual reality. These innovative approaches offer unprecedented opportunities for visualizing and understanding the condition of industrial assets in ways previously unimaginable.
Visit SDT at Maintenance 2024
We invite all interested parties to visit SDT’s booth at Maintenance 2024. Discover how our ultrasonic solutions and the products from Atlas Inspection can transform your business by revolutionizing your maintenance strategies.
Don’t miss this chance to experience the future of industrial maintenance and learn how SDT and Atlas Inspection together are paving the way toward optimal operational efficiency and production quality.
Streamlining Innovation for Enhanced Efficiency and Safety
SDT has consistently led the way in ultrasonic technology, crafting solutions that offer profound insights into the health of machines and installations. Their technology empowers customers to anticipate failures, manage energy expenses, and improve product quality, ensuring the reliability of production facilities across numerous industries.
Conversely, Atlas Inspection Europe specializes in a wide array of Remote Visual Inspection (RVI) equipment, including state-of-the-art Ultra Sound gas leak detection cameras, borescopes, videoscopes, and more. Their objective harmonizes with SDT’s: to protect the safety of individuals, facilities, and the environment through delivering essential information and top-notch industrial equipment.
By concentrating on SDT’s ultrasonic products, Atlas Inspection Europe aims to deliver a comprehensive suite of solutions that elevate machinery and infrastructure monitoring to new levels. This synergy not only boosts diagnostic capabilities but also simplifies the maintenance process, yielding significant cost savings and improved operational efficiency for clients.
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Optical Gas Imaging (OGI) cameras have drastically changed the way methane and volatile organic compounds (VOC) leak detection is performed. Instead of going to each potential leak point with the so-called “sniffers” or soap spray, OGI operators are able to detect leaks meters away, speeding-up the detection and enabling to detect leaks at unexpected locations. OGI also enables to visualize gas plumes and provide valuable insights when a large release happens.
Acoustic Leak Imaging (ALI) cameras, more recently introduced, allows to detect leaks from a distance too. More affordable than OGI, they also work with any kind of gas as long as it is pressurized, and detect the leak location and not the gas plume. But each techniques has its advantages and disadvantages, depending on the application.
Through real use cases, we provide insights on: • How these two techniques compare • Which one suits better specific applications
ACOUSTIC LEAK IMAGING (ALI)
Gas leaks emit ultrasounds due to the turbulences created by the gas flow escaping a pressurized system. An ultrasound camera detects these ultrasounds using an array of microphone sensors: when a sound wave generated by a leak reaches the ultrasound camera, the sound wave hits each individual microphone at different times.
From these small-time differences, the ultrasound camera reconstructs the position of the leak source. This acoustic image is overlaid in real-time with an optical image obtained by the optical camera, allowing the user to clearly see the leak location.
OPTICAL GAS IMAGING (OGI)
OGI cameras are a special and more sensitive type of thermal cameras, which allow the visualization of gas plumes based on the infrared absorbing nature of certain molecules. Operators can see gas plumes as a contrast between the plume and the background.
Unlike thermal cameras, OGI cameras have a filter that only transmits radiation in a specific band of the infrared region. Therefore, only gases that absorb in that specific infrared band can be detected with this filter.
Filters for detecting different gases exist, the most common application of OGI cameras being the detection of hydrocarbon leaks.
Methane leak at a bolt – Detection & Quantification
Quantification by the ultrasound camera is immediate: the user just needs to specify the type of gas, and the system pressure.
Leak rate estimation by the OGI camera requires a tripod, few minutes, and hardware to post-process the image on the field.
How do ALI and OGI techniques compare?
ACOUSTIC LEAK IMAGING (ALI)
OPTICAL GAS IMAGING (OGI)
DETECTED GASES
All gases, as long as the pressure difference is high enough (see below). Also works for under-pressure (vacuum leaks).
Mainly hydrocarbons (although, with a different filter it’s possible to detect ammonia or CO2). Not possible to detect IR-inactive molecules, such as hydrogen, nitrogen, air or noble gases.
REQUIREMENTS FOR GAS LEAK DETECTION
Minimum pressure difference (50 mbar, 0.7 psi) at the leak site is required for a gas leak to emit ultrasounds.
A temperature difference between the cloud and the background is needed.
FACTORS AFFECTING THE DETECTION CAPABILITIES
Ultrasound noises increase the detection limit of the camera. Wind can dissipate the cloud making it hardly visible. Humidity, or the presence of residual gases absorbing in the specific infrared band negatively influence the detection.
QUANTIFICATION
Real-time quantification by entering the type of gas and the system pressure in the camera’s interface.
Quantification requires using a tablet or a laptop, and a tripod to stabilize the image. It takes a few minutes to measure each leak. Estimations of leak rates are only available after a post-processing phase.
CALIBRATION
Recommended periodically (every 3-4 years) or even necessary according to each brand.
ATEX CERTIFICATION / OPERATION IN HAZARDOUS AREAS
Several OGI cameras exists in ATEX-certified (intrinsically safe) version.
Which method fits my application better?
Both ALI and OGI are advanced techniques for remote gas leak detection, improving inspection methods by easing and reducing time of inspection and by improving safety.
OPTICAL GAS IMAGING DISADVANTAGES
OPTICAL GAS IMAGING ADVANTAGES
Along with the price, it reserves the tool for specialists. Extensive training and experience needed to operate and reliably find leaks.
Quantification of leak rates takes time and effort (tripod, post processing, …), and is not possible on all leaks.
Wind and humidity adversely affect the detection.
The only solution to detect at a distance hydrocarbon in vents, leaks on fuel tanks. No pressure difference between the container and the atmosphere is needed.
Compliant with OOOOa standards.
ACOUSTIC LEAK IMAGING DISADVANTAGES
ACOUSTIC LEAK IMAGING ADVANTAGES
Not suited for detecting leaks in systems with less than 50 mbar / 0.7 psi.
Detection range is limited to 100 meters maximum.
The operator needs to learn to differentiate leaks from other ultrasound sources such as flow noise.
Only a 20-minute training is required for a basic use. Combined with a lower price than OGI devices, it can be made available to anyone, a particularly useful advantage in emergency cases.
Leak pictures are clearer, allowing a better documentation.
Leak rate quantification calculated and displayed live.
From 25 to 27 January 2022, Maintenance NEXT, organized by Rotterdam Ahoy, will take place. The trade show plays a pivotal role in the industrial maintenance sector. It is the meeting place for asset owners, service providers, OEMs, contractors and suppliers. Join us and get informed about our products & services.
Location: Rotterdam Ahoy Ahoyweg 10 3084 BA Rotterdam
The 27th May, Atlast Inspection Europe wil be present at the annual Maintenance & Innovation Webinar. Register via the banner and get informed about our products & services.
The Ultra Pro hand-held ultrasound imaging camera is capable of accurately locating gas leaks from several meters with unrivaled speed. It excels finding leaks in high or in hard-to-reach areas.
Atlas Inspection Europe was nominated for Distran Ulta Pro, a mobile ATEX camera that uses ultrasonic technology to detect leaks from all compressed gases, including air, vacuum and steam.
The 1st webinar “Maintenance Innovations” will take place on May 27, 2021. Normally a winner was selected for the BEMAS Innovation Awards in March during the fair.
BEMAS vzw is a platform for the exchange of knowledge and good practices in maintenance and asset management. BEMAS helpS asset intensive organizations on the way to world-class management and maintenance of technical installations.
