partially or fully exposed to the outdoors, subjecting gas monitors to heat, humidity, fog, rain and wind.
FIVE INNOVATIONS IN
FIXED GAS DETECTION THAT IMPROVE PLANT SAFETY
Process and plant engineers all know the dangers of undetected hazardous gases, especially in the oil/gas and chemical industries where these hydrocarbon-based fl uids are both the product and a daily safety challenge. In these plants, Safety is Job #1 because the consequences of an accident can be devastating in terms of the potential loss of human life as well as the damage to equipment or facilities that can be catastrophic.
While the safety industry has come up with a number of highly effective sensor technologies for combustible and toxic gas monitoring, they all have limitations based on the application environment and none of them are truly easy to install and maintenance free. For that reason alone, the safety industry continuously focuses on developing new innovative technologies, materials and construction techniques with the intent of making safety easier.
The Problems
Three of the major complaints about fi xed gas detection equipment that cause the most problems for plant teams in hazardous industries are:
• Frequent sensor replacements • Installation and maintenance challenges • Integration with plant control systems
Under the best of circumstances, fi xed combustible and toxic gas detection is diffi cult. Petrochemical processing plants are typically large and often have a high density layout of equipment, piping and tanks. Processing areas requiring gas detection are often
For these reasons, no single fi xed gas detection sensor technology is appropriate for all applications. Depending on the location, the surrounding environment and the nature of the leak source, what works well in one location can be a failure in another. The differing chemistry of gases further complicates the detection method. For example, differences in density affect where a gas will pool inside a building or how a large cloud will move in the wind.
All that being said, the safety industry is now making great strides in adopting the latest digital technologies and advances in materials and construction techniques. For example with newer digital bus communications such as HART, fi xed gas detection systems are now simpler to integrate with other plant equipment and systems, as well as easier to update and troubleshoot.
There are fi ve important trends in fi xed gas detection systems that are worth paying attention to at this time. This is especially true if your plant hasn’t upgraded recently to newer gas detectors or is planning an upgrade or expansion project in the near future.
Innovation 1: Sensing Technology and Confi guration
Until now, most fi xed gas detection systems have been constructed with discrete electrochemical, catalytic bead, metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) or point infrared (IR) detectors. That was fi ne if you were concerned only about one gas, but what if you needed to monitor two different gases? You had to buy two individual transmitters, wire them up and commission them. You also had to maintain both of them--test, clean or replace sensors, recalibrate and bring them both back online. The electrical wiring and maintenance expenses ended up being more expensive than the monitor itself.
That’s all starting to change now thanks to MSA’s latest dual sensor transmitter design for fi xed gas detectors. The new ULTIMA X5000 Gas Monitor (Fig 1) with its dual sensor design doubles its capabilities while requiring 50 percent less wiring and conduit than a single gas transmitter for equivalent sensing coverage
Using MSA’s XCell® electrochemical sensors, catalytic bead
sensors or point IR sensors, the ULTIMA X5000 detects any two combinations of combustible gas (0 to 100% LEL), H2
multiple ppm ranges, as well as 0-25% O2 full scale depending on the gas and sensor type.
S or CO in . Accuracy is ±2 to 5% of
Another trend to watch is a new open-path gas detection technology from MSA. Open path detection technology is an excellent solution for monitoring large areas or perimeters where point detection would be too costly or impractical. The company’s Senscient ELDS™ Open Path Gas Monitor (Fig 2) with its enhanced laser diode spectroscopy (ELDS) sensor detects toxic and fl ammable gases with remarkable specifi city. In the event of a gas leak, the sensor’s laser technology detects the Harmonic Fingerprint™ produced by the target gas’s absorption of the laser light. The harmonics produced through absorption of the laser light are as unique to the gas as a human fi ngerprint is to an individual, thereby providing a level of false alarm immunity unmatched by any other gas detection technology (Fig.3).
Critical to any open path detectors function is to maintain a clear path between the transmitter and receiver, which can prove very challenging in outdoor applications. Senscient ELDS Class 1 eye
Figure 1: ULTIMA X5000 dual sensor gas transmitter
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