xvi UK Focus - Environmental Analysis The Latest Technology in Landfill Gas Analysis
Part II A of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 sets the minimum standard for contamination when land is redeveloped - as a minimum, sites must not qualify as contaminated land once they have been developed. The utilisation of brownfield sites therefore necessitates environmental investigation work, but Matthew Penfold from Geotechnical and Environmental Assessment Associates (GEA) says “Made ground and greenfield sites can also reveal surprising levels and types of contamination. For example, site investigation can reveal problems that were not anticipated following a desktop study. Similarly, gas can migrate from an old landfill site and affect nearby development, and if this issue is not identified at an early stage, it can result in substantial extra costs later in the project.”
Site investigation is a key aspect of GEA’s work, so the company owns a number of portable gas analysers including PID detectors for the measurement of volatile organic compounds and a landfill gas analyser for a range of common gases. However, the company’s in-house instruments are regularly supplemented by gas analysers rented from Ashtead Technology (UK). Matthew believes that this provides GEA with a high degree of flexibility; “Hiring instruments when we need them means that we can use exactly the right instruments, just for the time we need them and no longer, which saves costs and ensures that we have the best kit for every job.”
Ashtead Technology operates a large fleet of the latest environmental testing and monitoring instruments, which are maintained and calibrated in-house so that they can be delivered ready for use at any European location within 48 hours. The landfill gas analyser routinely rented by GEA
is a Geotech GA2000, capable of measuring CH4, CO2, O2, CO and H2S. However, Will Russell, one of Ashtead’s technical support engineers says “We are delighted to announce the introduction of the new GA5000 into our fleet, which is not only Ex approved but
also provides highly accurate readings (+/-0.5% for CH4 and CO2) in half the time of its predecessor. It is smaller and lighter with a new colour screen that works in all light conditions and features new intuitive menus, with a choice of languages, which guide users through the measurement process.”
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As a result of the technical support, service and calibration facilities that Ashtead Technology provides, the company has been appointed as a rental partner for Geotech, the manufacturer of the GA5000. This is welcome news for Matthew Penfold who says “The release of a new landfill gas analyser exemplifies the benefits of instrument hire because it provides continuous access to the best available technology.”
Reader Reply Card No. 177
Sellafield Ltd Benefits From Lower Cost of Ownership, Lower Risk of Contamination and Increased Levels of Safety With Beamex Multi-Function Calibrators
Sellafield Ltd (UK) is responsible for safely delivering decommissioning, reprocessing, nuclear waste management and fuel manufacturing activities across sites at Sellafield in Cumbria and Capenhurst in Cheshire.
The situation
The main calibration needs at the Sellafield site in Cumbria are related to pressure, temperature and flow measurements. The site itself has approximately 6,000 instruments that must be calibrated annually.
“It’s all about ensuring safety and taking care of the community”, a Senior Engineer explains the philosophy of calibration. Calibrations are performed at the Sellafield site according to an annual maintenance plan. All calibration results are documented on calibration certificates, which are accessible for audits. The site also keeps records of what has been calibrated, when and by whom.
Calibrations are performed at the Sellafield site to meet various objectives. First of all, regulatory requirements and standards demand periodic calibrations; the industry is heavily regulated. In addition, the sites’ calibration and maintenance procedures are audited on a regular basis. Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, calibration is a matter of safety. In a nuclear plant like Sellafield, the accuracy and reliability of measurements are essential.
One of the most costly and challenging issues that complicate performing calibrations at the Sellafield site in all the maintenance and calibration procedures relates to cleaning the equipment and making sure that it is not contaminated when being moved from one location to another. This is a constant challenge when the equipment is needed in another section of the site or when the equipment must be recalibrated or serviced.
According to the site, the biggest selling point and benefit of a Beamex® (UK) calibrator is that it is designed so that it can be easily moved from one area to another, without the risk of contamination and this brings major cost-savings and allows the recalibration and service of Beamex® equipment to be done efficiently. The site also makes full use of the Beamex® calibrator’s accuracy, stability, complete functionality and robustness.
The solution and main benefits
The calibration technicians at the Sellafield site utilise the complete range of Beamex® MC series calibrators for performing calibrations, particularly the Beamex® MC6, MC5, MC4 and MC2 Calibrators.
www.knf.co.uk KNF Neuberger UK Ltd.
Avenue 2, Station Lane Industrial Estate Witney, Oxon OX28 4FA
Tel: 01993 77 83 73 Fax: 01993 77 51 48 E-mail:
info@knf.co.uk Reader Reply Card No. 179 IET September / October 2012
www.envirotech-online.com
The site considers that the ideal calibrator from their perspective is robust and easy to use, but still it should have a lot of functionality integrated into one piece of equipment. They describe the criteria for selecting calibration equipment: If the equipment has a complicated design, it can easily collect liquid or other substances. If we have to use several different devices instead of one all-in-one device, the recalibration and maintenance costs are much higher. In addition, if multiple devices are required to perform calibrations, it means that the technicians must be trained for all those various devices.
The Beamex® MC5 Multifunction Calibrator serves Sellafield’s purposes well. The main benefits are accuracy, robustness, integrated functionality as well as the resistance to contamination.
The Beamex® multifunction calibrator integrates several devices into one, which means that Technicians need to learn to use only one device and site needs to only recalibrate one device instead of several. The all-in-one capabilities of the Beamex® calibrator means also that technicians don’t have to run back and forth to the calibration facility in order to change equipment, they can perform most of the calibrations with one device.
Reader Reply Card No. 178
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