GAS DETECTION & MONITORING
ELIMINATING LEAKS A wide range of industries look to gas detection equipment to improve the
efficiencies of cold storage systems and ensure the safety of their employees. Shaun Evers, Managing Director of Stonegate Instruments, discusses how
innovative technology is playing a fundamental role in reducing leaks and the potentially expensive consequences.
Refrigerant gases are crucial to keeping cold storage and refrigeration systems running, facilitating the removal of heat, which keeps refrigerated products at correct temperatures.
However, if they escape, these gases can be detrimental to the environment, contributing towards global warming; a leak of 1kg of refrigerant gas can have the same impact as a van driving for 10,000 miles. What’s more, a business could face financial implications; a leak in a small 300kW refrigeration system can lead to increased costs of up to £1,400, wasting money that could be spent elsewhere.
Leaks are impossible to predict and difficult to detect, as they are invisible to the naked eye they often go unnoticed by employees. However, modern technology can alert staff the minute gas escapes, meaning the leak can be identified and repaired as quickly as possible.
Not only is a leak dangerous, but it breaches the latest set of F-Gas regulations, which outline specific rules regarding the containment, use and recovery of fluorinated gases. These regulations are in place to ensure F-Gases are used safely, preventing damage to the
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environment and health. The latest EU regulations specify that refrigeration equipment with 300kg or more of refrigerants must be fitted with a leak detector.
“GASES CAN CAUSE IRRITATION OF THE THROAT, EYES AND
SKIN, FROSTBITE AND CHEMICAL BURNS.”
Responsibility for complying with these regulations lies with the equipment operator; they are legally obliged to maintain the upkeep of equipment. If regulations are breached, a business could face financial penalties, which could total in thousands of pounds, from the Environment Agency.
These gas emissions are also extremely dangerous to health, risking the safety of workers in the surrounding environment. Exposure can cause employees to become ill, such gases can bring on symptoms ranging from irritation of the throat, eyes and skin to frostbite, chemical burns and in the most severe cases lung and brain damage.
Gas leaks occur for a number of reasons including equipment malfunction, mechanical damage and accidental release during refrigerant replenishment. No matter the cause it’s vital that workers are alerted of a leak, so the problem can be repaired without delay.
Technology now exists to ensure a gas leak never goes unnoticed. These devices assist businesses, protecting the safety of employees and preventing unnecessary costs. Gas detection systems, like Stonegate’s DL 1024, can be programmed to detect both toxic and non-toxic gases, 24 hours a day. Sensitive sensors can pick up the slightest escape of gas, notifying employees with an audio-visual alarm, and even come equipped with a battery back-up system, so can keep running in the event of a power cut.
The most sophisticated detection systems come complete with colour- changing LEDs that alter depending on the status of each sensor. This makes leak monitoring and detection simple, ensuring that the leak can be visually identified and necessary repairs can be made quickly before breaching safety regulations.
www.stonegate-instruments.com www.tomorrowshs.com
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