Monitoring & metering
8. Applicable to continuous monitoring: many VOC emissions regulations necessitate continuous monitoring, so an important feature of FIDs is their compatibility with Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems (CEMS). Nevertheless, FIDs should be sufficiently flexible to be suitable for discontinuous monitoring with portable instruments. Consequently, Signal Group developed lightweight ruggedised versions of its FID technology so that, where regulations permit, a single portable FID can be used to measure the VOC emissions of multiple sources – at the same site or at different sites.
FID DEVELOPMENT – A UK MANUFACTURER’S PERSPECTIVE Although the latest range of FIDs from Signal Group feature a fourth-generation detector, it is truly remarkable that the core measurement technology has changed very little since the company first developed a FID in the 1970s. The main reason for this is that each generation of Signal’s FID has featured the company’s unique precision-machined monobloc detector which guarantees uniformity of production in a compact, leak-free design. Most of Signal’s FID development work has therefore focused on issues outside of the core technology. These issues have either been application specific, or have addressed ease of operation, connectivity and data management. In addition to fixed and portable FIDs, Signal has developed both hot and cold FIDs for ambient or post-combustion applications. Dual FIDs have also been developed, featuring two FIDs in one instrument, so that methane and non-methane hydrocarbons (NMHCs) can be monitored simultaneously. This is an important differentiation because methane’s primary significance is as a greenhouse gas (around 30 times more powerful as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide), whereas NMHCs contribute to the
photochemical generation of smog and atmospheric ozone. So, methane emissions are important because of their role in climate change, whereas NMHC emissions affect air quality and health.
Development work at Signal has also focused on automation, datalogging, sample conditioning and advanced calibration tools. In addition, the most recent generation of instruments features a wireless tablet capable of connecting via Wi-Fi to the analyser from a distance of up to 50 metres. This provides users with the ability to view live data in a different location, and even manage datalogging, alarms and calibration from a distance. In addition, all Series IV instruments, including the new SOLAR XPLORE, have their own IP address, and are compatible with 3G, 4G, 5G, GPRS, Bluetooth and satellite communications.
This provides users with simple and secure access to their analysers at any time, from anywhere. In summary, Signal’s first FID analysers in the 1970s were able to provide accurate consistent measurements for total hydrocarbons. Now, thousands of instruments later, their successors are still producing the same reliable data, but with built-in tools and accessories that make the monitoring process easier and less prone to human error. Employing the standard reference method, supported by over 50 years of rigorous work in every conceivable application, FID has stood the test of time, offering operators and regulators confidence and trust in VOC measurements.
Signal Group
www.signal-group.com
Instrumentation Monthly April 2025
61
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