Recent years have seen unprecedented pressures on the refining industry to optimise its processes to adjust to an ever-changing fuel demand and pressure to hit emissions targets. All this combined with a reduction in infrastructure spend and a refocussing of the major producers leaves asset managers with a challenge on their hands:

How can the lifetime of an asset be safely extended whilst accommodating changing crude slates and products and at the same time optimising processes to be more energy efficient?

Part of the solution lies in increasing the quality and frequency of asset integrity data. Traditionally, the remaining lifetime of an asset would be calculated from asset integrity data collected every 3-5 years; this is particularly true for high temperature assets which are only inspected during shutdowns. This low frequency of data collection forces asset managers to work from historic data with wide safety margins and restrictive Integrity Operating Windows (IOWs). This approach is not compatible with the modern demands placed on operators.

New high temperature ultrasonic testing (UT) sensors are enabling on-stream measurements from refineries outside of shutdowns.

Ionix HotSense™ high temperature probes enable spot measurements to be made by inspectors up to 550°C and scanning measurements to be made at continuous surface temperatures up to 350°C. This enables up-to-date thickness measurements and wall loss trends to be collected from all areas of the plant to guide asset integrity decision making.

The HotSense™ installed probes coupled with WIrelessHART transmitter nodes can stream live thickness data from hot assets (up to 550°C) directly to control systems or enable historians to provide trends that can detect changes in wall loss as a result of changing process conditions. Operators are given the advanced notice they need to implement appropriate measures to reduce wall loss and increase the asset lifetime. This ensures operators maximise the returns from their infrastructure whilst minimising operational costs and hugely reducing the risk of loss of containment.

Do you want to know how you can implement high temperature ultrasound to maximise your profitability?

Ionix Advanced Technologies, the extreme environment experts, have written a white paper which includes everything you need to know to get started, including:

• Where high temperature UT can be applied in your plant
• Available technologies for on-stream UT measurements
• Accuracy and precision of measurements
• Calibration and compensation at high temperatures
• Monitoring solutions for trending
• Optimising Asset Performance Management for increased profitability
• Data transfer and integration
• Data sharing and removing silos

You can download it for free form Inspectioneering now using the link below.

#HotSense #NDT #Corrosion #Inspectioneering

Ionix Advanced Technologies are the UT extreme environment experts. Our HotSense™ high temperature UT probes enable on-stream inspections using your standard NDT hardware and procedures. We also offer complete, installed monitoring systems to get the latest thickness data direct to where you need it most.