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Oxygen for Life

Oxygen for Life. To what extent it's essential to monitor it for a safe working place ? Oxygen concentration in Air is 21%. However oxygen can be displaced by other gases depending on the environment you are in. Oxygen displacement or deficiency shall be due to leaking materials from storage tanks, natural gas lines, process valves etc.  Decomposing organic matter, such as animal, human or plant waste, produces methane, carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide that displace oxygen.  When Oxygen level falls below 19.5%, health hazards may occur, with few breaths of oxygen deficient air leading to suffocation or even unconsciousness.  Confined spaces prohibit natural ventilation preventing gases from escaping. Explosive and toxic gases, including hydrogen sulfide and carbon monoxide, combined with a lack of oxygen, are the cause of most confined space accidents. By tracking Oxygen levels, gas leaks can be detected eventhough leaking gas cannot be see...

Know what you Flare...

FLARE GAS. Excess hydrocarbon gases which cannot be recovered or recycled is burnt off in the flare system minimizing the impact on environment.  Biggest challenge is measurement of Flow of  Flare Gas as it is characterized by Low and High flow requiring high turn-down ratio, Unknown gas composition, Large pipe size, Limited straight run requirement,  Hazardous Area Approval etc. While the source of the flared gas is typically a leaking valve, identifying which valve and from which operating unit is very critical, difficult and time consuming. Ultrasonic flowmeter can measure the speed of sound of the gas. With sound velocity, temperature and pressure, the meter can determine the molecular weight and composition of the flared gas thereby enabling the operators identify the potential sources of flaring. Interesting isn't it? Flare gas flow meter is a key Instrument to signal abnormal process changes, early leak detection etc., while providing flow measurement d...

Safe way to use Hydrogen for cooling generators

Hydrogen and not Air is used in Large generators for cooling. Do you know why? Larger generators produced more heat and also introduce windage losses caused by  wind resistance and friction on the generator shaft. Hydrogen has a thermal conductivity much higher than air and  a much lower  viscosity than air.  Hydrogen is safe to use and won't support combustion if you can maintain its purity above 90%. Also as the concentration of Hydrogen as a coolant increases the cooling efficiency of the generator also increases. During startup Air is replaced with CO2 and then CO2 is replaced with Hydrogen in a way to ensure Air is not in direct contact with Hydrogen. And during maintenance the reverse is followed to fill it with Air for safe working of personnel. Thermal conductivity analyzers are available to monitor the concentrations of Hydrogen and CO2 in Air to enable efficient and quicker Startup, Shutdown and Maintenance operations. Happy Reading.

Radar Level for Foamy Media..

Struggling for a reliable level measurement in a Foamy, Dusty, Media ? You are not alone. Read more to know more... Radar Level Transmitters based on time-domain-reflectometry technology is one of the Reliable and fastest growing methods for level measurement at Process Plants replacing Mechanical and Electromechanical measurements. Process customers are looking for a reliable and maintenance-free level measurement technology that can cope with a wide range of pressures and temperatures while being insensitive to changes in density or dielectric constant. Also customers look for a measurement device that has maximum immunity to heavy vapors, dust or foaming, or a Turbulent surface. There is no moving parts resulting in reduced maintenance costs and higher reliability. Think of Radar level when you have to  manage inventory, Setting a safety limit to avoid overfill, leak detection, dry-run protection of pumps etc. You have choice of a Non Contact Radar or Gui...

Carbon Monoxide...Just be Alert

Do you keep your car running in your garage or in a closed parking place...Never do that again. Carbon monoxide (CO) is a colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas that is poisonous to humans. It is known as the “silent killer” because humans cannot tell when they are around it, but it is very dangerous and deadly. Exposure occurs by breathing air that contains carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide is released directly from vehicle tailpipes while the engine is running. Carbon monoxide present in motor-vehicle exhaust can accumulate in garages, enclosed parking facilities, service stations, and vehicle-repair facilities. Other than this Carbon monoxide can be produced by any fuel-burning device. Main sources are your furnace, dryer vent in a drying machine, fireplace or chimney, etc. It is important to have these sources regularly serviced and cleaned by a professional to help prevent a CO leak that could lead to carbon monoxide poisoning. The carbon monoxide detector is a safety d...

Thermal Validation for Compliance and Quality Assurance

Thermal validation is the process of validating and qualifying equipment and storage facilities to prove that they will create and maintain the temperatures they are designed for. A broad spectrum of instruments and processes require thermal validation. It can be a simple temperature map of laboratory Incubator, Freezer, Furnace or a full fledged autoclave unit. A typical thermal validation setup would include a thermocouple/RTD or a set of sensors with Traceable accuracy and a Datalogger. Sensors would require pre and post calibration records which is done typically with Dry Block Calibrators. Wireless dataloggers with Integral sensors for Temperature can make the Thermal Validation much easier. With Multiple dataloggers, Pharma Industries can execute multiple thermal mapping exercises at once. Validation software should be compliant to 21 CFR Part 11 and be validated. Some software goes further allowing complex calculations to be performed with a clear pass and fail crite...

WirelessHART

Line of Sight and WirelessHART... WirelessHART is a radio communications protocol that adds wireless capabilities to the HART protocol while maintaining compatibility with existing HART devices, commands, and tools. WirelessHART utilizes a time synchronized, self-organizing, and self-healing mesh architecture that supports operation in the 2.4 GHz ISM license free band. Wireless HART has several advantages.. its highly encrypted, it's license-free and, most importantly, you are free from the clutches of wire. If an obstruction is introduced into the network, data will continue to flow because the device already has other established paths. Gateways interface with existing host systems via LAN or serial communications using industry standard protocols including OPC DA, Modbus®TCP/IP, Ethernet/IP & HART-IP, and Modbus RTU It enables a faster way to get the measurements to the central Host. If you have challenges running the wires from the measurement points but have a...

Water Balancing for Process Industries

Water balance estimation is an important tool to assess the current status and trends in water resource availability in an area over a specific period of time.  When it comes to a specific industry a water balance chart compares the total water supplied to the site, the actual water consumed within all the water end uses in the site, and the total water leaving the site. This will help to identify areas of significant water usage and problem areas, including leaks and uncontrolled losses. Industry is demanding ever-greater volumes of water, while at the same time producing wastes and effluents, which in many places taint and damage the quality of this precious resource on which all life depends.  Water balance can help robust water accounting, monitoring, optimum operating and management in industrial parks.  Furthermore, performance indicators could evolve to a useful tool for leading to more systematic analysis of the impact of industrial design and manageme...

Rotating Machinery Maintenance and Protection

Plant Asset Maintenance and Protection starts from Lubrication.  Read to know more.. Lubricants form a thin layer to a level of micron between rolling Element and race thereby keeping the element separated and minimizing the contact in a Rolling Element Bearing. The lubricating fluid also helps in removing the heat that is generated by shearing. Insufficient lubrication allows metal to metal contact resulting in wear and tear. Lubricants are chosen based on the loads and operating temperature. Excessive lubrication is also no good resulting in high Temperature due to shearing stresses leading to bearing failure. Clean Lubricant ensures long Bearing Life. Even  micron-sized debris that gets trapped can result in the formation of a small pit in the race resulting in fatigue crack. If the particle is big then it creates a groove in the Race surface. Its ideal to monitor lubrication level, temperature and vibration on a continuous basis to predict problems well in adva...

How Green Energy Pays..

Clean energy like Wind and Solar can reduce carbon footprint, but can it attract Big investments ? YES IT CAN. Read to know more.. The data centres are the heart of the Google machine. Every second they pump out all the essential information that keeps everything from Google search, Gmail, Cloud-services, YouTube etc. Server uptime means everything for companies like Apple, Google, Facebook and the likes.. Denmark has a state-of-the-art smart grid infrastructure, resulting an impressive 99.996% power grid uptime in 2019. Denmark is aiming for a 100% renewable power grid by 2027. Google is committed to match its energy use with 100 percent carbon-free energy within a few years. Danish universities ensures that companies have access to world-class researchers and a large talent pool of committed, innovative and highly educated workers focused on cleantech. Denmark has very extensive and up-to-date fibre grids and is connected directly to the US, UK and the Netherlands b...

Energy lost on Air leaks

How do you manage your most expensive Utility in your Plant ? Do you know what constitutes a major pie in your energy consumption chart ? Air compressors play an important role in any facility, and their energy consumption can make up a significant percentage of total energy use. Since compressed air is often the most expensive utility, operating costs can be significant. This is why, in recent years, increasing numbers of plants and facilities have started taking steps to reduce the amount of energy used by air compressors. What Smart Plant Operators do to reduce the energy used by air compressors? 1. Create and manage an air compressor operating schedule. Identify idle periods when the compressor can be shutdown. Automatic data logging and analysis can help a scientific approach. 2. Fix existing system leaks. Large leaks will be audible, while smaller leaks will need to be identified by ultrasonic leak detection technology. A periodic Air Audit will help. 3. Drawing cool ...

Immersive Technologies

Immersive Technologies to spike your sale... Immersive experience in digital commerce using augmented and virtual reality, and 3D technology are nudging the consumer to choose alternative shopping channels. These immersive technologies seek to replicate in-store shopping experience and provide online shoppers an equivalent experience. Consumers feel these technologies are making them connect with the product. Immersive technologies such as conversational AI, AR, VR and 3D content help bridge the physical and digital divide, and are being used by brands to enhance customer engagement, replicate in-store experiences and drive sales. Consumers are more satisfied when they can try, touch and buy products online with confidence. They are more likely to become repeat customers and brand promoters. Would you like to try Immersive Technology to promote your sale ?

Artificial Intelligence

A rtificial intelligence evolves with the development of computers even rely on computational development. The ways and processes of human thinking developed by Psychologists and welcomed by computational experts produce the science of Artificial Intelligence. This continues with the development of cognitive science that encourages the development of Artificial Intelligence to Cognitive Thinking Intelligence, a new pathway to the science of Artificial Intelligence that can emulate human cognitive abilities even if not 100%. Emulation of human cognitive abilities is developed based on the modeling of system interaction with the environment and information fusion, which can be used to conduct Inferencing, so when this occurs repeatedly it will produce knowledge that grows. This process is called Knowledge Growing System which is Brain Inspired Cognitive Artificial Intelligence and can be used for information extraction and when applied to instrumentation system will realize Intelligent I...

End Point Encryption

Are you working remotely? Endpoint protection platforms provide security and protect electronic devices from malware attacks and data breaches. They are used to protect a number of electronic devices such as smartphones, laptops, computers, tablets, and other. Organizations have begun investing in endpoint protection platforms to avoid breaches and ensure privacy and protection of information. The number of end users who are working remotely and on-the go has increased exponentially. With breaches now happening both above and below the OS, you need intelligent solutions that prevent, detect and respond to threats wherever they occur. Prevent Prevent PC security threats and stay protected with AI, machine learning and easy-to-implement behavioral endpoint detection Detect See security threats everywhere with visibility across endpoints, networks and the cloud — and receive remote incident response services Respond Activate on-demand incident and emergency response, including...