Articles

A breakthrough in permanent monitoring technology - Impulse magazine

12/06/2015

    January 2015 saw the launch of a revolutionary new technology concept from Applus+ RTD: the RTD Plant Master. First shown at the API Inspection Summit in Galveston, Texas, USA, the new technology’s Global Product Manager Paul Deckers said “Managing and safeguarding the integrity of assets has been a concern for operators of refineries, chemical plants and power plants for decades”…

    RTD Plant Master… a break with tradition
     
    “While regular NDT inspections have allowed facilities to run safely in a costeffective manner, some components are inaccessible to NDT technicians due to extremely high or low temperatures – so a shutdown is needed to perform inspections. In addition, many components may require frequent and repeatable measurements which are not possible using traditional methods… the answer lies with the RTD Plant Master”.

    The first RTD Plant Master, with a serial no. PMIS-2015-0001 which was part of the initial production batch of 30 units, was handed over to Applus+ RTD CEO Iain Light by Technical Director Rienk de Vries.


    The first units are designated for a number of locations worldwide and will form part of an anticipated series of validation tests intended to bring actual full installation of units at clients’ sites within the near future.
     
    RTD Plant Master is a permanently installed monitoring system based on ultrasound technology. It provides continuous wall thickness measurements of critical and hard to access components within refineries, chemical plants, power plants and offshore facilities.
     
    RTD Plant Master in operation
     
    In operation, the RTD Plant Master uses high temperature piezo-ceramics. Sensors are applied to ultra-thin foils which create flexible ultrasonic transducers which can be permanently dry-coupled directly to the surface of the component. The transducers are then used to enable single point pulseecho measurements of the component’s wall thickness.
     
    Sensors are designed to be capable of delivering continuous optimum performance for many years at temperatures of up to 200ºC/390ºF, thus enabling extremely high temperature components to be inspected. 

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