THERMOGRAPHIC INSPECTIONS
ATEXPROOF bv is an international orientated company. We have experience in the Oil & Gas industry both onshore & offshore and one of our core businesses is the ATEX inspection and compliance of electrical installations in potentially explosive atmospheres. Through our extensive knowledge and experience we can assist our clients in asset management and the verification and integrity of their Ex equipment and systems.
Our highly trained and experienced workforce provide full Industrial and Hazardous area (ATEX) Thermal Imaging Inspection Services for workplaces that may contain or have activities that produce, explosive or potentially explosive atmospheres which can be caused by flammable gases, mists or vapours or by combustible dusts.
ATEXPROOF bv Services provides these Thermal Imaging Inspection Services worldwide.
Our engineers or inspectors are equipped with an industrial and/or Explosion Safe (ATEX/UL/FN/IECEx) certified thermal imaging camera and they can see things you never would have seen before. They can spot a potential problem before it develops and causes major damage. Thermal imaging allows for non-destructive and non-invasive monitoring of machines and processes, and also allows its users to create new ways to examine operations that were not even available before.
For example, bearings, electrical systems, mechanical inspections, medical examinations, and now even sugar beets are proving the value of thermal imaging. Thermal imaging offers an easy solution, clearly revealing which piles are heating up fastest and need to be processed first. The savings and efficiencies are obvious.
HOW THERMOGRAPHIC INSPECTIONS WORK
Construction Inspections
Thermal imaging can benefit in building construction too. Heat loss due to poor window, wall, and roof performance can be seen and repaired. If insulation is wet due to a leak, it loses its effectiveness, and can cause even worse damage to the interior of the building. Thermal imaging can also determine the air quality of the building.
Engineering Design and Development
Friction generates heat. The flow of electricity generates heat. No surprises there. But by using thermal imaging cameras, researchers and engineers can examine prototypes and parts and detect where designs might have flaws.
Mechanical
Mechanical inspections often require comparing similar pieces of equipment, as well as their actual operating temperature. For example, two identical motors operating under the same load should look alike through a thermal imager. When they don’t, an impending failure can be detected and replaced before it’s too late. After all, early detection of a failing component allows for scheduled repairs and avoids costly downtime.
Process Monitoring
All aspects of process applications can be monitored to detect problem areas and ensure proper operating conditions. Robotic operations in assembly lines can be monitored for potential problems. For example, the paper industry pushes for continual throughput to find inefficiencies in their processes, and thermal imaging is used to check bearings in the sheet and roller feed lines and monitor the temperatures inside coating kilns.
Refractory
Exterior refractory inspections locate “hot spots” in furnaces and process vessels, indicating thinning or missing refractory lining or insulation. Failure to identify these areas can result in catastrophic failure leading to safety-related problems as well as a loss in production.
Predictive Maintenance: Finding a Hot Spot
During a routine infrared survey, John van Stee, our Lead inspector, noticed a hot spot in one of the incoming power line switches. The 161,000-volt high voltage disconnect switch provides electrical power and is critical to plant operation. A typical potline in the plant uses over 100 megawatts of continuous power and must remain online. Fortunately the anomaly was found early enough to be corrected before any serious damage or loss of production occurred. “The failure of one of these switches could cost tens of millions of dollars depending on circumstances,” states John. The around-the-clock operation can’t tolerate downtime. It is typical for predictive maintenance to conduct infrared surveys every two months using the thermal imaging camera.
SOME EXAMPLES OF MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT WHERE THERMOGRAPHY IS USED:
• Pumps: Overheated connections, fuse problems, overloaded electrical cables, etc.
• Process valves: Open, closed and leakage
• Storage tanks: Sludge levels
• Pipelines: Check if and where there are abnormalities, for example locate build-up of scale, etc.
• Motors: Overheating bearings, misalignment and overheated windings
• Conveyor belts: Overheated bearings
• Furnace inspections: With a special camera designed to “see through flames” for high temperature industrial furnace applications, ideal for monitoring all types of furnaces and heaters and boilers
SOME EXAMPLES OF ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT WHERE THERMOGRAPHY IS USED:
• Primary power source: Outdoor high voltage switchyard
• Switchgear
• Transformers
• Low voltage installations: Breaker panels, faulty electrical outlets/wall sockets
• Fuse panels
• Motor control centers (MCC)
• Electrical cabinets