Smartpigging is quickly becoming the favored method of inspecting process piping within the petrochemical and energy industries. Smartpigging is considerably quicker than traditional ultrasonic testing (UT) and does not require scaffolding or confined-space entry. In addition to the substantial time savings, smartpigging provides a massive amount of data and can obtain data for areas of process piping that are otherwise inaccessible with handheld UT, such as in a convection bank.
The patented single-bodied Merlin Smartpig runs inline and can take over 30,000 individual wall thickness measurements per foot of piping. When combined with t he internal radii readings, these measurements can be collated to provide an accurate assessment of the tube condition. On-site technicians use this data to identify common defects, including diametric growth, internal and external wall loss, local and general wall loss, localized pitting and internal fouling. All defects can be accurately located both circumferentially and axially within the process tubing and reported to the engineers responsible for the equipment maintenance.
Merlin 3-D is bespoke software used to create a 3-D model of the process tubing from the data recorded by the Merlin Smartpig. The data is mapped accurately, both axially and circumferentially, and allows technicians to quickly pinpoint any areas of concern for further analysis. The software contains a suite of assessment tools to enable instant anomaly identification and quantification, such as displaying the exact locations of any internal fouling within the tubing. Merlin 3-D also has the ability to display multiple windowed views side by side to allow technicians to quickly and accurately compare multiple measured parameters.
Coke scans provided by Cokebusters quickly identify areas of remaining internal fouling. Working side by side, decoking operators and inspection technicians can easily point out heavily coked areas of tubing and concentrate the decoking efforts in these areas. This provides faster overall decoking operations and ensures a cleaner tube wall once operations have finished. Cleaner tubes massively increase thermal efficiency, reducing costs and increasing the life of the process equipment.
Having the ability to quickly generate a visual representation of process equipment provides refinery engineers with the tools needed to quickly pinpoint areas of damage. Having a visual representation of the tube walls enables engineers to identify patterns of wall loss, such as those caused by burner misalignment, and take corrective action to prevent additional damage from occurring. A Merlin 3-D viewer is provided with every inspection report, so engineers can reference defects at any time after the inspection is completed. When multiple inspections of the same process equipment have been completed, the Merlin 3-D viewer can be used to compare results side by side and visualize any changes.
For more information, visit www.cokebusters.com or call (281) 537-7475.
