Ultrasonic Condition Monitoring For Magnetic Drive Pump Robustness And Process Protection

Don Hawkinson 22/08/2018

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HMD Kontro Sealless Pumps have developed an ultrasonic condition monitoring instrument, branded VapourView®. Originally conceived as a device to protect magnetic drive pumps from dry running and the upset conditions causing lubrication feed flow starvation, the VapourView® systemis finding increasing favour for, not only protecting magnetic drive pumps, but also providing visibility of process conditions and increasing process uptime as a consequence.

The VapourView® ultrasonic condition monitoring instrument, with cUL hazardous area certification for North America, won the 2017 British Pump Manufacturers Association, Pump Industry Award, for Technical Innovation, sponsored by Process Industry Informer. VapourView® is also available with ATEX/IECEx compliance, meaning that it can offer global hazardous area certification coverage.

The VapourView® technology comprises of a non-intrusive sensor that sends and receives an ultrasonic signal through the internal feed of a magnetic drive pump. The technology is patented and operates at such a high frequency that the size of individual bubbles of gas travelling in a high velocity liquid stream, can be accurately measured.

With a gas content in the process liquid stream, an ultrasonic signal passing through the process fluid suffers losses through attenuation and scattering of the sound waves. The losses due to gas content in the process fluid are processed and measured by VapourView® from the reflected ultrasonic signal. The output signal from the VapourView® (in 4-20 mA form) can be used to alarm and trip the pump operation in order to protect both the process and the pump.

The following three case studies briefly explain the installation of a VapourView® in conjunction with a magnetic drive pump at process plants in different parts of the world and the benefits accrued as a result, of their application:

♦ Fuel Distribution: A highly volatile hydrocarbon application had proven a challenge both operationally and for the sealed pumps installed, causing numerous breakdowns. A magnetic drive pump system incorporating VapourView® was specified and supplied. The sealless pump, also with ZeroLoss™ shell technology, improved the system robustness, by increasing the margin between process liquid vapourisation and the actual process temperature.

The installation of the VapourView® ensures that priming and venting of the process is thoroughly completed, before pump start-up is permitted. The VapourView® also identified a system design fault allowing gas evolution in the suction pipeline which was subsequently corrected.

The end-user was delighted at the capability of the VapourView® to identify system problems caused by direct sunlight vapourisation of the process liquid. VapourView® provided visibility of process liquid conditions that hitherto had been unknown, enabled remedial action to be taken to increase process uptime and continues monitoring of a sensitive condition that has the potential to cause the breakdown of capital equipment and considerable process downtime.

♦ Oil & Gas Multinational: A number of magnetic drive pumps with integral VapourView® ultrasonic condition monitoring were installed on light hydrocarbon services, as part of a process upgrade programme to drive down fugitive emissions. The 4-20 mA output signals for the VapourView® instruments were connected to the distributed control system (DCS).

On one particular pump the proximity of the operating conditions to the vapour pressure of the process liquid were a cause for concern and the VapourView® enabled the conditions to be monitored via the DCS and adjusted where necessary to optimise the process operation and maintain the process fluid in a liquid state.

♦ Oil & Gas Production: In a carbon dioxide recovery plant where for the high efficiency extraction of Natural Gas Liquids (NGL) from a carbon dioxide stream was conducted, a pumping upgrade was installed, comprising of a multistage, magnetic drive pump and a VapourView® instrument.

The pump application on the reflux stream from the Propane Recovery Column (PRC) had historically been problematic but had been re-designed to move the pump location to a lower process temperature position and thereby reduce the risk of pump operation near to the process bubble point.

The inclusion of the VapourView® non-intrusive ultrasonic condition monitoring instrument was to provide real-time condition monitoring of the process fluid inside the pump containment shell and to detect the early onset of gas or vapour phase inside the pumping system. “The VapourView® instrument is proving much more useful than we thought”, said the Senior Process Engineer at the plant. He explained further that when the process is coming back on stream, the liquid entering the pump is unstable for a period of time. With the visibility of the process conditions that the VapourView® provides, the user can avoid damaging, premature starting of the pump and can also ensure that the pump is brought on line as quickly as possible – maximizing productivity.

In addition, the VapourView® instrument has revealed issues in the upstream process where, the unexpected detection of vapour during ‘normal’ operating conditions, was the primary indicator allowing the user to detect a leak in an upstream heat exchanger. The on-site process controllers closely monitor the VapourView® output signal, because it allows them to tune upstream processes to further improve plant efficiency and robustness.

VapourView® ultrasonic condition monitoring is a new technology for process industries. It is gaining traction in the market and, as can be seen by these case studies, provides a unique insight and understanding of process operation, that has the potential to improve and optimise and should see the increase of ultrasonic condition monitoring across a range of processing applications.

For more information contact Martin Stuart, New Product Development Manager,
HMD Kontro Sealless Pumps. Tel:+44 1323 452141 E-mail: martin.stuart@sundyne.com
Web: www.sundyne.com/hmdkontro