Company: Fluke
Category: Test, Measurement & Inspection Product of the Year
The product
The new Fluke™ ii910 Precision Acoustic Imager uniquely enables the detection of corona and partial discharge from a safe distance of up to 120 meters. Teams can operate safely, minimise the risk of fires and help reduce outages. The Fluke™ ii910 also offers greater sensitivity to detect compressed air, gas, and vacuum system leaks, reducing downtime which can cost up to EUR 1000,- per minute
What industry challenges does this product address?
Reduce Energy use
Today’s problem: Compressed air systems require a lot of electricity to run and leaks in the system are undesirable. Globally billions of dollars vanish due to energy loss and downtime associated with low air pressure. The Carbon Trust estimates that UK industry uses over 10TWh of electricity to produce compressed air, making it the direct root cause of over five million tonnes of CO2 emissions a year (source: The Carbon Trust, ‘Compressed air – opportunities for business). With an estimated 30% lost due to leaks in the compressed air system, reducing energy consumption and increasing efficiency is an ever-present concern for process owners. This has only increased in recent years with global efforts to reduce carbon emissions.
More generally leaks in compressed air, gas, steam, and vacuum systems hurt both production uptime and the operations bottom line.
Improve safety
The ii910 device supersedes the popular ii900 and has a higher frequency range of 2-100kHz, offering greater sensitivity and ensuring early detection of gas leaks not just for compressed air, but flammable or poisonous gases also. This gives advanced warning of a problem and allows early intervention before a catastrophic event occurs.
The new Fluke™ ii910 Precision Acoustic Imager uniquely enables the detection of corona and partial discharge from a safe distance of up to 120 meters. If left unchecked partial discharge in medium voltage or high voltage equipment could cause equipment failure and in power distribution, could cause blackouts, fires or explosions and even lethal arc flashes. With a detection range of 120 metres the inspection team members can remain safely away from the event and avoids the need for special access equipment or certification for working at heights. Team members can operate safely, minimise the risk of fires and help reduce downtime or outages.
Maximise plant uptime
In addition to the leak detection qualities with the ability to also detect partial discharge, the ii910 is a compact and versatile multi use instrument that ensures maintenance teams have the tool they need to keep MV and HV installations in top condition. Some 85% of failures in HV and MV equipment are down to partial discharge and its effects. Undetected partial discharge can cause serious mechanical, thermal or chemical degradation, possibly leading to catastrophic damage to electrical equipment. The failure of HV and MV equipment can be sudden and disastrous causing major disruption to production.
How is the product innovative and how will it impact the market?
Advanced, Safe and Easy to use
Electrical discharge detection or leak checking can be carried out as part of a regular maintenance routine. The handheld imager enables users to easily, quickly , and visually, pinpoint the location of faults from a safe distance and record data for later analysis. Even small, low-pressure or low-density leaks are now detected easily. The rugged ii910’s intuitive operation means no training is required – it is simple to learn and easy to use. The straightforward, intuitive interface allows technicians to isolate the sound frequency of the leak and filter out background noise in even the noisiest environments.
Fluke’s innovative SoundSight™ technology now enables corona and partial discharge to be easily located. For technicians working with high voltages in power generation and transmission and with industrial high voltage equipment, the Fluke ii910 provides easier and quicker detection than standard ultrasonic tools while offering the detection capabilities of more expensive UV cameras . It detects, locates and provides visual reporting for partial discharge, including corona discharge at a safe distance allowing operators to assess the need for immediate action.
Using proprietary technology, the device translates the ultrasonic sounds it hears into a visual representation and displays them on a large 7′ touch screen making the device user friendly in noisy environments to detect and locate partial discharge, including corona discharge as well as gas and vacuum leaks. It allows operators to visually see the location of leaks which is particularly key for noisy environments.
Technicians in production locations can isolate the sound frequency of the leak and filter out background noise in even the noisiest environments. Industrial maintenance technicians can identify leaks at a safe distance considerably faster than using traditional diagnostic methods, even during peak production periods.
Fluke ii910 Precision Acoustic Imager is advanced, safe and easy to use. It is compact, completely portable and needs no additional equipment or tools. It can also be used without the need for extensive training of maintenance staff and no certification is needed to operate it.
The higher frequency capability and higher sensitivity of the ii910 (2-100kHz) allow for earlier detection of leaks improving safety but finding small leaks fast further improves energy efficiency.
The ability to record what the detector and operator is seeing is important for analysis and assessment of potential problems. With the ii910, operators can take still images or video recordings of sounds of particular concern and add their own text notes for future reference. The ii910 offers the capacity to store 999 picture files and 20 video files.