If you are planning to visit the Emerson Exchange you may wish to attend the “Refinery Automates beyond the P&ID using Wireless Pervasive Sensing” (session ID 2-1762).
https://www.emersonexchangeregistration.org/2014/connect/sessionDetail.ww?SESSION_ID=1762
If you have not yet decided to go Emerson Exchange, this workshop is just one of many good reasons to go.
The Reliance Industries refinery complex in India needed visibility to improve reliability, energy efficiency, and to reduce HS&E risk, which requires new measurements. Wireless systems were commissioned in two refineries in October 2012 starting with monitoring on steam traps on medium and low pressure lines as well as flare monitoring on pressure relief valves. The reliability requirements were met and what started as a trial has since become permanent and is expanding with vibration measurements
The plants faced challenges such as not knowing which of many possible hydrogen process lines is flaring thus making the root cause hard to identify. Plants had no visibility of which steam traps have failed, several of which are critical. A solution had to be deployed while the refineries are running as the process could not be stopped. Huge metal reformer furnaces block line of sight
A second layer of automation for pervasive sensing of missing measurements beyond the P&ID using about 100 WirelessHART acoustic transmitters was deployed requiring no signal or power cables to be run. The non-intrusive sensors strap onto the outside of the pipe requiring no additional process penetrations. The data is integrated requiring no DCS I/O cards.
Solution was deployed without stopping production achieving >> 99% reliability despite of huge obstacles. Greater visibility for maintenance, reliability, energy efficiency, and HS&E officers without visiting the field was achieved. Reliance will deploy more wireless devices, next eying vibration transmitters.
Here’s a letter to help you seek approval from your supervisor to attend this important event:
http://www.emersonexchange.org/americas/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2014/05/Justification-Letter-Emerson-Exchange-2014.docx