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1 – 10 of over 2000
Article
Publication date: 1 April 2005

A. Correia da Cruz and M. Silva Ribeiro

To present an entirely new technology to be used in the in‐service inspection of storage tanks for hazardous products in several different industries.

Abstract

Purpose

To present an entirely new technology to be used in the in‐service inspection of storage tanks for hazardous products in several different industries.

Design/methodology/approach

Current interior storage oil tank plate inspection is a very expensive and time‐consuming task. The related tasks involve high cost, several hazards to environment and the operators involved in the cleaning jobs. Several research areas were investigated during the development of this tool, fundamentally robotics and non‐destructive test tools. Initial trials in laboratory were complemented with a field test program in near‐real conditions.

Findings

A new design of tool for in‐service inspection of such equipments proved to be feasible to be constructed and operated and in accordance with current safety regulations.

Research limitations/implications

New robotics application in non‐destructive testing methodologies for application in in‐service storage equipments. The internal conditions possible to find in the interior of a storage tank, like fixtures, properties of the stored products (inflammable and aggressive), sludge and sand on the bottom, no ambient light, etc., are significant challenges to the development of such a tool.

Practical implications

Developed a robotized tool for inspection of the floor and walls of in‐service tanks, in order to allow an evaluation of the condition of the plates of these tanks, avoiding the long period, hazards and high costs necessary for creating the conditions for reality out of service inspection.

Originality/value

The novelty of the RobTank Inspec project could be evaluated from the two or three existing competitors in the world, and the results of the surveys undertaken.

Details

Industrial Robot: An International Journal, vol. 32 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-991X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 28 June 2022

Jie Li, Jiyuan Wu, Chunlei Tu and Xingsong Wang

Automatic robots can improve the efficiency of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tank inspection and maintenance, but it is difficult to achieve high-precision spatial positioning and…

Abstract

Purpose

Automatic robots can improve the efficiency of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tank inspection and maintenance, but it is difficult to achieve high-precision spatial positioning and navigation on tank surfaces. The purpose of this paper is to develop a spatial positioning robotic system for tank inspection. The robot can accurately identify and track weld paths. The positioning system can complete robot’s spatial positioning on tank surfaces.

Design/methodology/approach

A tank inspection robot with curvature-adaptive transmission mechanisms is designed in this study. A weld path recognition method based on deep learning is proposed to accurately identify and extract weld paths. Integrated multiple sensors, the positioning system is developed to improve the robot’s spatial positioning accuracy. Experiments are conducted on a cylindrical tank to test weld seam tracking accuracy and spatial positioning performance of the robotic system. The practicality of the robotic system is then verified in field tests.

Findings

The robot can accurately identify and track weld seams with a maximum drift angle of 4° and a maximum offset distance of ±30 mm. The positioning system has excellent positioning accuracy and stability. The maximum angle and height errors are 3° and 0.08 m, respectively.

Originality/value

The positioning system can improve the autonomous performance of inspection robots and solve the problems of weld path recognition and spatial positioning. Application of the robotic system can promote the automatic inspection and maintenance of LPG tanks.

Details

Industrial Robot: the international journal of robotics research and application, vol. 50 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-991X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 November 2010

Du Gang, Jin Shijiu, Zhang Congying and Wang Weikui

The purpose of this paper is to report an investigation into acoustic emission (AE) characteristics of the corrosion situation of the bottom of a large storage tank.

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to report an investigation into acoustic emission (AE) characteristics of the corrosion situation of the bottom of a large storage tank.

Design/methodology/approach

Guard sensors were applied in on‐line AE inspection of a tank bottom, and the AE signal characteristics of the corrosion areas of tank bottom were analyzed. The AE test results were compared with those from an internal tank internal test.

Findings

It was observed that guard sensors could shield effectively a large proportion of the extraneous noise signals inside the tank. The characteristics of AE signals from different types of corrosion were significantly different. A comparison of AE test results and tank internal inspection data showed a good agreement.

Originality/value

Characteristic AE signals from different types of corrosion were obtained for the first time, which assisted in the identification of the tank bottom corrosion situation.

Details

Anti-Corrosion Methods and Materials, vol. 57 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0003-5599

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 February 2015

C. K. Mukhopadhyay, T.K. Haneef, T. Jayakumar, G.K. Sharma and B.P.C. Rao

The purpose of this paper is to present the results of acoustic emission (AE) and ultrasonic inspection of two H2S storage tanks carried out in a heavy water plant, in order to…

214

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present the results of acoustic emission (AE) and ultrasonic inspection of two H2S storage tanks carried out in a heavy water plant, in order to characterize point type defects observed during earlier ultrasonic inspection and to ensure that these defects are not growing during hydrotesting of the tanks.

Design/methodology/approach

Using multiple AE sensors and AE source location methodology, the entire tank could be covered to detect and locate any dynamic sources of AE associated with local plastic deformation and/or growing discontinuities from any part of the tank during the hydrotest. For confirmation of the results obtained by AE, ultrasonic inspection on the tanks and on virgin plates from which the tanks were manufactured, were carried out.

Findings

The AE signals generated during first pressurisation are attributed to the micro yielding of the material of the tanks. A few scattered AE events were observed at a few locations during the hydrotesting of the tanks and these are due to structural and rubbing noise. During hold periods and repressurising cycle of the hydrotesting, no detectable AE events were observed and this confirmed the absence of any growing discontinuity in the tanks during the hydrotesting. Ultrasonic inspection on the tanks and on virgin plates confirmed that the point type defects detected are manufacturing defects and not formed during service life.

Practical implications

The combined results from AE and ultrasonic techniques confirmed the structural integrity of the tanks and ensured their healthiness for continued operation.

Originality/value

The paper brings out the use of AE and ultrasonic techniques for monitoring hydrotesting of storage tanks of a heavy water plant. The storage tanks where point type defect indications were reported during previous ultrasonic inspection and whether these defects are growing during hydrotesting of the tanks or not, were required to be known before the tanks are put in to further service. AE signals collected during pressurising and repressurising cycles of the hydrotest and subsequent inspection by ultrasonic confirmed the vessels to be free from growing defects during the hydrotest and provided baseline data for future inspection.

Details

International Journal of Structural Integrity, vol. 6 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1757-9864

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 22 June 2010

Ibrahim M. Shaluf and Salim Abdulla

The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of storage tank incidents and the causes of the incidents. The paper also seeks to present a brief overview on Abu Dhabi…

2007

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present an overview of storage tank incidents and the causes of the incidents. The paper also seeks to present a brief overview on Abu Dhabi Company for Onshore Oil Operations (ADCO) experience of Jebel Dhanna (JD) export terminal.

Design/methodology/approach

Major hazard installations (MHIs) store large quantities of flammable material in storage tanks. Storage tanks represent important capital assets and are often critical operational items. The failure of a tank can have several undesirable effects such as endangering personnel, affecting the environment and interrupting the operator's business. The storage tank incidents and ADCO's experience on operating of an export terminal are collected from several sources such as technical articles, text books, internet web sites, and internal reports. The incidents and the causes of the incidents are reviewed and summarised. The ADCO's experience in operation of a crude oil tank farm are outlined.

Findings

The world has witnessed 480 tank fire incidents in the period 1951‐2003. The major cause of storage tank fire incidents was due to lightning. The leaks and the spills from the tanks were due to corrosion, operation, improper or lack of maintenance, poor design and/or maintenance of piping systems, fire and explosion. Although several studies have been carried out to record the tank incidents and the causes of the incidents the studies were not comprehensive. Many tank fire incidents that occurred have not been recorded in the previous studies. ADCO have been operating the JD crude oil terminal for more than three decades without a major incident. This was achieved through the design, operation and maintaining of the tanks in accordance with international standards, periodical studies by expert consultancy, and regular development of the control and protection systems with up‐to‐date technology.

Originality/value

The findings highlight that an international storage tank incidents database should be established to compile the scattered data in one site. The tank incidents database encourges the MHIS to publish tank incidents. The database can assist MHIs as well as the research institutes to learn lessons from the incidents. MHIs publishing articles is one of the means of sharing and exchanging the experience with similar installations and institutes.

Details

Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal, vol. 19 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0965-3562

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 13 March 2007

Love P. Kalra and Jason Gu

The aim of this research is to design a wall climbing robot (WCR) for the non‐destructive inspection (NDT) of the above‐ground storage tanks (ASTs) autonomously making the…

1387

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this research is to design a wall climbing robot (WCR) for the non‐destructive inspection (NDT) of the above‐ground storage tanks (ASTs) autonomously making the industrial inspection and maintenance tasks safer.

Design/methodology/approach

A WCR is designed that can be equipped with any NDT sensor. It uses permanent magnets as an adhesion mechanism to crawl over the steel tank walls. A surface coverage algorithm is proposed for the WCR to scan the AST wall surfaces autonomously with the NDT sensors to perform the necessary inspection tasks.

Findings

The proposed surface coverage algorithm performs the complete coverage of the AST walls under different obstacle configurations. It has been tested and demonstrated in simulations.

Originality/value

A surface coverage algorithm is proposed for the WCR to perform the non‐destructive inspection of the ASTs autonomously. It can also be used in applications like cleaning glass building and painting ship hulls, etc.

Details

Industrial Robot: An International Journal, vol. 34 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-991X

Keywords

Content available

Abstract

Details

Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, vol. 72 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0002-2667

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 1947

F/Lt. S. Cooper

BEFORE commencing an inspection obtain the pilot's report on the previous flight. In the course of the following inspections, as with all inspections, components which are found…

Abstract

BEFORE commencing an inspection obtain the pilot's report on the previous flight. In the course of the following inspections, as with all inspections, components which are found to be damaged or defective must be repaired, if possible, or replaced. However, before repairing a component, the relevant repair instructions must be consulted. Unless otherwise stated, these inspections are carried out every 40 hours.

Details

Aircraft Engineering and Aerospace Technology, vol. 19 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0002-2667

Article
Publication date: 1 June 2003

Anna Kochan

The 2002 climbing and walking robots (CLAWAR) conference featured 130 papers on topics related to CLAWAR. This article reviews the conference, highlighting papers in the areas of…

Abstract

The 2002 climbing and walking robots (CLAWAR) conference featured 130 papers on topics related to CLAWAR. This article reviews the conference, highlighting papers in the areas of modular design, inspection of tanks, weld inspection, sewer inspection/cleaning, window cleaning, medical robotics, hybrid locomotion and hopping robots.

Details

Industrial Robot: An International Journal, vol. 30 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0143-991X

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 January 2020

Zhe Yin, Carlos Caldas, Daniel de Oliveira, Bon-Gang Hwang and Ming Shan

Facility maintenance is critical for the operation and management of petrochemical plants. Maintenance work completed with higher productivity eventually contributes to better…

Abstract

Purpose

Facility maintenance is critical for the operation and management of petrochemical plants. Maintenance work completed with higher productivity eventually contributes to better plant performance. Mechanization reduces workforce demand and can increase the productivity of maintenance work. The purpose of this paper is to assess the current mechanization level of the maintenance activities and then identify applicable technology solutions for productivity improvement in petrochemical facility maintenance.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper utilizes a mechanization level assessment method for global maintenance data collection and analysis. Subject matter experts’ interviews and market scanning were used to identify corresponding technology solutions.

Findings

The study discovered numerous maintenance activities with lower mechanization levels and identified more than 50 technology solutions applicable for maintenance productivity improvement.

Originality/value

This paper provides a roadmap for petrochemical maintenance work participants to assess their mechanization level status quo and identify technology solutions for higher maintenance work productivity. The method adopted is replicable and customizable for further applications with different plant conditions in the petrochemical sector and other industrial contexts.

Details

Journal of Quality in Maintenance Engineering, vol. 27 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2511

Keywords

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