Averting a Gen-Set Disaster
An undetected leak in a diesel-powered?generator set can have disastrous?consequences.?The main fuel storage tank, often containing up to seven days' worth of fuel, is connected to an?indoor day tank via the distribution pipes and, in?turn, connected to the generator.
A non-detected diesel leakage on any part of?this supply and storage chain can be extremely?detrimental.
Liquid leak-detection company TTK has, for?more than 30 years, supplied ATEX-approved?sensing technology-based solutions to detect diesel oil leaks.
In 2020 it delivered fuel oil sense cables to?more than 200 projects including installations?at data centers, factories, airports, refineries, and?pipelines.
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Constant Monitoring
Recently TTK worked with a printed circuit boardmaker in Taiwan who wanted to protect its diesel?generators after a leak incident on one of its sites.
Although the emergency generators are in regularly inspected area, the client is focused on?constant monitoring, TTK said.
It added that its detection oil sense cable system?is installed on the perimeter of each daily tank and?generator set.
The TTK oil sense cables detect the presence of liquid hydrocarbon at any point along their length?upon contact. TTK said that as diesel is a low volatile liquid,?the TTK cable can detect it within just 35 minutes?thanks to what TKK said is a "unique" silicon layer?compared, it added, with 120 minutes (depending?on the liquid composition and leak conditions) by?traditional sense cables.
The cable quickly absorbs the diesel oil and?swells, by consequence increasing the electrical?resistance inside the cable and once the pre-set value?is reached a signal is sent by the electronic module?fitted inside each cable.?The cable can be cleaned and reused after leak?detection.
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Multiple Leak Detection
Also, TTK worked at a data center in Kenya where?three sets of 10,000 L underground main storage tanks fuel the indoor day tanks and five generator?sets with more than two kilometers of diesel?distribution pipes.?TTK oil leak sense cables and probes equip the?length of these diesel pipes and are installed under?the supply, return line, and the overflow line of the distribution pipes attached by a cable tie every?meter.??
The TTK oil sense cables are provided with a?built-in plug-socket connector.?Micro-controllers in each one allow multiple?leak detection and location in the same circuit.?The company added that in the event of a leak?in a pipeline, the precise location of the pipe section?will be displayed on the monitoring system.
In addition, a relay is configured to stop the leak?source.
The structure of TTK fuel sense cables allows a?selective detection. They are insensitive to water, pressure, or existing?pollution in the environment, the company claimed.?The TTK oil sense cables are ATEX approved, thus suitable to be used in hazardous areas with an?explosive atmosphere (ATEX Zone 0).
Article featured in Diesel Progress International.