We use various gases for both domestic as well as industrial purposes. Domesting Cooking gas is widely used and well known to many. many people can identify domestic cooking gas leakage by its odour. Sometimes its possible to detect leakage by its sound when the leakage makes noise. Apart from these domestic gases, there are many odourless gases which are invisible to human eyes, and leakage happens in small quantities without making any noise. These make it impossible to detect such leakages.
Traditionally, gas leakage has been detected by immersing the gas container in water and looking for air bubbles. While, it could be suitable for ‘small’ containers or moveable containers, but not suitable for large containers as well as ‘installed’ containers.
Also, it may not be possible for human to use vision, hearing or smelling to detect gas leakages as it could be hazardous.
For all above problems, there is one solution that is Thermal Imaging Cameras.
Thermal Imaging Cameras uses IR( Infra red) radiations where it has sensors which can detect IR of certain wavelengths.
If a Thermal Camera which has Spectral Band of 7 to 8.5μm, they are capable of detecting the following gases :
Freon (R13, R13B1, R123, R125, R134A, R417A, R422A, R508A etc), nitrous oxide, sulfur dioxide,ethyl acrylate,2-Ethylhexyl Methane, phenol, acrylate.
A thermal camera which has spectral band of 10.55μm, the following gases could be detected :-
vinyl chloride, trichloroethylene, allyl fluoride, allyl chloride, allyl bromide, methyl vinyl ketone, propylene, acrolein, acrylonitrile,, Sulfur hexafluoride, ammonia, ethylene, ethylene ether, ethyl cyanoacrylate, furan.
All Thermal camears come with smart software if its Online Thermal camera using which one can view the gases ina pseudo image/video. For handheld cameras, it would be shown on inbuilt display on it.
Use of thermal cameras for gas leakage detection offers many obvious advantages over “manual” or “traditional” way os leakage detection. It can be automated with high accuracy. A proper record as well as report is possible.
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