Tank Inspection
MFL Tank Floor Inspection and Mapping
The FloormapVS2i is latest version of the best selling MFL floor scanner and now comes with up-graded magnets to improve defect detectability and sizing on thicker materials, faster data capture with a custom designed micro controller and all new software. The VS2i contains significant improvements in terms of defect positioning, electronic data processing and software manipulation. A new High Specification encoder system has been developed which is electronically calibrated to each individual scanner eliminating errors caused by component tolerances. The new encoder now gives accuracy to within 3 mm on an 8 metre track length and providing it is calibrated on an annual basis will not be effected by normal wear and tear. The ruggedised on-board computer uses touch screen technology for ease of use within the hostile storage tank environment. The custom designed data acquisition software not only captures all the MFL signals but analyses and displays the location and severity of the corrosion in real time.
The off-line reporting software automatically produces a CAD drawing of the tank floor with the defects being positioned to within 30mm accuracy. All captured data, over 20% loss of the nominal plate thickness, is re-analysed to identify the defect profile and separate the corrosion into 1 of 3 classes. Different sizing algorithms are applied to each class of corrosion ensuring enhanced defect sizing even on badly corroded floors where small diameter deep pits may otherwise have been undersized. Additional data from visual, ultrasonic, vacuum box and magnetic particle inspection can be added to the report generating a full fingerprint of the tank floor including the annular plates. An innovative feature of the software allows subsequent inspection data to be overlaid and corrosion growth identified. These features coupled together with a patch plate design function and full statistics package give the tankage engineer a powerful, cost effective tool with which to carry out trending and asset life projections.
The FloormapVS2 is a motorised MFL scanner that locates the corrosion and sizes it using the flux leakage signals. Initial sizing is by amplitude to identify the worst case defects in real time, followed by defect profiling and re-sizing by defect type in the off-line reporting software, which enhances the sizing accuracy. Unique to the FloormapVS2 system is the capability of automatically producing a CAD drawing of the tank floor and the ability to add defects from other inspections such as Visual, Ultrasonic, MPI and Vacuum Box and show them in the same format as the MFL results. A patch plate design function allowing optimum sizing and positioning of repair plates turns the FloormapVS2 software from an MFL inspection report into a comprehensive total floor condition record.