The Rotork SVM (Smart Valve Monitoring) system has been selected to provide a networked solution for digital valve monitoring and partial stroke testing on a large scale oilfield installation in the Middle East. The system is designed to deliver predictive maintenance information from widely distributed areas for use by the operators to reduce shutdowns and improve overall plant efficiency.

This is made possible by the ability of the SVM to be integrated into an existing Ethernet and fibre optic infrastructure, enabling over one hundred monitored valve actuators on wellheads at numerous locations to be networked over distances of ten kilometres or more.

The SVM field control units on this project are attached to the ESD circuits for shut off valves installed in sets of two and four on more than fifty wellheads. Analysis is performed on the SVM server computer in the centralised control room. Communication between the wellhead sites and the computer is fully integrated within the operator’s existing network infrastructure. The SVM field units are incorporated into the Ethernet network that links other equipment and instrumentation at each wellhead site. A fibre optic link is then used to transmit the data to intermediate engineering and control stations at two manifold sites. From these sites, fibre optic links are again used to transmit data from all the wellheads to the centralised control room.

Partial stroke testing (PST) is a function used in a safety instrumented system (SIS) to enable the operator to identify possible failure modes on a shutdown or emergency shutdown (ESD) valve without the need to completely close the valve and hence disrupt the process. Partial stroke testing is an accepted hydrocarbon industry standard technique that is quantified in detail by regulatory bodies such as the IEC and ISA.

Brooks Instrument, a world-leading provider of advanced flow, pressure, vacuum and level solutions, has received International Electrotechnical Commission (IECEx) certification for its SolidSense II pressure transducers. The accreditation confirms that these products are suitable for use in hazardous environments regulated for explosions caused by flammable liquids, vapor, gases or combustible dust. The approval certifies that SolidSense II pressure transducers have been manufactured under systems subject to ongoing inspections by IECEx certification bodies, assuring buyers of continuous conformance to this independently established, worldwide standard.

SolidSense II pressure transducers are widely used in ultra-high-purity applications, such as semiconductor manufacturing. This certification now makes it easier for engineers to spec them into gas cabinets, gas panels, valve manifold boxes and distribution valve boxes, which are typically part of the processing and handling equipment found in industrial markets like oil and gas refineries, gas distribution facilities and chemical plants.

With full-scale pressure ranges from 0-30 psia to 0-3000 psig and a variety of electrical and mechanical options, SolidSense II pressure transducers are well suited to industrial applications that require highly reliable pressure measurement. They function as stand-alone transducers and function as integrated sensors in thousands of Brooks’ high-performance thermal mass flow controllers hard at work worldwide.

Micro Motion 2-Wire Coriolis meters, with MVD technology, are the first Coriolis meters for highly accurate mass flow and density measurement in loop-powered applications. Your process will benefit from these low-energy devices that measure so accurately you can reduce waste and rework while improving the quality – and without the need for additional power wiring.

Advantages of Coriolis Measurement

• Direct inline measurement of mass flow, density, concentration, and volume flow and temperature from a single device
• Immune to fluid, process, or environmental effects for superb measurement confidence
• Highly robust, suitable for installation anywhere with no flow conditioning or straight pipe run required
• No moving internal parts results in no maintenance or repair

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Exida, an accredited global functional safety certification company, has certified the Honeywell SmartLine ST 800 HART Pressure Transmitter as Safety Integrity Level (SIL) 3 capable per IEC 61508.

“This certification was confirmed through an extensive assessment process including a site audit and completion of a Failure Modes, Effects, and Diagnostic Analysis (FMEDA),” said John Yozallinas, exida evaluating assessor. “Honeywell has a strong global foundation for their development process. Meeting SIL 3 requirements means having a strong, high quality process, and their development team deserves high praise for this achievement.”