Title of Innovation: Salt measurement 2.0

Transcription

1 Title of Innovation: Salt measurement 2.0 Nominee(s): Hedon electronic developments Delft, the Netherlands Arjan van Rijsbergen International Sales Jonathan Kers Sales & Marketing Manager Category: Testing Dates of Innovation Development: (from February 2010 to June 2012) Web site: Summary Description: All major procedures as part of the coating inspectors daily job were supported by easy to use electronic equipment except for the tedious and prone to human error way to determine the level of soluble salts. In applications where steel is used and long time preservation is required it's very important that as little as possible salt is present on the steel before it is coated. This goes especially for ships, offshore installations, pipelines, windmills and bridges. 5

2 HedoNs electronic engineers have, in close association with the coating industry, developed a revolutionary measurement method equivalent to ISO The entire measurement process has been automated by the Soluble Salt Meter 2.0. Deionized water will be injected and water soluble salts are dissolved during an automated washing procedure. The exact value in either µs/cm or mg/m² can be read on the display. The values are stored and can be uploaded to your PC to use in a Coating Technical File. All of this within 1 minute while using other methods require a minimum of 8 minutes. Major investments in research and development are usually passed on to the consumer and will result in high prices for newly developed products. That makes innovations only cost effective for a small group of users that make extensive use of the solution to guarantee an acceptable Return On Investment. The Soluble Salt Meter 2.0 is affordable for everyone. HedoN was inspired by the idea of prepaid mobile communication. A mobile phone is offered at a very low price and users prepay their minutes. In the same way, users buy their own Soluble Salt Meter 2.0 at a low price and top up their balance in advance with credits for measurements. With a tight budget you can still have all the benefits of this automated measurement method. 6

3 Full Description: How does the innovation work? The Soluble Salt Meter (SSM) is a patented design that provides a handheld, automated method for detection of soluble salts on ferrous surfaces. The SSM combines surface salt extraction and conductivity measurement in one tool, allowing convenient and ergonomic operation. The hand held design provides a self contained, easily transportable unit for soluble salt measurements. The SSM and supplied fluid dispenser allow quick and accurate injection of deionized water, automatic extraction of surface salts and conductivity measurement. The SSM is complete with a backlit LCD display and easy to follow on screen instructions. Up to a 1000 measurements can be stored in the internal memory. This data can be downloaded to any PC and exported in Microsoft Excel file format for use in any Coating Technical File (CTF) using the supplied software. Buy the SSM at a low price and buy the measurements when you need them or add the license for unlimited measurements. When and how was the innovation developed? Years of research and development were needed to reach our goal; to find a reliable, automated measurement method for soluble salts equivalent to The development, with the unique prepaid or pay as you go concept to make it affordable for all users, was finished in June How or why is the innovation unique? It s the only automated method that works without consumables and with a pay as you go or prepaid concept. What type of corrosion problem does the innovation address? Corrosion under insulation ( CUI ) What is the need that sparked the development of the innovation? Find a better, quicker and automated measuring method as replacement for the current method. Are there technological challenges or limitations that the innovation overcomes? One of the challenges was to reproduce the entire Bresle method in an automated procedure. The special washing mechanism and the system to create a leak free measurement chamber on the steel surface are amazing pieces of technology. What are the potential applications of the innovation? An affordable and automated method for salt measurement. 7

4 How does the innovation provide an improvement over existing methods, techniques, and technologies? Accurate and reproducible measurements No use of consumables Less time consuming Lower price per measurement compared to using patches Safer, no use of needles and syringes No sticky residue on the surface after measurement Measurements are digital recorded instead of manually written and can be exported to any report What type of impact does the innovation have on the industry/industries it serves? The Bresle method can be replaced with an automated measurement method that uses no consumables. The price per measurement will be significantly lower, with more reliable and better reproducible results. Does the innovation fill a technology gap? If so, please explain the technological need and how it was addressed prior to the development of the innovation. All major procedures as part of the coating inspectors daily job were supported by easy to use electronic equipment except for the tedious and prone to human error way to determine the level of soluble salts. Has the innovation been tested in the laboratory or in the field? If so, please describe any tests or field demonstrations and the results that support the capability and feasibility of the innovation. The innovation and is proven equivalence to the ISO method for determining soluble salts as tested by an independent testing facility (Corrosion Control Consultants and Labs. Inc ( The innovation is being widely used in the field (Oil and gas industry, offshore industry, shipbuilding industry) and at some major paint laboratories. Is the innovation commercially available? If yes, how long has it been utilized? If not, what is the next step in making the innovation commercially available? The innovation with the prepaid or pay as you go concept is commercially available since June Are you aware of other organizations that have introduced similar innovations? If so, how is this innovation different? There are no similar innovations that we are aware of. Are there any patents related to this work? If yes, please provide the patent title, number, and inventor. US patent #US8,252,600 issued on August Inventor : Herbert Peter Jansen 8

5 Supporting Photos: The Soluble Salt Meter kit. All you need for salt measurement on steel surfaces Setting the new standard for salt measurement Accurate measurement at hard to reach places Reduce your measurement costs. Buy the Soluble Salt meter at a low price and pay per measurement 9