Stop Routinely Pulling Measurement Sensors For Cleaning

By: Electrolab Marketing |  August 6, 2020  |  Category: Blog

At Electrolab, we frequently encounter end users who like Guided Wave Radar (GWR) sensors because they are light and easy to manipulate when they routinely pull them out of the tank. When we ask, “Why are you routinely pulling the sensors out of the tank?” they inevitably say it is to wipe them down and clean the paraffin off the cable. When we ask, “Why do you clean the sensor so often?” the user usually explains it is standard operating procedure. Guess what? It doesn’t have to be a standard operating procedure.

We often hear a similar complaint about float-based level sensors. “Floats stick and they are hard to maintain.” This isn’t the case with all float-based sensors. At Electrolab, we treat all the metal parts of our level sensors with e9 Treatments’ Pro Performance to prevent sticking caused by paraffin and other contaminants found in oil production, Frac water, separator, and other tanks. With e9 Treatments’ Pro Performance, Electrolab level sensors work in difficult tanks and last years without cleaning, maintenance, or calibration.

When applied to a metal surface, such as the stainless-steel body of a sensor, e9 Metal Treatment changes the surface energy of the metal, making it unattractive for contaminants to adhere to the surface, thus helping to slow or prevent buildup. The treatment is only 3-10 nanometers thick, colorless, and without electrical properties. Therefore, it does not affect the performance of the sensor and allows the sensor to seamlessly perform without routine cleaning of paraffin, asphaltenes, or other gunk precipitating out of the fluid and building up on the sensor’s metal parts. In fact, e9 changes the surface energy to a lower bonding energy than that of Teflon®*. Contaminants and buildup slough off the device, allowing it to last years in many tanks, without ever needing maintenance.

The cost of maintaining sensors is high, even if it is easy. Time and manpower are never in great supply. Why should you live with this cost when you don’t have to? Use Electrolab level sensors instead. Ask about applying e9 Treatment** as a standard for all your metal instrumentation.

 

*Teflon® is a registered trademark of The Chemours Company.

**e9 Treatments is not available on GWR sensors due to patent protections provided by the USPTO.

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