Fluxo Soluções
 / January 2012

Wireless Hart in Petrobras' downstream and upstream environments

The Cabiúnas Terminal – Tecab is the largest and most important oil and gas receiving terminal in the country. In addition to receiving and pumping oil to the Duque de Caxias Refinery - Reduc, Tecab has natural gas compression processing units (3x UPCGN), liquid recovery units (3x URL), a natural gas treatment unit (UTGN ), Compression Station (2x ECOMP), in addition to auxiliary systems and facilities, totaling around 10,000 instruments and 500 control valves.

 

Within this universe of control valves and transmitters, the vast majority have 4-20mA + Hart communication. Based on these data, TECAB's Maintenance Management decided to invest in software and systems that enable better maintenance management, including AMS - Asset Management Software.

 

However, the greatest difficulty in implementing this asset management system is in the form of multiplexing the automation network, without harming the safety and reliability of the communication of field instruments with PLCs or DCSs. Faced with this difficulty, the project was conceived with wireless digital communication (Wireless Hart), installing Smart Wireless Adapters, known as THUM, on the instruments.

 

The THUM, in turn, communicates via wireless hart with the signal receiving center (Gateway) through a mesh network (self-organized) allowing to transmit any HART measurement and diagnostics that were not previously read.

 

In view of this scenario, Fluxo, through its represented Emerson Process Management, provided 171 THUMs, 2 Gateways, AMS Software for 400 TAGs with valvelink snap on for 200 TAGs in the 1st half of this year, commissioning services and training. Of the 171 THUM's supplied, ten have already been installed and are communicating with complete reliability with the Gateways installed in the CCM's of the UPCGN II, URL and ECOMP. The other THUMs are being installed according to the execution of maintenance work orders and will be added to the networks in a semi-automatic way. Because the Wireless network is self-organizing and is always looking for new devices.

 

In addition to this supply to Tecab, similar packages were also supplied on the P-25 platforms with vibration sensors in the pumps of the seawater harvesting system and in Enchova – PCE THUMs were installed in Fisher intelligent positioners (DVC 6000) in the compressor anti-surge control valves. The two supplies have already been tested and are in the implementation phase.

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