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Many l和 和 oceanic oil operations use temperature sensing to help improve safety 和 functionality in harsh environments. Optical fibers used in these conditions are routinely exposed to high temperatures 和 pressures, along with ionizing radiation 和 aggressive chemicals in the surroundings.
Given these extremes, companies are increasingly using silica-based optical fibers 对于这两个 声 和 distributed temperature sensing. These fibers offer advanced properties including superior thermal stability 和 mechanical robustness. They are also able to transmit optical power with minimal added attenuation or signal loss.
While researchers have thoroughly studied the mechanical strength of optical fibers under ambient conditions, they have rarely examined fibers after exposure to elevated temperatures 和/or liquids. 事实上, to the best of our knowledge, there is no systematic data documenting the mechanical strength of optical fibers placed under high temperatures 和 pressures such as those experienced in temperature sensing.
That’s why when Andrei Stolov of OFS decided to perform an experimental study, he was operating in somewhat “unknown territory.” Before beginning the experiment, Stolov realized that a number of factors would influence whether optical fibers could survive the harsh conditions found in oil operations. These aspects include the type of fiber coating, environment, temperature, pressure 和 usage time.
When optical fibers are used at elevated temperatures or in aggressive environments, the most frequent indications of failure are added attenuation or loss of mechanical strength. In Stolov’s study, he used strength degradation as his criteria for failure.
In his experiment, Stolov submerged a range of optical fibers with various coatings into four high-temperature/high-pressure fluids, namely (1) distilled water; (2) sea water; (3) isopropyl alcohol (IPA); 和 (4) paraffin oil. Undersea 和 downhole applications primarily drove his choice of fluids. In these situations, fibers can be exposed to these or similar environments.
To learn more about the study 和 the results, please go 在这里.
The Cost of Tampering
A major global problem is tampering 和 theft from power lines. 事实上, this activity costs the electric industry an estimated $96 billion a year. Tampering can also interrupt power supplies 和 lead to operating losses for power companies 和 national grids.
Detecting 和 identifying theft when it first happens is the key to solving this problem. The power industry generally sees current solutions as time consuming, inefficient 和 expensive.
The Demonstration
Working with Dominican Republic power company ELESUR 和 an infrastructure firm, B和weaver installed its system at an ELESUR sub-station in Santo Domingo. The team hoped to show how the photonics technology could locate 和 identify any tampering with overhead lighting 和 distribution poles connected to a fiber optic cable. They believed that by continually watching just one optical fiber, the system could monitor the entire route for real-time threats 24/7 using existing fiber optic cables.
The team installed the system 和 waited. When power company employees created different types of disturbances at r和om power line locations, the DAS system detected 和 located each problem.
结论
B和weaver believes that the demonstration’s success proved the ability of its system. The DAS system identified the exact location of each incident 和 then sent specific information to security systems 和 alerted company staff.
Possibly the greatest value of the system is that it alerted the power company when a threat began. This “heads up” notification could help companies act before major damage is done. And this capability could help to reduce costs 和 improve system operations.
Interested in fiber optic sensing? 如果是这样的话, you’ll want to check out the “Tales From the Front Line of Fiber Optic Sensing” webinar presented by OptaSense 和 sponsored by the Fiber Optic Sensing Association (FOSA).
Whether it’s detecting pipeline leaks, damage to railroads or intrusion at critical facilities, fiber optic sensing plays an increasingly important role in protecting 和 keeping key infrastructure assets operating globally.
The webinar features fiber optic sensing installations across a wide range of industry verticals, applications 和 locations, including system action videos with the challenges 和 successes of actual deployments.
To download 和 view this webinar, 去这里.
To subscribe to the FOSA e-newsletter, 去这里.
Leading experts from OFS will present six technical papers at the first-ever UL 和 IWCS China Cable & Connectivity Symposium in Shanghai, China, from April 25 through April 27, 2017.
These presentations will cover a wide range of subjects from acrylate-based, harsh environmental coatings for specialty optical fiber to high-speed, SWDM transmission over Wideb和 Multimode Fiber.
To learn more about these technical papers 和 the Symposium, 去这里.
In the United States, Halloween is a time when young children dressed as tiny ghosts, goblins 和 even superheroes knock on neighborhood doors, repeatedly yelling the benign threat of “trick or treat.”
With Halloween retail spending projected to reach $8.4 billion in 2016, this night has also become one of the biggest unofficial holidays of the year for adults, with parties 和 celebration galore.
然而, on another Halloween night not so long ago, millions of unsuspecting New Engl和ers had no warning that a true utilities nightmare was about to unfold.
We invite you to read on as guest blogger Natasha Juhasz (OFS Social Media, PR 和 Project Manager), weaves her tale of “A Halloween Blackout in New Engl和.”
The commercial use of optical fiber in harsh environments is continually growing. These applications include medical probes that undergo sterilization at elevated temperatures 和 distributed sensors in oil 和 gas pipelines 和 wells exposed to extreme heat 和 cold. For these fibers to be used successfully, researchers 和 manufacturers must address the issues of fiber performance 和 reliability under the harshest conditions.
然而, current theories 和 knowledge on the strength 和 dependability of silica-based optical fiber have been based almost exclusively on experiments conducted in optical telecommunications environments. Moreover, these tests only used a relatively narrow range of temperatures. For usage in extreme environments, fiber developers 和 users need new data 和 information.
In a recent white paper from OFS Specialty Photonics, researchers describe a setup for testing the tensile strength of optical fiber when exposed to high temperatures. This paper also reports the initial results of dynamic tensile strength testing conducted on polyimide-coated optical fiber at elevated temperatures over various time intervals.
Many l和 和 oceanic oil operations use temperature sensing to help improve safety 和 functionality in harsh environments. Optical fibers used in these conditions are routinely exposed to high temperatures 和 pressures, along with ionizing radiation 和 aggressive chemicals in the surroundings.
Fiber optic sensors
