Asset Performance Management for Reciprocating Compressors and Pumps

Intelligence on Duty

The path to successful products and services is always by way of intensive dialogue with potential buyers and customers. Only by exchanging experi-ence on a continuous basis is it possible to gain the necessary knowledge of operator requirements which results in useful products. PROGNOST Systems defines “Intelligence on Duty” using this philosophy: through the permanent integration of new requirements and practical experience, state of the art technology is always available to users. This continuous development process leads to products and services which provide true benefits to our customers. The consistent adoption of this philosophy ensures that PROGNOST products and services will continue to meet the ever increasing expectations of our customers in future.

“Intelligence on Duty“

Across the globe, businesses are under pressure to maximize the operating time of their machinery. Compressors and pumps are being operated up to and beyond their design limits, leading to the integration of stand by-machines into production processes, reduced inventories of replacement parts, and cutbacks in maintenance procedures. Consequently, the risks of damages and machine breakdown are increasing, while the resources needed to react quickly and efficiently to such inci-dents are dwindling. In this scenario, reliable online machine diagnosis is essential. Online diagnosis accurately identifies the most minute change in the condition of individual components and provides sound decision-making support to facilitate de-pendable, efficient, and safe machine operations.

Highest productivity levels with auto-mated machine condition diagnosis

PROGNOST® Systems were developed exclusively for reciprocating machinery. The operation and monitoring of these often process-critical machines is performed under the most diverse operating conditions around the world. With high-frequency data acquisition, automated real-time diagnosis, self-learning recognition of damage patterns, and other unique product features, PROGNOST® fulfills industry requirements and is proven superior to non-specialized applications.

As an Asset Performance Management system, PROGNOST® links component-oriented condition data with their maintenance cycles, producing ser-vice-life information for more efficient maintenance planning.

The design and architecture of the PROGNOST® machine protection module is SIL certified and conforms to international standards for Functional Safety (IEC 61508).

Specialized technology

In many cases, complex machines are equipped with inadequate vibration protection, which is de-signed to trigger an alert or emergency shutdown of the machine. In case of an alert or shutdown, the operator receives no information about the lo-cation and cause of the problem. Only an exten-sive, manual search for the failure can reveal the contributing factors.

PROGNOST®-NT goes a step further by gener-ating information such as: „Damage Classifica-tion Rider Ring Wear, Cyl. 2, 100% Match.“ The automatic evaluation and interpretation of sensor data gives PROGNOST® users a decisive advan-tage: clear diagnostic information as a basis for condition-based maintenance and safe machine operation. Data interpretation provides not only a diagnosis, but also valuable knowledge about failure causes. These causes may then be target-ed and eliminated in order to achieve permanent, true improvements in reliability and safety.

The PROGNOST® Difference: “Information instead of data!“

PROGNOST® is worth it

The advantage of a PROGNOST® system is quan-tifiable. We will help you assess the profitability of a PROGNOST® installation based on your own machine and operation data. In most cases, the purchase price is recovered within just a few months. We guarantee a realistic review, based on real-world data accumulated from more than 400 PROGNOST® installations worldwide.

Photo: Courtesy of Emerson Process Management

PROGNOST®-NT Safety Protection is a pow-erful, SIL certified technology that reliably en-sures the safety of people, the environment and the machine.

It is based on the continuous acquisition and ana-lyses of machine vibrations, dynamic cylinder pres-sures, and piston rod or plunger vibrations. Vibra-tions at the crosshead are acquired with 25 kHz independently from the number of rpms, and sub-sequently divided into 36 segments of 10° crank angle. Each segment is monitored with its individ-ual safety limit. This segmentation allows precise monitoring of specific changes in vibrations during one revolution, due to the working principle of a re-cip. It is exactly this segmentation that enables the detailed analysis of individual machine functions during a crank revolution and avoids false alarms or false trips.

PROGNOST®-SILver is a PROGNOST®-NT Safe-ty Protection and SIL certified hardware solution that provides operators with machine protection analyses recognized and proven worldwide.

PROGNOST®-SILver is not a departure from pre-vious PROGNOST Systems concepts for machine monitoring. Instead, it is a realization of proven ana-lyses and parameters in an external 19“ system.

PROGNOST®-SILver processes sensor data from up to eight reciprocating compressors, with a maximum of 68 sensors in one monitoring unit. An optional flameproof encapsulation, which can be installed in the field, reduces wiring costs dramati-cally and lowers overall installation costs.

PROGNOST®-SILver can be seamlessly integrated into PROGNOST®-NT at any time – as an expan-sion of existing systems or as a component of a new installation with field-supported monitoring.

PROGNOST®-SILver gives you a stand-alone safe-ty protection system that can easily be expanded to the most powerful Asset Performance Manage-ment system currently available on the market.

PROGNOST®-SILver

Above: Online vibration signal for one crank revolutionBelow: Segmentation with individually adjustable safety limits per segment. In segments 12 and 30, the safety limit was violated.

Safety risks are identified in less than one second, examined for plausibility, confirmed, and optionally controlled by a machine shutdown. The plausibility check of incoming signals is a unique feature that reliably prevents false alarms or unwarranted ma-chine shutdowns.

PROGNOST®-NT

PROGNOST® Systems were developed exclusive-ly for reciprocating machines. With gapless, high frequent data acquisition, automated real-time di-agnosis, self-learning recognition of damage pat-terns, and other unique product characteristics, PROGNOST® fulfills industry requirements and is proven superior to non-specialized applications.

As an Asset Performance Management system, PROGNOST® links component-oriented condition data with maintenance cycles, producing service-life information for more efficient maintenance planning.

PROGNOST®-NT consists of several modules that can be used in various combinations for conti-nuous diagnosis of all vital functions of a recipro-cating machine.

Vibration-based Early Failure Detection identi-fies damage developments in their initial stages. Should thresholds, which are dependent on op-erating conditions, be exceeded, the module de-livers plain-text messages to the operator. These messages serve as procedural recommendations for maintenance teams.

Wear Monitoring is provided by continuously updated trends, as well as threshold monitoring. The development of non-critical wear up to the level of impending damage is clear at all times and the remaining life of individual components is quantifiable.

PROGNOST® system overview

The module for bi-directional communication between PROGNOST® and the process con-trol system is referred to as Process Data Analyses. This module offers interfaces to all popular control systems. It enables the integra-tion of process operation data into the machine

0

225

450

675

900

1125

1350

1575

1800

2025

2250µm

PROGNOST®-NT

Wear development of a rider ring as a long-term trend

NT Server Client

-12,0

-10,5

-9,0

-7,5

-6,0

-4,5

-3,0

-1,5

0

1,5

3,0

4,5

6,0

7,5

9,0

10,5

12,8g

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 280 300 320 340 360° CA

TDC BDC TDC

VisuSIL Certified

NT Server Client

-12,0

-10,5

-9,0

-7,5

-6,0

-4,5

-3,0

-1,5

0

1,5

3,0

4,5

6,0

7,5

9,0

10,5

12,8g

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 220 240 260 280 300 320 340 360° CA

TDC BDC TDC

VisuSIL-Zertifiziert

Data Acquisition

SafetyProtection

SafetyProtection

SafetyAnalyses

PROGNOST -SILver

WearMonitoring

PerformanceOptimization

ComponentTracking

Process DataAnalyses

LubricationMonitoring

Visualization

PROGNOST -NTCondition and Performance Monitoring

®®

Early FailureDetection

Data Acquisition Machine ProtectionPROGNOST®-SILver PROGNOST®-NT

Condition and Performance Monitoring

WearMonitoring

PerformanceOptimization

ComponentTracking

Process DataAnalyses

LubricationMonitoring

Early FailureDetection

SafetyAnalyses

Vibration

Temperature

Displacement

Pressure

Other

Datenerfassung

Maschinen-schutz

SafetyProtection

Maschinenschutz-Analysen

PROGNOST -SILver

Verschleiß-überwachung

Wirkungsgrad-Optimierung

Bauteile-Protokoll

Prozessdaten-Analysen

Schmierstellen-Überwachung

Visualisierung

PROGNOST -NTZustands- und Wirkungsgradüberwachung

®®

Fehler-Früherkennung

Datenerfassung MaschinenschutzPROGNOST®-SILver PROGNOST®-NT

Zustands- und Wirkungsgradüberwachung

Verschleiß-überwachung

Wirkungsgrad-Optimierung

Bauteile-Protokoll

Prozessdaten-Analysen

Schmierstellen-Überwachung

Fehler-Früherkennung

SafetyAnalyses

Schwingung

Temperatur

Lage

Druck

weitere

The illustration of gas dynamics in the online p-V-diagram and its automatic analysis form the basis of the Performance Optimization module.

Changes in monitored parameters allow identifica-tion of defective components and enable optimiza-tion of machine efficiency. The acquisition and ana-lysis of indicated pressures is also possible with hyper compressors. Systems for load control (for example, unloaders or cylinder clearance regulati-on) are automatically detected by this module and taken into consideration for monitoring purposes. Safety-relevant functions and parameters, such as piston rod load, rod load reversal, and maximum pressure ratios, are also monitored continuously.

Component Tracking expands condition monito-ring by creating a protocol of maintenance proce-dures and the actual operating time of components. Condition-based and preventive measures can be combined to form an efficient maintenance strategy based on information about each individual compo-nent lifecycle.

This mobile diagnostic system is a complete PROGNOST®-NT product, with all performance capabilities of long-term machine monitoring. The system can be installed quickly and used on short notice, for example, to detect potentially damag-ing operation conditions. PROGNOST®-NT Swift is also ideal for temporary applications, such as initial machine start-ups or re-starts after extensive maintenance or modification measures.

p-V diagram of head end and crank end cylinders

Overview page of the Component Tracking module for a reciprocating compressor

PROGNOST®-NT Swift

diagnosis and provides information about irregu-lar condition developments directly to the control room and machine operator.

Blockage in lubrication lines, leaks, and uneven or over-lubricated cylinders and packings are identi-fied through the Lubrication Monitoring module before damage occurs.

PROGNOST®-NT Swift

PROGNOST®-Pump is the online application for process-critical plunger and diaphragm pumps.

It is based on PROGNOST®-NT and contains all the necessary performance capabilities required for reli-able operation of oscillating displacement pumps.

PROGNOST®-Pump contains the proven analyses and parameters of the PROGNOST®-NT „Safety Protection“, „Early Failure Detection“ and „Perfor-mance Optimization“ modules.

This system reliably diagnoses leaks at piston rings, valves, and stuffing box packings in less-critical compressors. PROGNOST®-Genuit works with a specially developed, model-based technol-ogy that distinguishes it from monitoring systems. Only data from the process control system is evaluated for condition diagnosis. In most cases, additional costs for sensors or wiring is not nec-essary. This compact system is the first to enable efficient monitoring of machine lines, which in the past were not sufficiently process-critical to justify an investment in online condition monitoring.

The operating method of PROGNOST®-Genuit clearly differs from conventional monitoring sys-tems. Instead of temperature or pressure moni-toring with absolute thresholds, a comparison is made between measured actual values and reference values, which are continuously calcu-lated in a theoretical compressor model based on operating conditions. The difference between both values is controlled by individually adjustable thresholds. Should the threshold be exceeded, a plain-text diagnostic message is issued. This mes-sage informs the control room about the damage probability percentage and the severity of leak-age to suction and/or pressure valves, stuffing box packings, piston gaskets and gas coolers.

Temperature trends (above) and residuum distribution with maximum and minimum thresholds (below)

PROGNOST®-Genuit PROGNOST®-Pump

The vibration acceleration signal (lower curve) shows clear peaks caused by opening the pressure valve of a triplex-pump. The dynamic discharge pressure (top curves), measured in the pressure vessel, shows pressure peaks, which correspond to the valve openings.

45,00 47,50 50,00 52,50 55,00 57,50 60,00 62,50 65,00 67,50 70,00 72,50 75,12

%

14.08.2006 10:07:00 16.08.2006

10:07:00 14.08.2006 18:00:00 15.08.2006

02:00:00 15.08.2006 10:00:00 15.08.2006

18:00:00 16.08.2006 02:00:00

PROGNOST Systems GmbH

Customers who are satisfied in the long term – that is why we give our very best. Our comprehensive service range will meet your unique requirements and regular software updates will keep all your sys-tems current with the latest developments.

Another advantage is the exchange of damage classes for pattern recognition between custom-ers, which enables all PROGNOST® users to bene-fit from the experiences of others.

PROGNOST support ranges from an annual sys-tem evaluation based on machine diagnosis reports in varying cycles (half-year, quarterly) to round-the-clock telephone support (10/5 or 24/7).

Sound customer satisfaction through service and support

Reciprocating machines are complex. The inter-action between components, gases/liquids, high pressures and material stressing, as well as a number of relevant physical values, make reli-able machine diagnosis a true challenge. To help your personnel meet that challenge, PROGNOST Systems offers a variety of on-site courses, such as advance training of personnel for their new re-sponsibilities. User Forums are another benefit, as customers meet customers to share experiences and take advantage of additional training to opti-mize the use of their PROGNOST® systems.

Applicable knowledge through instruction and training

The systems and services of PROGNOST Sys-tems are based upon many years of technical experience and competence in the acquisition, automated evaluation, and interpretation of con-dition data for reciprocating machinery.

Asset Performance Management systems from PROGNOST Systems are the world-leading tech-nology for the safe, reliable and economical op-eration of reciprocating machinery.

Design, production, and maintenance of our sys-tems takes place in Rheine, Germany.

PROGNOST Systems locations in Europe and USA, along with our worldwide partners, guaran-tee responsive and reliable on-site support.

PROGNOST Systems at a glance

Continuous dialogue with more than 100 enter-prises from the oil, gas, chemical, and petro-chemical industry and over 400 PROGNOST® installations contribute to the onging optimiza-tion of our product and services. Our customers reward this focused approach with high marks for satisfaction and long-standing loyalty.

Our Customers

www.prognost.com

PROGNOST Systems GmbHBirkenallee 17748432 RheineGermany Telefon: +49 (0)59 71 - 8 08 19.0Fax: +49 (0)59 71 - 8 08 19.42E-Mail: info@prognost.com

PROGNOST Systems, Inc.1020 Bay Area Blvd. Suite 118Houston, TX, 77058 USA Telefon: +1 - 281 480 93.00Fax: +1 - 281 480 93.02E-Mail: infousa@prognost.com