Ultrasound World V (2009)

Ultrasound World V Program Abstracts

Abstract:  This presentation will examine route based leak inspections of air operated RKL bladder valves and the benefits of those inspections.
We will define an RKL valve and its proper function as used in controlling the production process and in the flows of production materials. We will also look at the process by which the proper amount of DB/PSI allowable leakage was determined. The manufacturer was involved in this process as they had no previous DB/PSI recommendations defined.  Acquisition of data and the analysis determined the standard from the Manufacturer.

The energy cost savings of fine-tuning the valves with the UE 10000 instrument and route based leak inspections are also discussed.  We discovered we could find defective valves prior to failure using Airborne Ultrasound testing.  This failure mode finding has implications of cost savings in reducing process interruptions and improving quality control. 

A case study will accompany this presentation. 

Bio:  Daniel Blackford, Program Manager and Lead Analyst, Allied Reliability, Inc.
Danny joined Allied in August of 2002 and has spent the last 20 years in maintenance and mining. In addition to specializing in drag lines, he has worked in the mining and Chemical industries.

He is a Vibration Level II with 10 years of experience, UE Level I with 10 years of experience, MCA Level II with 5 years of experience and is OSHA 10 certified and MSHA certified. Danny also has 10 years of experience and NDT experience of 2 years.

Today he serves as the Program Manager and Lead Analyst over 5 Mosaic facilities in Florida and oversees their Integrated Reliability & Maintenance Programs and manages a staff of 5 Allied Reliability maintenance technicians.  Mosaic is the largest phosphate mine in the world