Process valve island helps improve predictive maintenance
Published: 07 July, 2021
A pneumatic valve island for process automation now includes Switching Time Monitoring to ensure improved predictive maintenance, and longterm dosing accuracy.
The new functionality on board Bürkert’s Type 8652 AirLINE pneumatic valve island monitors process valve opening and closing times via feedback to provide accurate and consistent batch quality. Switching Time Monitoring also provides an early alert for potential valve maintenance requirements to avoid unscheduled downtime.
Mechanical wear of process valves means that designated valve opening and closing speeds can change over time. Worn process valve seals can increase opening rates and the build-up of residue or debris can slow down valve opening or closing speeds. Changes to valve opening times can lead to underdosing or overdosing, problems that can be difficult to detect as they commonly occur gradually.
Bürkert’s Type 8652 AirLINE valve island now features the new Switching Time Monitoring feature that prevents inaccurate dosing by recording and reporting process valve opening and closing times. If switching times deviate from their setpoints, the process valves can be inspected and repaired or replaced to maintain accuracy. A tolerance in switching times can be programmed and a pre-warning alarm is able to notify when the set tolerance is exceeded.
For general purpose process applications, where high accuracy isn’t required or closely monitored, the Switching Time Monitoring feature also ensures reliable performance by enabling predictive maintenance. Process valve wear or obstructions identified by the switching time report can now be resolved at predetermined process shutdowns, avoiding mechanical failure and unplanned downtime.
Diagnostic reports are presented in clear text or symbols via the Type 8652’s LCD display. Real time data can also be viewed via Bürkert’s easy to use Communicator PC tool or accessed from any web browser, with remote diagnostics and management speeding up any required maintenance responses. The Type 8652 AirLINE valve island can operate with valves that actuate liquid, gas or fluidic solids and can integrate with a wide variety of control systems, communicating over PROFIBUS DP, all common Ethernet protocols as well as CC-Link and CANopen.
The new Switching Time Monitoring function joins other recent updates for the Type 8652 pneumatic valve island including explosion protection to ATEX / IECEx Zone 2 and the External Valve Shutdown (EVS) feature. EVS enables individual valves or complete island modules to be shut off while maintaining network communications to send status data to the PLC.
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