MEASUREMENT & MONITORING MMS ® INSPECTION SERIES
FISCHER INSTRUMENTATION
Nace : Corrosion costs $ 2.5 trillion annually
Every year , corrosion causes an economic damage of more than $ 2.5 trillion worldwide . Therefore , the prevention of corrosion , is an issue that plays an im portant role in many areas . The new MMS ® Inspection series that is optimized for corrosion protection reli ably supports the inspector in assessing corrosion-ex posed components and in jobs that involve checking of corrosion protection .
Corrosion is the deterioration of a metal as a result of chemical reactions between it and the surrounding en vironment . This leads to a functional impairment of the metallic component over time . Accordingly , rust forma tion on a railroad track is not harmful , since the function of the rail is not diminished . However , a pipe which has become leaky due to pitting corrosion is clearly defective , since the safe transport of liquids is no longer guaran teed . The same applies to the maritime sector , where material surfaces attacked by corrosion on ship walls can quickly become a safety risk . There are serious con sequences caused by corrosion in engineering structures such as bridges . If the steel structure corrodes without any control , a bridge can quickly become a threat to those who move on it . Furthermore , there are economic advantages to implementing proper corrosion prevention methods .
In order to protect metallic materials against environ mental influences and thus corrosion , in most cases coating with suitable corrosion protection material is sufficient . The expense for this – passive – corrosion pro tection is relatively low in relation to the costs caused by corrosion such as loss of value , downtime , dismantling , etc . For companies and institutions saving on corrosion protection , it usually becomes expensive to repair the damages afterwards . This is especially so for structures that are very difficult to access after installation , such as offshore wind turbines . Corrosion protection involves regular inspection and checks for proper functioning . This means that inspectors and service personnel need to use targeted measurements to inspect if the quality of the corrosion protection coatings still meet specified standards .
With regard to coating thickness gauges used here , both magnetic induction method and eddy-current testing have established themselves as standards worldwide . 1 ) NACE International , impact . nace . org ( 2016 ) Rusting , the formation of iron oxides , is a wellknown example of electrochemical corrosion .
Magnetic induction is the method of choice for measur ing the thickness of non-magnetic layers on magnetic base materials , e . g . layers of paint , plastic , galvanized or hot-dip galvanized layers on steel and iron . The eddy cur rent method is suitable for electrically non-conductive layers on non-ferrous metals , such as e . g . paint , lacquer or plastic on aluminium .
Depending on the version , modern gauges such as the newly developed MMS ® Inspection series from Helmut Fischer offer both measuring methods .
Helmut Fischer has made every effort to ensure the con venience of the user . For this reason , international mea surement standards such as SSPC PA2 ( Level 1-5 ), IMO PSPC , ISO 19840 , Australian AS 3894.3-2002 or Swedish IS 1841 60 are firmly integrated as
MMS ® Inspection DPM ( Dew Point Meter ) MMS ® Inspection SPG ( Surface Profile Gauge ) MMS ® Inspection DFT ( Dry Film Thickness )
pre-configured batches or measurement specifications via the software . The dew point measuring device MMS ® Inspection DPM , which belongs to the same series , measures the dew point before the corrosion protection paint is applied . This helps to ensure that the coating is applied under proper environmental conditions . If the conditions are not suitable , premature corrosion may occur or the paint may peel off as a result of poor adhesion .
Inspection SPG . This gauge measures according to the “ Peak to Valley ” method , meeting ASTM D 4417-B and US Navy NSI 009-32 standards . The surface profile depth influences the amount of paint needed . If the peak to valley distance is too big , the applied paint layer may not be thick enough on the peaks . Additionally , the pro file infuences the adhesion of the paint on the surface .
The MMS series is offered as a set of three to enable better corrosion protection . They are the only device on the market that meet IP 65 protection requirements which include dust protection and water proof .
The MMS Inspection offers one-handed operation and provides immediate feedback by means of light , vi bration and sound . The auto rotate function allows the corrosion inspector to view measurement results at all important angles .
Intuitive user interface for all systems . The software guides the user step by step through the individual mea suring programs and shows him how to proceed with each measurement . Thus , the devices can be handled reliably even by untrained personnel .
Helmut Fischer has designed this series of gauges to make corrosion protection inspection considerably eas ier . This enables many companies around the world to avoid corrosion damage and the resulting loss of value .
For further information , please visit www . fischerinstrumentation . co . uk
100 PECM Issue 53