Wi-Corr® CUI
Corrosion Under Insulation Prediction and Analytics
CUI (Corrosion Under Insulation) is any type of corrosion that occurs due to water trapped under the insulation or fireproofing of pipes, pressure vessels or any other structure. CUI is a major industrial challenge with many industries dedicating 10% of their total annual maintenance budgets to repairing damage caused by CUI. At present, it is managed in many ways, ranging from full removal of insulation to the use of sophisticated and costly instrumentation.
We believe that insulated pipework should never fail due to external corrosion and that monitoring for CUI conditions to prevent failure should be affordable and effective.
Wi-Corr® CUI is the first wireless, retrofittable system capable of monitoring real-time for the conditions that cause corrosion under insulation. Wi-Corr® CUI integrates with the Trend Software and Data Platform and our proprietary algorithms to analyse the real-time data streamed from our easy-fit CUI sensors. Together they present clear, actionable information for a powerful new approach to addressing the huge cost of corrosion due to CUI.
External corrosion detection
Operating temp. up to 200°C
Retrofit to pipes
Retrofit to storage vessels
Moisture detection
Moisture resolution 10ppm over 40m
Earliest possible detection
‘Treat the cause – not the symptoms’
The Wi-Corr® CUI system is underpinned by patent-pending technology that turns an entire structure including its insulation into a sensing, coaxial cable-like structure. Radio waves injected into the insulation travel along the pipe up to 40 metres to detect corrosive environments. This enables a new systematic and data-driven approach to managing the corrosion as well as offering greater sensitivity to moisture build-up than established technologies.
Wi-Corr® CUI enables dramatic reductions in engineering costs through the earliest possible detection of the causes of CUI and through prompt identification of failing thermal insulation and associated energy inefficiencies.
Easy and non-intrusive installation
The simple installation process offers rapid and flexible deployment of sensors with minimal disruption. Sensors are easily retrofitted within minutes to live pipes and vessels without the removal of cladding or insulation, requiring only a small hole in the cladding to insert the CUI sensor. IP66 leak-proof seals on all CUI hardware ensure installed equipment doesn’t produce a water ingress risk.
Once installed, sensors are powered autonomously with a 6+ year battery life under normal conditions. Batteries can be replaced easily at any time on a live plant. Devices can also be repositioned to a new location in minutes.
No permits required for operation and no hot-work permit is required for installation due to the Wi-Corr® range of pipe-safe installation tools. An excellent alternative to any application that might otherwise involve extensive permitting, engineering, cabling, and installation costs.
Descriptive and actionable information
The integrated RBI (Risk Based Inspection) solution within Wi-Corr® Trend Software and Data Platform delivers accurate, descriptive diagnostics and visualisations. With actionable information and a clear interface, it can be used to help prioritise maintenance activity and assess maintenance performance, enabling better use of resources and reducing time in the field.
Versatile solution for challenging environments
Compatible with widely used steel or aluminium cladding on all insulated structures inclusive of pipe bends, tees, steam tracers, tanks and vessels. Unlike other technologies, the Wi-Corr® CUI system is not just limited to non-ferromagnetic aluminium claddings and can be applied to the vast majority of clad structures in industry. Compatible with process temperatures up to 200ºC, giving full coverage of CUI threat temperatures.
Monitoring data is delivered over WirelessHART, the most secure, reliable, self-organising wireless network available. The industry recognised wireless technology is proven in cluttered industrial environments. The data is compatible with your existing DCS. Cellular and cloud networking can also be provided as an option if preferred.
CUI Sensor Solutions
Choose from our selection of sensors for your needs, with Wi-Corr® CUI Quanta, optimised for pipes, and Wi-Corr® CUI Proximity, suitable for both pipes and storage vessels.
Wi-Corr® CUI Quanta
- Guided wave technology used to detect and quantify water.
- Precise, long range moisture detection.
- Optimised for insulated pipes.
- Compatible with rockwool / mineral fibre insulation. Other insulations on request.
- Quanta units can monitor up to 40 metres of pipework.
The quanta technology produces a definitive detection and quantification of moisture between two Quanta sensors separated by up to 40 metres. Due to the unique sensing technology of the Quanta system, the ability to detect moisture is equally high across the entire length of pipe.
Wi-Corr® CUI Proximity
- Humidity sensors and software analytics used to deduce the presence of moisture.
- Close proximity moisture detection.
- Compatible with vessels and pipes.
- Compatible with all insulation types (including rockwool, foam glass and calcium silicate).
- Detects both humidity and direct moisture immersion.
CUI Proximity sensors perform well in scenarios where the moisture is located relatively near to the humidity sensor, outperforming simpler sensing methods such as ‘water bucket sensors’. With our Wi-Corr® Trend analytics, high confidence moisture readings are possible in an enhanced distance from the sensor, proven in real-world trials.
However, certainty of the moisture concentration is inherently limited by proximity. When the presence of moisture is possible in a large area, 3-Sci recommends Proximity sensors are placed at least every 5 metres.
Benefits
A practical and efficient way of using field data to enhance the ‘Plan, Do, Check, Act’ (PDCA) process of mitigating unacceptable CUI risk in the most effective way, thereby improving plant safety and LOPC.
Rapid ROI is assisted by embedded descriptive, diagnostic and predictive analytics which deliver fast, actionable information.
- Creates a dynamic asset data-driven RBI – asset categorization and prioritization can adapt in response to present field conditions.
- Wi-Corr® Trend RBI outputs can be easily integrated within existing operation and maintenance programs and procedures with minimal disruption to existing processes.
- RBI process based on best industrial working practices.
Sensors are easily retrofitted within minutes to live pipes and vessels without the removal of cladding or insulation
- Requires a small hole in the cladding to insert the CUI sensor.
- No permitting required for operation and no hot-work permit required for installation due to the Wi-Corr® range of pipe-safe installation tools. An excellent alternative to any application that might otherwise involve extensive permitting, engineering, cabling, or installation costs.
- No interruption to operation processes.
- Repositionable solutions – sensing systems can be moved to a new location in minutes
Earliest possible detection of CUI. Greater sensitivity to moisture build-up than established technologies, typically 10ppm over a 40m pipe section.
Unlike other technologies, the Wi-Corr® CUI system is not just limited to non-ferromagnetic aluminium claddings and can be applied to the vast majority of clad structures in industry.
Delivers CUI monitoring data over the most secure, reliable, self-organising wireless network available, compatible with your existing WirelessHART network. DCS ready to integrate.
- Proven in cluttered industrial environments.
- Cellular and cloud networking can be provided if desired by the user.
Compatible with process temperatures up to 200ºC, providing full coverage of CUI threat temperatures.
IP66 leakproof seals on all CUI hardware ensures installed equipment doesn’t produce water ingress risk.
Compatible with monitoring all insulated structures inclusive of pipe bends, tees, steam tracers, tanks and vessels.
Wi-Corr® CUI units are autonomously powered and designed for 6+ year battery life under normal operating conditions. Batteries can be replaced easily at any time on a live plant.
Data reporting system up and running from first installation using intuitive software. Expandable system. When new sensors are added to an existing Wi-Corr® installation they are automatically recognised
Can be used for :
- Short-term monitoring to deduce the status of regions of concern.
- Mid-term monitoring to assess cladding performance during variations in process and climatic conditions.
- Long-term monitoring for assurance of asset condition.