Nowadays, direct burial of heating pipelines is very common in order to beautify the environment. However, due to various reasons such as pipeline corrosion and aging, load vibration, pipeline quality, construction quality, and service life, leaks are inevitable. This not only causes energy waste and increases heating costs, but also affects the heating of heat users. Therefore, pipeline leak detection has always been a problem for heating companies.
Traditional methods struggle to pinpoint leaks in heating pipes accurately. However, infrared thermal imagers, a novel detection device, can quickly and accurately locate leaks in underground heating pipes by scanning the area under test and observing the temperature distribution in the thermal image. The FLIRE85 advanced infrared thermal imager and the FLIRE8 infrared thermal imager are precisely such devices. Below, we will explain in detail, using specific cases, how the FLIRE85 and E8 detect leaks in heating pipes.
Case 1:
A heating pipeline leak occurred in a section of the heating supply line of a heating company in Ordos City, Inner Mongolia. The leak point was located using FLIR85 and E8 infrared sensors, with an estimated leakage of 30 m³/24h. The infrared image is shown below.
FLIRE8 located the leak in the heating pipe.
FLIRE85 located the leak in the heating pipeline.
Based on the location pinpointed by the infrared thermal imager, workers quickly dug up the ground. Just as the infrared image indicated, the source of the leak was indeed the red area shown by the FLIRE85 and E8 sensors. (See video.)
Case 2:
A section of heating pipe belonging to the Sishui Heating Company in Shandong Province experienced a leak. The leak was detected using a FLIR infrared thermal imager. The infrared image is shown below:
Infrared thermal imager detected a pipeline leak.
Based on the location shown in the red area of the infrared image, workers dug up the ground and successfully found the leak, as shown in the picture. The leak point in the pipe was about the size of a chopstick.
In addition to locating the leak point, the pipeline route can also be clearly identified in the thermal image, as shown in the following figure:
It is easy to see that the FLIRE85 and E8 infrared thermal imagers can accurately and quickly locate underground leaks by scanning the area being tested and observing the overall temperature distribution . This greatly improves equipment maintenance efficiency, reduces energy consumption, and avoids safety accidents, thus ensuring normal heating in winter.
How do the FLIRE85 and E8 so easily detect leaks in heating pipes ? Well, let me tell you about their performance.
The FLIRE8 boasts a clear 76,800 (320×240) pixel infrared resolution and employs FLIR Multiband Dynamic Imaging (MSX®) image enhancement technology. It possesses all the features needed to accurately identify problems, from hot/cold spot measurement to emissivity control, enabling rapid identification of energy loss sources, i.e., leak points, in thermal pipelines.
FLIRE8 Infrared Thermal Imager
The FLIRE85 is no ordinary device either. With a resolution of 384×288, it provides more than 110,000 temperature measurement points and has the high-performance characteristics needed to quickly and accurately detect hot spots and hidden defects, thus making leaks in thermal pipelines impossible to miss.
FLIRE85 Infrared Thermal Imager
In fact, not only in pipe leak detection, but also thanks to their powerful functions, the FLIRE85 and E8 infrared thermal imagers are extremely adept at discovering hidden electrical faults, mechanical problems, and building energy.
