Wireless Steam Trap Monitoring Conserves Energy in Corn Processing

Yokogawa’s Sushi Sensor isolates process energy inefficiency root causes while eliminating costly manual inspections.
 

Introduction

A leading global ingredient solutions company was experiencing what, at first, appeared to be problems with their heat exchangers. Thermal energy from steam was not adequately transferred to the product and it could not reach temperature set points. Boilers were overworked and produced higher-than-desired emissions. The operations team suspected that malfunctioning steam traps comprised the root cause of these problems. However, isolating steam trap problems was difficult as they lacked live monitoring and relied, instead, on infrequent manual inspections.

Example: Traditional manual steam trap inspection

Challenges

The operation uses mechanical steam traps and had been contracting costly, third-party manual surveys every two to three years. These surveys involved use of ultrasound wands or screwdrivers to sense vibrations. The method allowed problems to linger for long periods and could not detect intermittent failures or back pressure issues.

Solution

The company targeted steam traps with wireless monitoring using Yokogawa’s Sushi Sensors. The team selected this technology due to its flexibility and simplified installation, plus the fact they could avoid the costly process of running new wiring. The wireless solution enabled the team to rotate the sensors among steam traps and monitor their performance over time without requiring continual manual testing.

Sushi Sensors provided real-time data on temperature and steam flow, allowing the team to detect issues such as steam traps failing to contain steam or blow-through problems, were to contain steam or blow-through problems, where steam passed without proper heat transfer. During the trial, the team deployed three sensors to different steam traps, leveraging the system’s mobility to collect valuable performance data while significantly reducing time spent on manual checks.

Example: Process heat exchanger

The successful trial demonstrated significant improvements in energy efficiency and labor reduction. The company is now planning a broader rollout of the Sushi Sensors, leveraging real-time data for predictive maintenance to prevent future inefficiencies caused by failing steam traps.

Example: Wireless monitoring steam trap trial field test at processing plant

By monitoring temperature and sound volume levels from the sensors, calculations on steam trap results were displayed through Yokogawa’s Data Logging Software GA10, which provided insights into steam trap performance. This process significantly improved heat exchanger efficiency and, therefore, energy efficiency while reducing emissions.

Looking ahead, the plant is exploring additional monitoring capabilities, such as vibration sensors and pressure monitoring, to enhance overall equipment efficiency. This modular approach provides scalability and allows the plant to expand its monitoring efforts beyond steam traps.

This marks the beginning of a broader initiative to optimize energy use and reduce operational costs across other facilities with further publications and application notes expected as the technology becomes more widely adopted.

Conclusion

By transitioning from manual inspection to real-time wireless monitoring, the sweetener and corn starch production plant significantly improved operational efficiency, reduced wasted steam, and positioned itself for predictive maintenance. The flexibility and scalability of Yokogawa's Sushi Sensor solution play a crucial role in this success, aligning with the plant's long-term goal of improving energy efficiency and cutting costs.

Key Benefits

• Timely detection of steam trap problems enabled the team to improve steam efficiency, reduce fuel costs, and reduce emissions.
• Remedying steam trap problems allowed improved process temperature control to increase operational efficiency.
• Real-time monitoring eliminated the need for costly, third-party surveys.

Yokogawa's Sushi Sensors provide robust, field-proven solutions for challenging conditions, enhancing efficiency, and reducing downtime. These compact, battery-powered sensors monitor pressure, temperature, and vibration and steam traps. They are waterproof, dustproof, and explosion-proof, ideal for hazardous environments. Using LoRaWAN for long-distance communication up to 1 km, they enable remote cloud monitoring for real-time equipment condition tracking across the plant.