Process to mitigate unwanted formation of popcorn polymers using acoustic emission signals
AssigneeTotal Research & Technology Feluy
InventorJean-Pierre Thoret Bauchet
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Process to monitor unwanted formation of a polymer, having internal mechanical strain, wherein said formation of polymer generates acoustic emissions due to the sudden break of the polymer, wherein the number of said acoustic emissions increases over time when there is formation of said unwanted polymer formation, wherein said acoustic emissions is detected by a resonant piezo electric transducer having a resonant frequency centred on the second harmonic of said acoustic emission.
Claims14
A process to mitigate the unwanted popcorn formation of a cross-linked polymer having internal mechanical strain comprising the steps of:
- a) providing an installation in which unwanted popcorn formation of a cross-linked polymer may occur, with at least one resonant piezo electric transducer being attached outside of the installation;
- b) counting the acoustic emissions generated by the cross-linked polymer formation originating by the sudden break of the polymer with the at least one resonant piezo electric transducer and comparing the number of acoustic emissions counted per unit of time with at least one predefined threshold;
- and
- c) intervening on the installation in order to limit the unwanted popcorn formation of a cross-linked polymer when the number of acoustic emissions counted per unit of time of step b) is higher than the at least one predefined threshold;
- wherein the step of counting the acoustic emissions is done by detecting a second harmonic of the acoustic emissions.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.