Apparatus for determining thickness of lining layer
AssigneeJohnson Matthey Public Limited Company
InventorsDave Doyle Ferguson, Jnr., Emanuele Ronchi, Carl Robert Tipton
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus (2) for determining thickness of refractory material (4) lining a metal vessel (6) is disclosed. The apparatus includes a radiation source (16) for emitting radiation through a metal wall of the vessel and into the refractory material, wherein some of the radiation is scattered by the refractory material, and a radiation detector (20) for detecting radiation scattered by the refractory material through the wall of the vessel. A converter provides an output signal dependent on the quantity of radiation scattered by the refractory material through the wall of the vessel and detected by the radiation detector.
Claims16
An apparatus for determining thickness of refractory material lining a metal vessel, the apparatus comprising:
- a source of gamma radiation for emitting gamma radiation through a metal wall of the vessel and into said lining material, wherein some of said gamma radiation is scattered by said lining material;
- a radiation detector for detecting said gamma radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel;
- a shield for attenuating radiation transmitted directly from said source of gamma radiation to said radiation detector, wherein the shield comprises a collimator member of radiation attenuating material having at least one slot for accommodating said source of gamma radiation;
- and
- a converter for providing at least one output signal dependent on the quantity of radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel and detected by said radiation detector.
An apparatus for determining thickness of refractory material lining a metal vessel, the apparatus comprising:
- a source of gamma radiation for emitting gamma radiation through a metal wall of the vessel and into said lining material, wherein some of said gamma radiation is scattered by said lining material;
- a radiation detector for detecting said gamma radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel;
- a converter for providing at least one output signal dependent on the quantity of radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel and detected by said radiation detector;
- and
- at least one magnet for maintaining the source of gamma radiation and/or radiation detector within a predetermined distance of the wall of the vessel.
An apparatus for determining thickness of refractory material lining a metal vessel, the apparatus comprising:
- a source of gamma radiation for emitting gamma radiation through a metal wall of the vessel and into said lining material, wherein some of said gamma radiation is scattered by said lining material;
- a radiation detector for detecting said gamma radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel;
- a converter for providing at least one output signal dependent on the quantity of radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel and detected by said radiation detector;
- and
- at least one winch apparatus for enabling the apparatus to scan a surface of the vessel assisted by gravity.
An apparatus for determining thickness of refractory material lining a metal vessel, the apparatus comprising:
- a source of gamma radiation for emitting gamma radiation through a metal wall of the vessel and into said lining material, wherein some of said gamma radiation is scattered by said lining material;
- a radiation detector for detecting said gamma radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel;
- a converter for providing at least one output signal dependent on the quantity of radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel and detected by said radiation detector;
- an air gap located such that, during operation of the apparatus, the air gap is between the detector and a surface of an object being scanned;
- and
- an air extractor operable to vent air from the air gap out of the apparatus.
An apparatus for determining thickness of refractory material lining a metal vessel, the apparatus comprising:
- a source of gamma radiation for emitting gamma radiation through a metal wall of the vessel and into said lining material, wherein some of said gamma radiation is scattered by said lining material;
- a radiation detector for detecting said gamma radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel;
- a converter for providing at least one output signal dependent on the quantity of radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel and detected by said radiation detector;
- an air gap located such that, during operation of the apparatus, the air gap is between the detector and a surface of an object being scanned;
- and
- an air supplier configured to draw ambient air from the apparatus' surroundings and urge the ambient air towards the air gap.
A method of determining thickness of lining material lining a metal vessel, the method comprising:
- emitting gamma radiation from a gamma radiation source through a metal wall of the vessel and into said lining material, wherein some of said gamma radiation is scattered by said lining material;
- detecting, using a radiation detector, gamma radiation scattered by said lining material through the wall of the vessel;
- withdrawing air from an air gap located between the radiation detector and the wall of the vessel;
- and
- providing at least one output signal dependent on the quantity of gamma radiation detected.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.