Micromem releases RT-Lube Analyzer
Micromem Technologies Inc., through its wholly owned subsidiary Micromem Applied Sensor Technologies Inc. (MAST), has released for sale the RT-Lube Analyzer, the first in the world instrument platform that is capable of real-time, on-site detection of wear elements in lubricating fluids.
The company’s initial focus is early indication of problems occurring on wind turbine gear boxes that lead to unscheduled and expensive downtime. An installation for this application has already begun. This technology, however, is not limited to the wind industry. Initial uses in any environment where the measurement of lubricant wear materials in real time is advantageous, such as dangerous buildups in power transformer insulating fluids or carryover of chemical constituents on product surfaces. With modifications, applications in organic fluids are also possible such as real-time measurement of impurities in wines and other spirits, non-invasive glucose detection in potatoes and other fruits.
Currently, the process to test lubricants is to take a manual sample for lab testing. This approach is expensive, labor-intensive and time-consuming. The RT-Lube Analyzer can replace this manual approach by automatically sampling, on a prescheduled basis, the fluid under consideration. The analysis is immediate and is communicated back to cloud-based storage systems where the analytics can take place. The method of communication is flexible and information can be made available to anyone from any location in the world.
The value proposition of this device is to provide prognosis of pending failure modes prior to the actual failure happening. In the wind turbine area, particle analysers and vibration sensors are effective at alerting failures as they occur. The RT-Lube Analyzer measures multiple wear elements in lubricants and predicts that a failure is pending early enough to schedule repairs.
The company claims that the RT-Lube Analyzer is a game-changer, opening the Internet of things to industries that need to adapt and become more cost effective in the information age.
MAST Inc. is a wholly owned U.S.-based subsidiary of Micromem Technologies, a publicly traded company. MAST Inc. analyses specific industry sectors to create intelligent game-changing applications that address unmet market needs. By leveraging its expertise and experience with sophisticated magnetic sensor applications, MAST Inc. successfully powers the development and implementation of innovative solutions for the oil and gas, utilities, automotive, health care, government, information technology, manufacturing and other industries.
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