Project description
Inspection of industrial polymeric pipes and insulation gets easier, faster and more accurate
Whether natural or synthetic, polymers (large molecules made up of repeating subunits called monomers) are ubiquitous. They are widespread in industry, where they are used in electrical insulation, as mechanical protection and as chemical barriers. Given that failure of these coatings can have a serious and even life-threatening impact, making sure defects are caught before they progress is critical. The EU-funded El-Peacetolero project is designing a simple hand-held optoelectronic device with integrated AI for the non-invasive real-time identification and evaluation of ageing industrial polymers. The device will be demonstrated at the end of the project; carried on a robotic inspector, it will assess the inside of polymeric pipes in the nuclear industry. Moreover, its electronics and overall performance in radiative environments will be tested.
Objective
El-Peacetolero’s overarching ambition is to design a TRL 7 hand-held, low power, embedded optoelectronic system that can deploy AI for in-situ real-time measurement, identification and diagnosis of the material state of aging polymers in an industrial environment.
This optoelectronic system will be compact, ergonomic, modular, low power consumption, low cost and can be used by a technician or installed on a robot to perform non-invasive monitoring and analysis of polymers used in industrial environments for protection and insulation. To develop prototype, we will create a database of aged polymer samples and their ATR-FTIR measurements. Moreover, El-Peacetolero will develop artificial intelligence based algorithms for polymer identification, diagnosis, and early detection of the aging condition.To construct the system, El-Peacetolero will develop a compact, high brightness, multi-wavelengths, measuring head including IR sources(LED/Laser), ATR crystal and detectors in the same package. El Peacetolero’s accuracy will be evaluated through focusing on reference characterisation of aged polymer samples to throughout its design phases. The impact of its operating conditions (radiative environments) on its electronic components will also be thoroughly studied . At the end of the project, El-Peacetolero will be used for performing measurements inside pipes on an equipped robot, which can operate inside the pipes.
The El-Peacetolero has the potential for a huge impact. Already within the nuclear industry it will save time and money by implementing easy non-destructive techniques for the identification and diagnosis of polymers. It will also have an impact on the security and safety of the industry as aging polymers on cables and pipes can cause massive safety issues. These safety issues can also be transferred to other industries such as cabling on airplanes, where a technology such as El-Peacetolero could provide invaluable assistance in identifying potential problems.
Fields of science
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencesartificial intelligence
- natural sciencesphysical scienceselectromagnetism and electronicsoptoelectronics
- natural sciencescomputer and information sciencesdatabases
- natural scienceschemical sciencespolymer sciences
- natural sciencesphysical sciencesopticslaser physics
Keywords
Programme(s)
- H2020-Euratom - Euratom Main Programme
- H2020-Euratom-1. - Indirect actions
Funding Scheme
IA - Innovation actionCoordinator
75006 Paris
France