Infrared Thermography

The Infrared Thermography is a technique, which permits the human eye to see through the infrared spectrum. By acquiring thermal images, we can estimate the temperature of any exposed points and make a thermal analysis of the systems under study. We can compare them to similar equipment and previous conditions, assuming that any change of the equipment temperature will always show a variation of working conditions, whose intensity makes it possible to detect the seriousness of the problem and causes of the faults.

The main purpose of this technique is to prevent downtimes and to be able to schedule corrective actions on defective components, bringing along:

• Savings on Maintenance Costs.
• Higher Mean Time between Failures (MTBF).
• Minimal Unscheduled shutdowns.
• Increased equipment reliability.
• Increased lifetime of every monitored component.

Nowadays, thermography has become a high added-value and reliable technique in different industrial and manufacturing sectors. Being a Non Destructive Test and minimally invasive makes it one of the most important predictive instrument.

Thermography is applied in:

• Electrical Systems: cables, electrical panels, converters;
• Mechanics: friction between fix and moving parts, lacking of lubrication, broken bearings, transmissions, couplings;
• Hydraulic: piping condition, obstructions, leaks, sediments;
• Flow Inspections: the temperature is used to expose flow abnormal conditions like relief valve leaks, sediments deposits, condensed steam accumulation;
• Refractory and Thermal Insulation: in the furnaces, boilers, reactors, chimneys, piping, tanks and insulated pipelines;
• Building: filtration, insulation, heat loss, thermal bridges, energy certificates;
• Steel Industry: for the inspection in High Furnaces, Thermal Regenerators, and Steel Castings.