TPT May 2009

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Inspection, Measuring, Testing & Marking
May 2009
Tube and pipe manufacturers often produce
many different alloys. The most demanding
(and high margin) customers, such as
petrochemical, aerospace and nuclear,
require suppliers to verify the correct
alloy grade. An alloy grade mix-up can be
catastrophic for both customer and supplier.
If unchecked, the wrong grade can lead to
a catastrophic failure, followed by liability
claims, lost reputation and damaged
future business. A supplier needs to know
the right grade is being shipped, and also
needs a system that is easy to use and
tough enough for the factory floor.
Innov-X offers the Fox-IQ tube analyzer
(factory online XRF), with the IQ to analyze
quickly and accurately. There are currently
several leading tube and rod manufacturers,
such as Sandvik, using this system. The
Fox-IQ enables use of XRF to check the
grade of each and every tube produced.
XRF is a very good technique because
it is powerful and can analyze up to 25
elements (titanium and above) in a single
test. This enables even the toughest grade
splits, as often the absence or presence
of even a small amount of an element
determines the grade.
The process is also fast; for example, the
Fox-IQ can differentiate based upon 0.3
per cent Ti in 5 seconds of testing time
(304/321 stainless steel), 0.2 per cent V in
8 seconds (9Cr / P91 low alloy steel) and
0.04 per cent V in 15 seconds (various
carbon steel). In addition, the Fox-IQ is
flexible and works in the same setup on
tubes from 6mm diameter to 6m.
The Fox-IQ takes the power of XRF and
wraps it up into a package that integrates
easily into either new or existing lines. The
analysis head is compact enough (10cm
x 10cm x 30cm) to fit between rollers on
the line. It should be mounted within 5mm
of the sample to differentiate grades with
Ti, and within 10mm of the tube for other
elements. Closer to the tube is better as
it means higher count rates and shorter
testing.
The user interface has been designed
specifically for the needs of the tube and
rod industry. It is intuitive to operate and
indexes the data by lot number to make
record keeping and report generation
very simple.
The Fox-IQ can communicate to external
systems using either physical binary
voltage signals to a PLC or using TCP/
IP commands over ethernet.
This article was supplied by Mr Phil Miller, product
manager for online systems.
Innov-X Systems Inc – USA
Fax: +1 781 938 0128
Email:
Website:
C O N T R O L B Y M E A S U R E M E N T
+46 (0)31-58 44 00
HotProfiler™ System
• True measured profiles
• 3D Presentation
• Profiles in Real Time
• Rotating or static version
• Minimum of maintenance
• Measures:
Bars, tubes, pipes, squares, flats
and rods. Size range 5-1800mm
True Profiles
Automated tube and rod alloy verification
 The Fox-IQ tube analyzer is used to verify the correct tube alloys