What are the variables to take into account when assessing the efficiency of a network cathodic protection system? There are certainly different types and they are all important. But it is equally important to ensure effective monitoring of the system, otherwise any malfunctions may not be communicated in time to be resolved without problems.
There are three elements that are essential to pay attention to if you want to be sure that you have a remote cathodic protection monitoring and control system that allows you to accurately assess the health of the pipeline and protect it effectively.
1) Flexibility
Full adaptability to different situations and needs is an essential requirement for evaluating the efficiency of a cathodic protection monitoring system.
The connectivity options offered must be comprehensive: an efficient system must support not only mobile communication, but also wired communication and satellite communication to operate even in areas with poor coverage, and must guarantee access to data and their management in total safety, as well as with maximum simplicity and speed. Integration with pre-existing information systems, such as ERP or GIS, is also essential to maintain smooth communication.
The best monitoring devices also offer additional channels to measure corrosion rates using standard ER probes, providing complete corrosion monitoring capabilities. And the most high-performance cathodic protection monitoring solutions can be equipped with various accessories such as synchronised ON-OFF switches, solar boxes and interfaces for remote control of rectifiers, which further enhance the system’s capabilities and flexibility.
2) Maintenance
A latest-generation cathodic protection monitoring system also allows for more efficient and timely maintenance.
An example of innovative technology in this sense is the Digital Twin, a digital representation of the structure to be protected: thanks to this virtual and real-time updated reproduction of the physical infrastructure, it is possible to carry out continuous monitoring and simulation of the pipeline performance, structural integrity and operating parameters.
By integrating remote monitoring data, weather forecasts and other relevant information, you can gain insights into potential issues that threaten your facility, enabling predictive maintenance and operational optimisation.
Improved analysis of collected data allows you to identify deviations from expected patterns, flagging error conditions before they become critical.
Additionally, continuously collecting data and using it to train algorithms enables early recognition of anomalies or potential problems. This allows you to plan maintenance activities more effectively.
This translates into important benefits, such as:
- minimising downtime
- optimising the allocation of maintenance resources
- improving the overall safety and reliability of the monitored facility
3) Power supply
One of the greatest challenges in cathodic protection is to maintain the monitoring system in a continuously efficient condition. This translates not only into the need to not interrupt the collection and transmission of data in order to receive any alarm signals in real time, but also into the need to guarantee optimal data collection performance even in the event of an external power failure.
There are solutions that allow the operation of devices in the field to continue even in the event of a power failure, ensuring uninterrupted operation in the field in the absence of electrical power. This is what Automa’s G4C-PRO ensures, a remote cathodic protection monitoring device with ultra-low consumption technology that guarantees a minimum of 48 months of uninterrupted operation in the field with the integrated battery pack.
Furthermore, from a resource optimisation perspective, a notable benefit for the effectiveness of cathodic protection also comes from the use of Edge-computing, that is, the ability of devices to locally process information collected from the field to guarantee a first level of local intelligence that allows autonomous actions to be carried out even in the temporary absence of the remote communication channel.
In this way, it is possible to optimise data sending and ensure that the device transmits only the significant information, with an impact on the amount of energy used for communication.
Automa solutions for remote monitoring of cathodic protection are based on innovative ultra-low consumption technologies to ensure continuous and efficient communication. Our internal battery powered devices ensure a minimum battery life of four years even in adverse communication conditions. While under optimal signal conditions the lithium battery life of our G4C-PRO can easily reach five years.
Additionally, the G4C-PRO can also be powered by a small solar panel integrated with backup battery, with 10-12 year replacement time.
At Automa we develop hardware and software solutions for monitoring and remote control of pipeline integrity, in particular for the cathodic protection and the operational management of networks in the Oil, Gas and Water sectors. Our company was founded in 1987 in Italy, and today over 50,000 Automa devices made in Italy are installed in more than 40 countries worldwide.
Do you want to be sure that your monitoring system provides truly effective cathodic protection and monitors the integrity of your pipelines with maximum efficiency?
Contact our team without obligation and we will tell you how you can maintain maximum control over your structures!
Product Manager at Automa S.r.l.
Electronics engineer, he is certified as a Senior Technician in cathodic protection and specialises in market analysis and industry standards. With more than 15 years of experience in remote cathodic protection monitoring and a patent on an intelligent reference electrode, Ivano is a member of the Board of Directors of Ceocor (European Committee for the Study of Corrosion and Protection of Piping Systems) and Delegate of AMPP Italy Chapter, as well as an active member of the ISO and AMPP standard working groups for cathodic protection.
