HyQuest Solutions New Zealand User Group August 2017

HS Bubbler Technology

Origins of Gas Purge Technology

1940s - Developed By Dutch Engineer Late 1940s

1954 - Adopted by State of Illinois Water Group

1950s - Adopted by United States Geological Survey (USGS)

1960s - Developed by Des Sherlock (Hydrological Services)

Gas Purge Operating Principle

Basic Operating Principle

dry nitrogen (or air) bubbled into the stream via a small diameter tube

bubbles escape from the end of the tube (orifice)

pressure transducer monitors changes in pressure within the tubing

available as single or dual orifice/riverline options

System pressure is proportional to water level

Typical installation of a Gas Purge system

-Nitrogen Gas Bottle

-HS23SL

-Standard BU07 Orifice

Evolution of Technology

5

Circa 1950s Developed as an alternate technology to traditional float operated systems

Gas Electric Manometer (Queensland Government)

Manometer Servo(Leopold & Stevens USA)

Hydrological Services (HS) Pressure Sensing Unit (DP30)

Des Sherlock (1965-68)

Typical Set-Up

6

How does a dry bubble unit work?

Gas feed should always be at a pressure twice the maximum river level likely to be recorded

Nupro Valve used to regulate the number of bubbles at the orifice

Balance line used to control the pressure coming to the valve to keep the system balanced

Instrument line where a dry pressure transducer is used

River Line extends all the way to the orifice.

Supply Line (Feed)

Nupro ValveBalance Line

River Line

Instrument Line

Pressure through this valve is always 27Kpa (4 PSI) greater than the pressure at the river

orifice (+ve pressure)

How does a dry bubble unit work?Pressure will increase to open the valve more when water level increases and decrease to reducing the valve opening when water decrease

Constant regulator to maintain a constant bubble rate with changes of water level

Nupro metering valve for accurately setting

bubble rate

Pressure at this point is always 27 kPa (4 PSI)

The Compressor Age

Alternative to gas cylinders (Safety Issues)

Effective air drying system essential - moisture ingress- aquatic growth

Some limitations riverline length- maximum head

Low powered types available (12V: 38aH with solar)

Original HS Compressors (circa late 1990s)

Model HS45(Required HS23 Bubble Unit)

Model HS55(In-Built HS23 Bubble Unit)

Typical installation HS55 Compressor?

Why use the GCO?

Minimises impact of sediment on water level sensing

Minimises time of lag for fast rising water levels

Allows for lower bubble rates (as low as 10 bpm) reducing gas and power consumption

Removeable copper screen to eliminate algal growth

Adjustable coupling for easy retrofit to existing sites

Why use the GCO?

HS40 Air Force Compressor Models

HS40 Air ForceSeries II

(Available with WL3100 or WL3100A or Stand-Alone)

HS40 Air ForceCompact

(Available with WL2100 or WL3100 or WL3100A or Stand-Alone)

HS40 Air ForceSeries I

(Available with WL3100 or WL3100A or Stand-Alone:

V type also developed)

HS40 Air Force Models General FeaturesFeature HS40 Air Force

Series IHS40 Air Force

Series IIHS40 Air Force

Compact

Operation Constant Bubble Constant Bubble Constant Bubble

Enclosure Zinc plated powder-coated metal Zinc plated powder-coated metal Zinc plated powder-coated metal

Dimensions 330mm (W) x 430mm (H) x 200mm (D) 405mm (W) x 620mm (H) x 220mm (D) 330mm (W) x 490mm (H) x 210mm (D)

Mass 16kg 24kg 22kg

Maximum Head 40 metres (200 metre river-line) 50 metres (200 metres river-line) 50 metres (200 metres river-line)

Orifice Suits either BU07 or GCO1P/SS Suits either BU07 or GCO1P/SS Suits either BU07 or GCO1P/SS

Power Supply 12VDC 12VDC 12VDC

Models HS40 / HS403100 / HS403100 / HS40/3100 (with DO Option)

HS40/II / HS40/3100II / HS40/3100A/II / HS40/3100/DO/II

HS40AFC / HS40AFC/2100 / HS40AFC/3100 / HS40AFC/3100A

Tank size 2.0L 2.0L 0.75L

Compressor Pump Thomas Pump Industrial strength ABB pump Industrial strength ABB pump

Air Dryer Auto DRAIN with nylon bulbs(V option also introduced in 2013)

Auto PURGE air dryer with micro-mist separator and membrane dryer

Auto DRAIN with micro-mist separator and membrane dryer

(Auto PURGE air dryer available in V model of the AFC)

Bubble Rate 26 BPM at orifice (Factory Set) 26 BPM at orifice (Factory Set) 26 BPM at orifice (Factory Set)

HS40 Air Force Models Continuous ImprovementCirca 2009 : HS45/HS55 to HS40 Series I - Industry demand for a smaller and less expensive product- Inclusion of on-board accurate pressure sensor (WL3100 & WL3100A)

Circa 2015 : HS40 Series I to HS40 Series II

- Alternate method of air drying

- More robust pump

- Short-comings of electronics (re-introduction of the Condor mechanical pressure switch used in HS55)

- Redundancy (unit will continue to function in the event of a controller failure)

- SDI-12 Diagnostics for Fault Finding:Compressor status / Duration of & Time since last pump cycle / Number of pump cycles in the last 24hrs / Minimum battery voltage & Maximum current draw

Circa 2017 : HS40 Series II to HS40 COMPACT - Industry demand for a smaller/lighter and less expensive product

- Options for inclusion of on-board accurate pressure sensor (WL2100, WL3100 & WL3100A)

- Air Dryer options (auto-drain) OR (auto-purge)

HS40 Air Force Compressors - How do They Work?

Tank

Controller

Pump

Membrane Dryer

Pressure Transducer

Condor Switch

Air Intake

Bubble Rate Adjust

Tank Pressure Gauge When tank pressure drops to 400kPa, Controller activates pump

Differential Regulator When tank pressure reaches 750kPa, Controller de-activates pump

Differential Regulator ensure a constant flow of dried air to orifice

Ambient air enters pump and put through Micromist Separator and Membrane Dryer prior to entering tank

Changes in stream water level reflected in changed pressure reading in river line

Pressure transducer converts pressure reading to a reading in metres 12VDC Supply

Micromist Separator

Solenoid Valve

Trapped Moisture Purged via Solenoid Valve

Purge Valve

Transducer Isolation Valve

ADVANTAGES:Desiccant Free means minimal maintenance

Constant Bubble ensures stability in water level reading

Moisture DRIED Air is ESSENTIAL!!!!

19

HS40 Fault Finding Pressure (ALL MODELS)

Pressure Transducer Connected?

?

Internal Connections

OK?

Bubble Rate OK

(26BPM)?

Valve Seats OK?

NO

NO

NO

NO

YES

YES

YES

Connect Transducer

Dismantle and Clean Valve

Use HS23QC tester / tighten or replace Check and/or

Replace Ferrules

Adjust to 26BPM

SYSTEM LEAK ISSUE

(Visual Inspection/Check Data) Trace

Compressor Working

OK

SYSTEM BLOCKAGE ISSUE

(Visual Inspection/Check Data)

Are both Valves Set at OPEN?

posit?

Is Orifice Clear and Bubbling?

Is River-Line Damaged?

Set both to OPEN position

Clean in and around orifice area. Manual

Purge then Check and reset bubble rate to (26BPM)

if required

Repair/replace tubing as required

YES

YES

NO

NO

YES

NO

YES

SYSTEM BLOCKAGE ISSUE

(Visual Inspection/Check Data)

SYSTEM LEAK ISSUE

(Visual Inspection/Check Data) Trace

Use HS23QC tester / tighten or replace Check and/or Replace Ferrules

NO

Dismantle and Clean Valve

NO

YES

YES

Adjust to 26BPM

NO

Bubble Rate OK (26BPM)?

YES

Internal Connections OK?

YES

Valve Seats OK?

NO

Pressure Transducer Connected??

Is River-Line Damaged?

Clean in and around orifice area. Manual Purge then Check and reset bubble rate to (26BPM) if required (26BPM)

NO

YES

Repair/replace tubing as required

Is Orifice Clear and Bubbling?

YES

Are both Valves Set at OPEN? posit?

Connect Transducer

Set both to OPEN position

NO

NO

YES

Compressor Working

OK

20

HS40 Fault Finding Electronic (Series I Model)

NO

NO

YES

NO

Duty Cycle Exceeded

(wait 30 mins. Until LED is GREEN then retry)

COMPRESSOR FAILS TO POWER UP

LED Flashing GREEN

Compressor Working

OK

COMPRESSOR FAILS TO START

(when BLUE button is pressed OR tank pressure

21

HS40 Fault Finding Electronic (Series II Model)

NO

NO

YES

NO

i) Check Condor Switch setting is at 1

ii)Ensure control valve is NOT set to PURGE

iii)Check ALL pressure fittings and power to solenoid valve

COMPRESSOR FAILS TO POWER UP

LED Flashing GREEN Compressor Working

(Use SDI-12 Diagnostics Feature if Required)

OK

COMPRESSOR FAILS TO START

(when tank pressure 12.5VDC

If Fast Flash then battery voltage is too high, >16VDC

YES YES

NO

Ensure Battery Voltage is =/>12VDC

Condor Switch must be set to 1

Check POWER/GROUND

Connections

Is LED Flashing

RED?

Is LED Flashing

BLUE (fast)?

Is LED Flashing WHITE?

Compressor duty cycle exceeded. Wait 10 mins until the LED flashes

GREEN

(it will automatically try to pump)

If LED GREEN Controller may be faulty

(remove from battery then re-connect to re-boot)

Compressor stops at 12.5VDC

If Fast Flash then battery voltage is too high, >16VDC

Is LED Flashing RED?

YES

Ensure Battery Voltage is =/>12VDC

Condor Switch must be set to 1

Check POWER/GROUND Connections

If LED GREEN Controller may be faulty

(remove from battery then re-connect to re-boot)

If LED RED or BLUE or WHITE follow steps above

NO

YES

NO

Compressor stops at

22

Fault Finding Real Examples

Problem: Water Level logged reading randomly dropping out to zero metres

Likely Cause: Communication problem (SDI-12) between logger and pressure sensor causes a Nan (Not A Number) value to be logged

Fix: Edited out via Time Series software

23

Fault Finding Real Examples

Problem: Water Level logged gradually increases then decreases on a random basis

Likely Cause: Possible Leakage in system

Fix: Check all fittings and valves for leakage

24

Fault Finding Real Examples

The Problem

Sensed Water Level reading randomly jumping to an un-realistic value (11002 in the case)

Likely Cause a voltage drop causes the WL3100 to output an Out of Range value (e.g. 999.999)

Fix: Usually rectified by checking and re-setting SDI-12 addresses

25

Fault Finding Real Examples

The Problem

Logged Data from WL3100 sensor is spikey?

Likely Cause WL3100 set at Continuous

Fix: Adjust from Continuous to Averaging (i.e. when set to Contin+Avg20 every 12 seconds, previous 20 level samples are averaged)Use Averaging Feature with caution where stream is flashy!!!!!!!

26

Fault Finding Real ExamplesThe Problem (s)i) Hunting over approx. 5mm range at start and end of traceii) Sudden drops up to approx. 40mm then rises cycling with large upwards spike present

Likely Cause (s): i) & ii) Sediment effect on orifice

Fix: More regular clearing of orifice, or re-location? Consider GCO1P/SS??

27

Fault Finding Real ExamplesThe Problem (s)Hunting over approx. 50mm range following a major flood the previous week

Likely Cause: Blockage in river line or sediment effect on orifice

Fix: Converted from dual to single line, upgraded to GCO1P/SS

28

Fault Finding Real ExamplesThe Problem (s)I) Although orifice (GCO) clear of sediment, steady rise even after purgingII) Drop-outs of water level

Likely Cause: i) Blockage in river line or sediment effect on orificeii) SDI-12 timingFix:i) Investigate blockage (try temporary orifice from HS40?)

ii) Edit spike using time series software

HS Bubbler TechnologyOrigins of Gas Purge TechnologyGas Purge Operating PrincipleTypical installation of a Gas Purge systemEvolution of TechnologyTypical Set-UpHow does a dry bubble unit work?How does a dry bubble unit work?The Compressor AgeOriginal HS Compressors (circa late 1990s)Typical installation HS55 Compressor?Why use the GCO?Why use the GCO?HS40 Air Force Compressor ModelsHS40 Air Force Models General FeaturesHS40 Air Force Models Continuous ImprovementHS40 Air Force Compressors - How do They Work?Slide Number 18Slide Number 19Slide Number 20Slide Number 21Slide Number 22Slide Number 23Slide Number 24Slide Number 25Slide Number 26Slide Number 27Slide Number 28Slide Number 29