A total of 113 explosion-protected camera systems worth 800,000 EUR were recently supplied by R STAHL to form the core of a surveillance solution of a new plant now in development for one of the largest gas production projects at the Persian Gulf. This facility in Saudi Arabia will serve to fractionate LNG into its components ethane, butane and propane.
A pan/tilt camera model with 18x zoom capability, the EC-740-PTZ from R STAHL is used for surveillance of the area and buildings of the installation. The scratch-proof protective glass of each camera has been fitted with a wash-and-wipe system designed specifically for this model. The fully mechanical wiper arm needs no dedicated electric motor, but is activated solely by the movement of the camera. The stainless steel tank for the cleaning fluid that is part of the wiper system has a volume of 10 litres and can be installed up to 20m away from the camera it supplies.
Both the cameras and tanks for the cleaning fluid can be placed in zone 1 or zone 2. Mechanical protection according to IP69K and an impressive ambient temperature range of -40°C to 80 °C mean that the cameras can easily withstand the very challenging, rough desert climate. The model installed in Saudi Arabia comes in a stainless steel enclosure, but a robust aluminium version is also available. Both ensure the degree of explosion protection required in gas and oil production plants. They are filled with nitrogen as protective gas ('pressurised enclosure', Ex p), making them much more easy to handle than conventional models in massive flameproof enclosures (Ex d). Each camera unit includes a connection PCB monitoring the nitrogen filling via an intrinsically safe circuit.
For more information, visit www.stahl-camera.de