The topography and volume of sludge in crude oil storage tanks can vary dramatically from tank to tank. Knowing that it is safe to land the floating roof, and indeed whether a manway can be safely removed, prior to the tank being taken out of service, is fundamental to ensuring that the risks associated with desludging the tank are quantified and controlled.
Tradebe Refinery Services, previously known as Willacy Oil Services has designed a unique, patented system for oil sludge quantification which offers a dramatic improvement over inaccurate manual dipping methods. 3D and grid plots are produced in real time together with an accurate calculation of sludge volume to within 5%. The Sludge Profiler for Oil Tanks (SPOT) is a sonar system which accurately locates, maps and quantifies the levels of sludge in floating roof crude oil storage tanks, while they are still in service. The system is intrinsically safe and has full BASEEFA/ATEX certification. SPOT is fully mobile and designed for international shipment. A survey can be completed in one working day with minimal disruption to normal tank operations.
The SPOT system is tried and tested with an international Client database. Results have been validated by our customers on a regular basis. The data generated by the SPOT system can be used to:
- Accurately quantify and profile sludge in the bottom of floating roof crude oil tanks.
- Assist with prioritisation of tank cleaning projects.
- Ensure that safe roof landing/manway removal can take place.
- Enable monitoring of side entry mixer running patterns.
- Quantify the success or otherwise of non man-entry desludging systems.
A SPOT survey often accompanies the enquiry document released to potential tank cleaning contracting companies ensuring a no-quibble, lump sum price bid.
Tradebe sites offering this service are:
