Safety

Gases can be lethal

At a high enough level, CO₂ is lethal. There have been deaths due to CO₂ leaks from tanks providing the gas to soda machines. In some countries, there are laws and restrictions connected to tanks where people work with the gas. Carbon dioxide can easily be confused with carbon monoxide (CO). There is also confusion about what gas to look for. For instance, today's cars emit more CO₂ than CO. We strongly recommend that CO₂ be monitored as well as CO in parking houses. Carbon dioxide in itself is not poisonous, but it decreases the concentration of oxygen when in the same confined space. Our sensors are able to detect other gases, but you will find many alarm applications sensing CO₂.

Certification

If you intend to use sensors as part of a safety system, make sure that you have the correct certificates for your market. We have experience processing our sensors for applications like alarms (e.g. UL or TüV) or shutoff systems (e.g. kerosene stoves in France). The testing procedures help you to make sure you have chosen the right suppliers with the right quality level. Also, the verified tests help you build trust in your market.

Food industry where carbon dioxide is used

Examples of food industries where carbon dioxide is used include breweries and wineries (where CO₂ is generated in the process), soft drink plants, slaughterhouses, food packaging, greenhouses, freezing plants, and dry ice production.

Hospitality industry

When soda machines are installed in gas stations, restaurants, and pubs, there is a leakage risk in pipelines and fittings. A tank in a restaurant is in the range from 180 to 340 kilos of liquid CO₂!

The New A2L refrigerant leak detector

Refrigerant gases are essential for commercial and industrial refrigeration and air conditioners. Managing refrigerants is important from an environmental, regulatory, and financial perspective. The HVAC industry and shifting regulatory priorities are moving towards the use of refrigerants with low Global Warming Potential (GWP). Although these new refrigerants have a low impact on climate change and global warming, they tend to fall under the A2L classification. This means that they are considered mildly flammable and present a potential safety risk. One way to enhance and ensure safety for your employees or residents is by early detecting a leakage of these flammable gases. This will enable you to respond early and take necessary action to prevent accidents and maintain your site operational and safe.

Technical challenge
We understand that this creates a unique technical challenge for our OEM customers when incorporating their HVAC systems with new leak detection sensors. There are several aspects to consider when choosing an optimum and cost-effective solution. Here are three factors we believe can help you determine how well our solution will fit your needs and how it could enhance your operations.

• Measurement Accuracy
• The total cost of ownership of the detector
• Long term reliability

Swimming pools

CO₂ can be used to neutralize chlorine in swimming pools. Tanks with liquid CO₂ must be monitored for leaks.

Mining, oil & gas industry

The canary bird was used in coal mines until the mid-sixties because of their sensitivity to carbon monoxide and other toxic gases. For the miner, the bird’s song was a sign that no toxic gases were present and when the bird went silent, miners knew they needed to make a quick exit. Today’s canary will start to “sing” when there is a gas leak in tunnels or rooms. 

Our market today is mainly in China. Here, you will find fixed installations with our IR sensor technology.

In the oil & gas industry, you will find environmental monitoring for leak detection on platforms and where fracking is taking place. 

Cabin Safety

A confined space like a cabin in a car, truck, aeroplane, or a ship's bridge has to be well-ventilated to keep personnel alert. If you close a car's ventilation (e.g. going through a tunnel or if you don’t like the fumes from a badly tuned truck), it takes about 5-10 minutes (depending on how many people there are in the car) to raise the level of CO₂ to 2,000-3,000 ppm, a level where your decision-making ability could become impaired.

A field where alarms really come in handy is when CO₂ is used as a cooling media in air conditions. You can find more information about cabin environment under Automotive.

Parking Houses

The first thing that comes to mind when a car is started in a garage is carbon monoxide (CO). Today's cars with catalysis emit higher levels of CO₂, which is why we strongly recommend multiple sensors.

If a CO sensor is controlling the air flow, you will find that the exchange rate is far too low. When the parking lot maintenance technician realises that, they will switch to permanent ventilation and no energy is saved. We recommend control with CO₂ and alarm with CO. 

For a deeper look into the subject, click here to read an article by Hans Martin.

Sensor Challenges

When developing alarms, you need the right sensor; one that is always reliable and only alarms when necessary. Our sensors can be programmed to provide different levels of attention.

For instance, there might be a pre-alarm at 1,5% and an evacuation alarm at 3%. However, there is also a danger if there is a high average over the course of a working day (8hrs), which can be detected and released as an alarm*.

When you order our sensors, we will adapt and calibrate them according to the range you need to monitor (some cycles take up to a week to ensure the right calibration under different circumstances). 

* Time Weighted Average (TWA) CO₂ concentration over time as well as Short Term Exposure Limits (STEL)