MechChem Africa January 2018

⎪ Minerals processing, metallurgy and materials ⎪

The CLS50D inductive conductivity sensor can withstand high temperatures and has high chemical resistance.

Lab with lowest temperature calibration uncertainty

P r o c e s s a u t o m a t i o n s p e c i a l - ist, Endress+Hauser South Africa’s Temperature Calibration Laboratory uti- lises only thehighest precisionand state-of- the-art equipment, resulting in it achieving a SANAS accolade as one of the highest performing temperature calibration labo- ratories in South Africa. The most basic criterion when it comes to temperature calibration is to always use a reference sensor that is of higher accuracy than the device to be calibrated. Endress+Hauser’s Temperature Calibration Laboratory, located in Apex, an industrial area in Benoni, has been named as one of the highest performing tempera- ture calibration laboratories in the country, boasting some of the lowest uncertainty of measurement – 0°C ± 0.008 K/°C – when compared to other labs. “This is due to the ultramodern technol- ogyused, which is of highest precisionand is amirror of other Endress+Hauser factories in Europe,” points out Benjamin Mlangeni, product manager for Temperature System Components & Registration at Endress+Hauser South Africa. To ensure that it continuously offers the lowest uncertainty of measurements, the South African facility not only conducts inter-laboratory comparisons (ILCs) with other local labs, but alsoperforms anannual ILC with two European laboratories situ- ated inGermany and Italy. The latter proves its traceability at a global level. The Endress+Hauser lab is accred- ited in accordance with the recog- nised International Standard ISO/IEC 17025:2005 to calibrate instruments from -20°C up to 1 550°C. “This allows it to cover a wide scope when compared to other calibration labs,” continuesMlangeni.

“The accreditation demonstrates technical competency for a defined scope and the operation of a laboratory quality manage- ment system.” The reference equipment employed by the lab includes high-precision multi- metersthatareannuallysenttotheNational MetrologyInstituteofSouthAfrica(NMISA) for calibration, againevidencing traceability to national and international standards. Other South African labs also use the local Endress+Hauser lab as a reference for the calibrationof theirmaster reference sensors. “This means that other labs send their master temperature sensors to us to calibrate so that they canuse themas refer- ence sensors to calibrate their customers’ units,” explains Mlangeni. The Endress+Hauser Temperature Calibration Laboratory was initially built to support production, yet over the years it has expanded its offering to include re- calibrations, third party instruments and other laboratories’ reference equipment. “Normallywecalibratenewinstruments, which are manufactured in our factory. However, we also calibrate used instru- ments that our customers need to calibrate periodically for their internal regulatory requirements,” says Mlangeni. Astandard three-point calibration takes approximately twoandahalf hours depend- ing on the type of instrument, temperature range or number of calibration points. “Temperature calibration is a critical process tomake certain that an instrument performs within set specifications. Due to the very low uncertainty of measurements at our lab, customers are assured that cali- bration results are as near as possible to the real deviationof the instrument,” concludes Mlangeni. q

The Orbipac CPF81D

digital pH sensor with

Memosens

technology

is designed for demanding applications

in wastewater, primaries, and metal.

norm in modern plants, since this does awaywith manual dipping and the subsequent errors that it can produce. “To this end, with the

aid of Sensorfusion, Endress+Hauser has taken the reliability andaccuracyof its guided wave radar and capacitance level, and com- bined it intoonedevice, theLevelflexFMP55,” he says, adding: “This single instrument will simultaneously provide a reliable and ac- curate measurement of the top level and the interface levels, even in emulsion layers. “To accurately assure correct metal extraction, we need to measure the conduc- tivity of the settling chamber. This measure- ment will ensure that we have control of the transition stage from organic to aqueous. If not correctly controlled, this may cause ‘mud’, and as a result, plant downtime and wastage of additives. We use the Indumax CLS50D sensor with a CM44x multichannel transmitter to manage this measurement,” Andjelkovic continues. The CLS50D is an inductive conductivity sensor that canwithstand high temperatures and has high chemical resistance. It has the added advantage of havingMemosense digi- tal technology. “To accurately control the addition of solution, and the returned aqueous raffinate, we need to know the pH values. For this we use the CPF81DPH sensor. It is a robust, low maintenance sensor, which also includeswith Memosense digital technology,” he adds. “We have merely scratched the surface of the extraction processes in this article. Uranium, gold, palladium and platinum are commodities that can go through the same process, but with differences in the refining process,” he concludes, adding that Endress+Hauser offers instruments and expertise that can enable better yields for all of these minerals. q

Endress+Hauser’s Temperature Calibration Laboratory, located in Apex, an industrial area in Benoni, has been named as one of the highest performing temperature calibration laboratories in the country.

January 2018 • MechChem Africa ¦ 33