Non-invasive process imaging - Principles and applications of industrial process tomography

In chemical industries, process diagnostics have traditionally been achieved using discrete sensors installed in the critical plant locations and linked into a plant control system. The usefulness of such an approach is limited, as important information about the processes is lost. This paper demonstrates a different way of looking into the spatial and temporal characteristics of the industrial processes by employing techniques of industrial process tomography. The principles behind tomographic measurements are outlined and examples illustrating the capabilities of this approach are presented. These include imaging of the processes confined within process vessels such as fluidization and nylon polymerization, as well as an example of a transport-dominated process – flow in a pneumatic conveyor. The advantages, limitations and potential future uses of process tomography are discussed.