Page 49 - ITAtube Journal 2 2022

Press releases
The good news is that there are hot pro- duction line optimization tools to help achieve these goals.
Gamma ray gauges have long been a main- stay in the tube industry, but their preva- lence is marked by unremitting constraints. Gamma ray emitting sources, such as the radioactive isotope Cs-137, are subject to increasingly stringent regulations for their acquisition and replacement, making this technology even more difficult to manage. What’s more, geopolitical factors constantly threaten supply to and embargoes, cur- rently the case in some countries. As the industry grapples with these limitations, a proven, viable technology is earning wide- spread attention: laser-ultrasonics.
Tecnar’s Lut 2.0 is at the forefront of this technological transition. This non-contact gauge is designed to measure the key on- line characteristics of hot tubes and pipes during manufacturing, such as wall thick- ness (WT), eccentricity, temperature, and length. The Lut 2.0 may be used from billet piercing outlet to sizing mill outlet. By mon- itoring key tube characteristics and using its innovative algorithms, the system auto- matically tracks slow drifts in production and their cause before they deviate from finished product specifications. All of this means that operators receive early insights so they can pre-emptively fine-tune param- eters and implement corrective measures on time, optimizing production and quality.
How the Lut 2.0 achieves this:
Operating in tandem with the plant net- work, the Lut 2.0 requires a minimal set
ITAtube Journal December 2023
of inputs: the tube’s nominal WT, nominal outer diameter, and alloy type. With this information, the gauge automatically sets the precise position of the measuring probe, plus the proper speed-of-sound chart from the integrated database tailored to the alloy and measured temperature. From there, the intelligent algorithm is set up to process and interpret the recorded laser-ultrasonic waveform, uncovering any WT or eccentricity anomalies. As the Lut
2.0 deciphers each tube’s story and tracks drifts in long production runs, it synergizes human experience and machine precision.
Real-time data:
Real-time information is crucial for moni- toring dynamic processes. Lut 2.0 collects highly accurate real-time data essential
for tracking batch trends and progressing potential WT and eccentricity deviations. These may be caused by uneven heating of the billet, by inaccurate roll-stand settings or by tool wear. Using the detailed auto- mated analysis of a tube sequence’s WT profile, the Lut 2.0 identifies and tracks the source of deviation. Operators then receive the results in a comprehensive and intuitive user interface.
User-friendly interface (UI):
Organized in an intuitive architecture, the information is presented in the form of tables or graphs by a user-centric inter- face (UI) based on a powerful software platform. The UI displays information such as pipe identification and characteristics, illustrations of pipe radial and longitudinal profiles and batch history in Windows or
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