IIT Madras researchers develop ultrasonic waves-based temperature measurement sensors for industrial furnaces

Kolkata: Indian Institute of Technology Madras Researchers have developed a disruptive sensor technology to greatly increase the efficiency of industrial ovens in fertilizer, petrochemical, chemical and manufacturing sectors.

Called ‘µTMapS’ (or) ‘Multi Point Temperature Measurement Sensor,’ it provides automated and intelligent measurements that can replace existing heat process control systems that cause expensive forced shutdowns and early retirement of components well before its designed life.

High-temperature processes are critical to oil and gas, chemical, power generation and manufacturing industries. However, the control of these process has been a challenge due to the complexity in the processes. Currently, industries use sparse measurements and the data are interpreted through manual intervention and/or operator intuitions.

IIT Madras Researchers at the Centre for Non-destructive Evaluation developed an Ultrasonic Waves-based temperature Measurement Sensors that can accurately measure temperatures in the range of -100°C to 1,400°C. This technology also generates data in real-time through Industrial Internet of Technology (IoT) devices, which will provide inputs to the industry to greatly improve their manufacturing processes and enhance their process efficiency.

Krishnan Balasubramaniam, Institute Professor, and Head, Centre for Non-destructive Evaluation, IIT Madras, said in a release: “Any industry that uses a lot of heat to process materials such as metals or polymers has to ensure that the entire furnace has a uniform temperature across the board. This is critical to reducing defective products. However, existing technologies for this purpose have a lot of gaps and our Research Team at Centre for Non-destructive Evaluation set out to address these gaps.”

Balasubramaniam added that the technology has been license to an IIT Madras-incubated start-up called Xyma Analytics which has been field testing the technology for the past one year in Indian industries to establish its reliability, performance and benefits. “We plan to commercially introduce this technology for Indian and foreign manufacturing industries within the next one year,” he said.