Silicon Carbide Sensors Could Improve Oil and Gas
Post# of 68
Dr. Toan Dinh is a mechanical engineer from Australia who has found a way to help avert death and injury on mining sites. His method involves the use of new sensors created using silicon carbide to detect early mechanical issues in gas and oil pipelines.
Dinh, an engineer from the University of Southern Queensland, has spent the last 6 years creating these sensors whose objective is to identify impending danger in corrosive as well as harsh environments.
Dinh explained that as compared to the width of a human hair, the sensors were 5-100 times tinier and performed a 1000 times better in comparison with standard sensors. He stated that the silicon technology that was currently in use could not be used in harsh environments as it couldn’t endure corrosion or high temperature conditions for a long period of time.
On the other hand, the sensors Dinh created could work in an extensive range of applications such as aerospace technologies, gas and oil industries, in temperatures of up to 600 degrees Celsius.
Dr. Dinh stated it was vital that the industry make working conditions for miners not only more efficient but also inherently safer. He maintained that his sensors could identify and measure the smallest of movements in an environment, in addition to monitoring a system’s structural health in real time. This would help detect any faults or changes, thus helping avert the occurrence of a major system failure.
Additionally, the sensors would not only decrease the costs of maintaining equipment and systems but possibly prevent a catastrophic situation that could bring about death or injury to mine personnel from taking place.
The ARC (Australian Research Council) recently awarded Dr. Dinh a $339,949 grant, which amounts to AUD440,675 under the Discovery Early Career Researcher Award scheme. Dinh hopes to develop his research further using the funds from the grant.
According to the university, the grant not only generates more opportunities for research-only positions in Australia and early-career researchers who are in the research and teaching fields, but also offers more support to researchers.
This grant would also allow Dr. Dinh to travel to California, where he would work together with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory researchers, to discover various ways the sensors could be utilized in space exploration.
Dr. Dinh stated that his goal was to begin testing the sensors in actual industry conditions as soon as possible, before they could be commercialized.
Back in North America, Canada-based GoldHaven Resources Corp. (CSE: GOH) (OTCQB: GHVNF) is scaling the heights. Just recently in November, the firm revealed that it had completed an oversubscribed funding round right on the heels of acquiring five gold-rich properties in Chile.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to GoldHaven Resources Corp. (CSE: GOH) (OTCQB: GHVNF) are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/GHVNF
Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the MiningNewsWire website applicable to all content provided by MNW, wherever published or re-published: https://www.MiningNewsWire.com/Disclaimer