Blog Post

THE NEW HYGIENIC BIOFILM MONITORING SENSOR

Instek Control • Sep 05, 2017

With Hygienic connection to the process, flat surface in contact with the liquid and high resistance to chemical treatments, this model is indicated for applications where hygiene is critical.

Bacteria settle among any structure (pipelines, tanks, machinery) in contact with the water in a very short time, if appropriate preventative measurements are not applied. The ALVIM real-time, on line, Biofilm Monitoring System is able to detect bacterial settlement since its first phases (down to 1% of surface covered by micro-organisms such as Legionella pneumophila) and, based on these data, manually or automatically adjust and optimize cleaning treatments / biocide treatments. This way keeping biofilm growth under control.

What is biofilm?
The terms biofilm refers to the layer of micro-organisms (bacteria, diatoms, fungi, etc.) that grows on any surface in contact with water or other liquids. It has been demonstrated that biofilm can grow even in extreme conditions, causing damages that can range from Legionella contamination to Microbiologically Influenced Corrosion (MIC).

Important advantages of the ALVIM technology compared to other sensors in the market

  1. discriminates between biofilm and other kinds of deposit/fouling (e.g. calcium carbonate, etc.); this is extremely important, since these two different kinds of fouling requires different treatments;
  2. has a very high sensitivity, i.e. detects biofilm initial colonization phase; indeed, many biofilm related problems, such as Microbiologically Influenced Corrosion (MIC), start as soon as the first bacterial spots appear on a surface.
  3. Early-warning detection of bacterial biofilm growth by measuring the natural electrochemical activity of bacterial biofilm, indicating its real presence and extent in a given moment.
  4. Optimization of cleaning treatments (biocides, disinfectans, ...)
  5. Easy to install, easy to operate
  6. Virtually maintenance-free probe
  7. Real-time, continuous biofilm monitoring


Operating conditions for the NEW ALVIM SENSOR - AX03S3

Temperature: -10<T<+150°C (to monitor biofilm growth: +2<T<+40°C)

Oxygen: >1ppm

Pressure: <10 bar

Conductivity: >30 µs/cm

Data Communication Wiring: 4-20mA and RS485/MODBUS RTU

DOWNLOAD DATASHEET HERE


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