REPRESENT! SAMPLING, INSPECTION & ANALYSIS

PORTS & TERMINALS RReepprreesseenntt!!

Sampling, Inspection & Analysis Sampling, Inspection & Analysis

Jay Venter

Dinnissen Process Technology unveils new series of Smart Sampling Systems

From a range of plunger and screw samplers for different applications, to its latest Multisize Sample Carousel that fully automates sampling of different sample sizes, Dinnissen presents its latest range of sampling solutions.

WHY PRODUCERS SAMPLE Producers use sampling to test the quality of their product. This is because, in order to produce the best possible products, a producer needs to be 100% sure of the entire production process. This is especially true as food safety and product quality requirements are increasing. To validate their product, producers analyse samples that have been taken after and during processing steps.

There are different types of samples with different purposes: v output samples; v chemical samples; v bacteriological samples; v hourly samples; v batch samples; and v continuous samples.

Sampling during the production process is an increasingly intensive task. Therefore, it is good to know that you can significantly simplify this task with sampling carousels. Sampling with the new Multisize Sample Carousel significantly reduces the amount of labour required and minimizes the margin of error.

THE MULTISIZE SAMPLE CAROUSEL: THE LATEST INNOVATION IN AUTOMATED SAMPLE COLLECTION With Dinnissen’s Multisize Sample Carousel, producers can now take samples of different different sizes in an automated sampling process. With this innovation, producers can also determine the order and frequency per sample size. The cleanability of the carousel is also an essential factor for the ability to take truly representative samples.

The Multisize Sample Carousel collects up to 20 samples in different shapes, without human intervention. The innovation can be seamlessly integrated into new and existing lines and keeps downtime to a minimum. Dinnissen Process Technology works with the customer to draw up a sampling plan to create the most efficient sampling process possible, tailored to each customer's specific situation. FEATURES OF DINNISSEN SMART SAMPLING SYSTEMS v hygienic design; v wide range of samplers; v easy access for fast but thorough cleaning; v sample carousels that can be adapted to your specific objectives; v carousels with 8 to 20 positions, with sample sizes from 10 to 1,000 grams; v material certificates for these productcontact parts, such as 3.1, FDA requirements and EC1935 / 2010, are included as standard; With Dinnissen's Multisize Sample Carousel, producers can now take samples of different different sizes in an automated sampling process. v also available in ATEX version; v all product contact parts can be removed without tools; and v designed, built and tested in-house. ABOUT DINNISSEN PROCESS TECHNOLOGY With more than 70 years of experience as a system integrator of production processes, Dinnissen Process Technology is a specialist in the process technology of powders, pellets and granulates. From innovative machines and systems to complete process lines. Dinnissen innovates entire processes with customized solutions. Dinnissen is trusted by the world’s best producers in: food & pharma, dairy, petfood, feed & aquafeed, and chemicals & minerals.

WMS Marine, based in Port of Brisbane, Australia, evidences an organized approach to managing safety, including the necessary organizational structures, accountabilities, policies and procedures. As a dedicated team comprised of people from a maritime background, the company offers uniform, interdisciplinary standards and a methodical approach by sharing core knowledge of maritime consultancy and marine surveys.

Dry-bulk surveys offered by WMS Marine

VESSEL LOADING/UNLOADING REGULATIONS Vessels loading/unloading at Australian ports must comply with Australian Government Regulations in particular Marine Orders Part 32 (Cargo and Cargo Handling – Equipment and safety measures) and Part 23 (Equipment – Miscellaneous and Safety Measures), and Marine Orders Part 34 (Solid bulk cargoes).

These Regulations are rigidly enforced at all ports and costly delays can result if the vessel does not fully comply with those regulations and Guidelines of Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment (DAWR) and the Fertilizer Industry Federation of Australia (FIFA).

Rules and guidelines are laid out in the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargo (IMSBC) Code, for the loading of bulk cargoes. The 2009 Edition and supplement which includes the BLU Code, Code of Practice for the Safe Loading and Unloading of Bulk Carriers became mandatory worldwide on 1 January 2011. Safety management of operation of bulk carriers is regulated by SOLAS Chapter IX and ISM Code.

DRY-BULK SURVEYS

HOLD PREPARATION Pre-load advisory: on sensitive cargoes (fertilizers, chemical, magnesia, alumina ) on empty bulk carriers.

This survey will outline the procedures for inspection by DAWR officers (when required) to when inspecting dry bulk vessels for export, documentation and procedures of DAWR officers for passing and failing holds and other areas of the vessel. WMS Marine will provide a comprehensive report on areas in need of improvement and provide schedule on directions to be followed.

Pre-load advisory: on dry bulk vessel loading grain for export.

Pre-discharge advisory: This survey will outline the procedures and documentation required by port terminals stevedore and DAWR officers (if required) by dry bulk vessels discharging at Australian Ports.

CONDITION SURVEYS The survey is in the form of a risk assessment, to improve surveying techniques, to focus more on possible risks and to take a more objective view of the survey. Condition surveys of ships are conducted in order to limit the potential number and cost of claims and to validate the suitability of the vessel to international standards of trade. This whole process is a loss prevention exercise. It incorporates consultation/search of maritime databases and main P&I guidelines providing a score, and bench-marking of each vessel against the company/fleet for the full view on global maritime safety.

HOLD CLEANLINESS SURVEY On vessel arrival WMS Marine will conduct a close-up survey to follow standard requirements of hold cleanliness upon the designated cargo and provide recommendations to the crew making the master and officers aware of procedures to follow as per pre-load advisory.

PROJECT CARGO/BREAKBULK WMS Marine attends vessels unloading operations at Australian Ports and SE Asia on behalf of cargo underwriters, inspecting cargo on board conducting pre-discharge survey looking for damages during the sea voyage or pre damages while loading, damage prevention during unloading by and, to assess damages if any and the causes of these damages during operations.

On June 18 2021, Bureau Veritas Peru announced that it has expanded its mineral testing laboratory and sample preparation facility to become a leader in the Latin American market. The expansion allows for an increase in capacity for sample processing including metal concentrates and ore assay.

MINERALS ANALYSED INCLUDE: Copper, lead, zinc, gold & silver concentrates, oxides, sulphides, copper, lead, zinc ores. Bureau Veritas’ unique footprint positions it at all of the major ports & mining locations allowing its highly skilled teams to quickly determine the physical properties of its customers’ materials with accuracy.

Bureau Veritas’ Peru facility is located in the coastal city of Callao, close to the ports enabling samples to be delivered quickly for processing.

Bureau Veritas Peru expands metals & minerals facility

New method development – An estimation of coal reactivity using TG analyser at MSK Central Lab

ESTIMATION OF COAL REACTIVITY AT MSK LABS Direct injection of pulverized coal (PCI) into blast furnace has become a viable option for the iron industry in the recent times. The adoption of PCI technique reduces the costing associated with coke and also lowers the emissions to some extent. Life of coke oven also gets a boost due to PCI, write Dr. Arijit Goswami and Sabir Laskar, under the guidance of Prof. Barun Kumar Gupta, Mitra SK (MSK).

The injection of large amount of coal in the blast furnace has its own problems. A large amount of char formation takes place during the process which in turn may impact the gas/temperature distribution and permeability. As a result, the reactivity of the char, that is the reaction between C and CO2 is an important aspect to determine the applicability of a said coal in the PCI process. An optimum reactivity is important for a coal to be used in the PCI process.

Measurement of coal reactivity adopts the fluidized bed reactor approach that requires specific instrumentation and comparatively larger amount of sample. As an alternative we have tried to weigh the option of Therrnogravirnetric analyser which involves precise and efficient monitoring of the C-CO2 reaction. The method involves very small sample size (in milligram scale) and the graphical representation of the reaction provides all the necessary information to calculate the reactivity data.

The method involves use of a Perkin Elmer STA 6000 instrument with a working temperature range of ambient to 995°C. Approximately 30rng coal samples are placed inside a ceramic pan and the char formation step is mimicked by heating the coal at 995°C under N2 atmosphere.

Once the char formation is complete the sample is allowed to react with CO2 at the same temperature until all the C is consumed and a fixed weight is obtained. The flow rates of N2 and CO2 plays a vital role and they have been optimized to the values of 20 ml/min and 50 ml/min respectively.

Two specimen curves (Fig A) can be considered for the various steps involved. The first loss of weight can be ascribed to the phenomenon of char formation under nitrogen and the second weight loss which is much sharper is due to the consumption of char. The flat line indicates the complete consumption of char and cease of the reaction.

RESULTS: From the curve of weight loss vs time, the conversion can be measured. For calculation of the reactivity, we followed the equation as described in method B, IS 12381: 1994, RA 2017.

The method suggests to calculate the reactivity on the basis of the following equation:

Reactivity = [W x 44.8 x (t + 273)/ 12 x 273 x Z x (Cfix x Wo- W/2)] cc/ g sec

The curve can be divided into three parts. The first part which shows a gradual decrease in weight over three hours is the char formation part. The second part which shows a sharp weight loss corresponds to the C-CO2 reaction and the third part where the curve runs parallel to the X axis denotes the ash formation. Although the C-CO2 reaction runs for a considerable time, we consider only the first 25 minutes of the reaction as suggested by IS.

W = Weight loss during the experiment after 25 minutes of C-CO2 reaction which can easily be calculated from the weight vs time curve.

Cfix = Fraction of the fixed carbon in the char before reaction. It can be obtained from the starting point of the C-CO2 reaction with the necessary adjustment made with the help of the ash percentage that is obtained from the horizontal

portion of the curve.

W0 = It is the amount of Char before the initiation of C-CO2 reaction.

Z = Time of the reaction, i.e, 25 minutes (1,500 seconds).

From the representative curves (Fig A) at these values were obtained and the corresponding reactivity value was found to be 0.057cc/g sec and 0.043cc/g sec respectively.

The same experiment was repeated and the result has shown considerable repeatability. The results are shown in the table below:

Figure A: Two specimen TG curves of two coal samples.

SAMPLE ID REACTIVITY RUN1 RUN2

A 0.057 0.043 B 0.053 0.047

Table 1.

CONCLUSIONS: Coal reactivity is an important parameter to judge the applicability of the coal for the injection process. With increasing popularity of PCI, knowledge of reactivity is important to fix the blends. Usual approach of using fluidized bed reactor is often cumbersome and space consuming. Use of TGA can effectively tidy up the process. Coal being a heterogeneous material reacts with CO2 in a complex pathway.

Therefore, for better understanding of the mechanism which involves simultaneous rupture of microporous structure and new surface generation particle size distribution, microscopy and petrography would have been handy to gain a deeper insight.

ABOUT MSK

Since the inception in 1938, Mitra SK (MSK) has steadily gained worldwide recognition as an independent inspection and assaying company.

MSK services include inspection, sampling, quality determination, quantity survey, umpire analysis, and quality audit for all minerals, ores, alloys, coal, coke, cement clinker, non-ferrous ores/concentrates, precious metals, fertilizers, environmental parameters, food quality, and hygiene monitoring.

Its international network of laboratories and offices in five continents, knowledge pool of scientist and technicians, rigorous training and system calibration procedures, backed up by 80 years of inspection industry experience assures accurate and consistent performance on time across its operational domain in mineral producing as well as mineral-consuming countries.

ISO/IEC17025:2017

Recently, RCI’s office in Mariupol, Ukraine achieved the ISO/IEC17020:2012 accreditation, with GAS (Global Accreditation System) number GAS.IB.804.025. Now its laboratory has also successfully prolonged and extended its ISO/IEC17025:2017 accreditation. The audits of the management system and analytical procedures have been undertaken by GAS and registered with number GAS.L.804.027.

The scope includes a wide range of analytical procedures for a broad spectrum of: v solid fuels and solid biofuels; v press cake and oilseed meal; v cereals and cereal products; v pulses (or legumes); v oilseeds; and v ferro alloys.

GAFTA-APPROVED ANALYST The Grain and Feed Trade Association (GAFTA), is an international trade association that protects’ the interest of its members by providing support through contracts and arbitration, trade assurance, trade policy, professional trading and networking events.

Due to the rising export of grain products, the laboratory in Mariupol is an Approved Analyst by GAFTA. This makes it possible to perform analysis on grain which is traded on GAFTA Contract terms.

ABOUT RC INSPECTION

SAMPLING / INSPECTION RC Inspection provides services in the industry sections of coal, coke, ferro-alloys, minerals, inspection of storage facilities, transshipment equipment, measurements, calculation of weight determination of seagoing and inland vessels and inspection of the load compartment according to the international norm NEN-EN-ISO/IEC 17020:2012, type A under accreditation (for detailed information of the scope of the accredited services, please see: registration number RvA I 308, Type A).

ANALYTICAL SERVICES The RC Inspection Group ensures that all chemical analysis are performed according to ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation having its own state-of-the-art laboratories, operating as RCI Analytical Services and which are to-date strategically located in the Netherlands, Ukraine and Mongolia.

SGS opens Peru’s first port-based laboratory in Matarani

In May 2021, SGS opened its brand new laboratory for mineral concentrates and diesel testing in Matarani, Arequipa in Peru. This is Peru’s first port-based laboratory for diesel testing, and the first port-based laboratory for the testing of mineral concentrates in all of Latin America.

THE LABORATORY’S CAPABILITIES SGS’ Matarani laboratory offers analyses of mineral concentrates and diesel product samples. The company’s experts can analyse samples of mineral concentrates for copper, silver, arsenic, iron, zinc, and moisture. They can also conduct detailed bacteria tests and particle counts for diesel samples.

The laboratory is 190m2 and employs five full time staff. Strategically located, it provides rapid turnaround times 24/7, in line with SGS’s customers’ expectations.

DELIVERING VALUE AND QUALITY ASSURANCE When trading, ensuring the quality of your commodities is key to maintaining a successful operation. The new laboratory allows SGS to continue to help customers ensure the quality of their commodities while meeting local and international regulations and contractual obligations. Its location within the port itself allows samples to be drawn from bulk cargo and testing to be done then and there, helping to prevent transportation processes and time consuming delays. Detailed analyses are delivered quickly and efficiently, so SGS’ customers can make crucial business decisions prior to cargo loading, ensuring any quality issues are addressed before it is too late.

Ernesto Labarthe, Business Manager for SGS in Peru said, “The new laboratory allows us to conduct diesel and mineral concentrates testing right in the heart of Matarani's port. This cuts the time hugely, as we no longer need to transport samples to our site in Callao, enabling us to provide customers with prompt expert analysis that informs key business decisions. We’re delighted the new laboratory is open!”

Thanks to its new Matarani laboratory, SGS in Peru will now be able to provide even greater value to all our global minerals and diesel customers who operate in the region.

ABOUT SGS

As a glabal testing, inspection and certification company, SGS has 93,000 employees operating a network of 2,600 offices and laboratories, working together to enable a better, safer and more interconnected world.