Digital pH measurement systems contain all the components for measurement on the sensor itself. The cable from the sensor to the transmitter supplies power and transmits information digitally. Changing the wires from the sensor to the transmitter will not affect the pH levels, eliminating the need for recalibration. Replacing a digital probe in the field can immediately be commissioned if it has been calibrated in a laboratory setting.

Our expertise in the field

State-of-the-art digital pH instruments like the Memosens CPS11E offer extended storage of calibration and process data, enabling better trend identification and providing a basis for predictive maintenance and enhanced IIoT services. When starting on the digital transformation of your processes, pH measurement is the ideal candidate, as it fulfills three essential requirements:

• it is the most frequently maintained measuring point in a plant
• the high level of diagnostics inside the sensor makes data-based decisions possible
• it is HART capable

Suppose pH measurement devices are only connected with the process value, or respectively via 4 - 20 mA. In that case, they cannot be connected and thus cannot facilitate the data-based decision-making you need to prolong maintenance cycles and improve production.

Our expertise in the field

Endress+Hauser offers a technical solution integrating an Ex-Zone 2 Field Xpert SMT70 or Ex-Zone 1 Field Xpert SMT77 tablet equipped with the Field Xpert software. This enables maintenance technicians to collect data directly from individual pH probes. Back in the office, and connected to its docking station, the tablet synchronizes its data to the Endress+Hauser cloud solution, Netilion. From here, a wealth of possibilities opens for data analysis and interpretation.

• Combining the application knowledge with data from each pH probe will enable you to identify deviations in key parameters and make decisions to extend the probe maintenance cycles according to their application conditions.
• Netilion Analytics lets you manage all the devices in your chemical plant and improve plant management by eliminating obsolescence and standardizing your installed base.
• Netilion Health is a digital asset management service that provides diagnostics from your field devices and the remedies ready when and wherever you need them.

What if your devices are in hazardous areas? The chemical industry is often a hazardous environment, which uses products and materials that can cause severe injuries to operators or maintenance technicians. It is vital to keep personnel out of the field as much as possible to minimize the risk of accidents.

Our expertise in the field

Should conditions be too dangerous for data collection in the field, our devices can also be equipped with a WirelessHART dongle. For this application, Endress+Hauser offers the FieldPort SWA50, suitable for transmitting HART signals in hazardous areas. This permanent connection to our cloud services offers the potential for refining the maintenance process, and, by minimizing uncertainties, enables calibrated operating ranges to be optimized for the best process efficiency.

Digital sensors benefit from internal data storage, which captures critical information about the process and the sensor. Calibration data can thus be stored enabling the device to be calibrated in the lab before installation. This eliminates the need for field calibration checks. The original reference calibration is stored along with the records of previous calibrations, allowing maintenance to optimize the calibration frequency by monitoring the drift in the readings over time.

Our expertise in the field

Soon, pH sensors will likely store more information about their use and operating conditions. Availability of this information in cloud-based applications like our Netilion services will enable higher-level monitoring and analysis to improve their performance. These systems will allow users to optimize their maintenance intervals, reduce their costs and extend the life span of their sensors.