The Application for Radar Measuring System in Refinery Tank Farm

AUTOL's radar liquid level indicator is divided into three types of AHL-6200 series metrology-level high precision radar level indicator, AHL-6100 series control-level radar level indicator and cabled radar series with different types of radar antenna that are applicable to different conditions. The Article states the radar liquid level indicators applicable to different types of tanks in the refinery tank farm for your reference. 

The refinery tank farm is mainly divided into crude oil tank zone, gasoline tank zone, diesel oil tank zone, aviation kerosene tank zone, fuel tank zone, heavy oil tank zone, bitumen tank zone, LPG spherical tank zone, and so forth, and there are some other auxiliary tanks such as MTBE tank, pigging tank, dirty oil tank, fire protection water tank, and so on.

In the crude oil tank zone there are mainly 50,000 m³ and 100,000 m³ external floating roof tanks, and about 20,000 m³ dome-roof tanks as well. Heating coil is usually installed at the bottom of the tanks to heat and insulate the crude oil. It is usually recommended that AHL-6200 series plane antenna radar liquid level indicator (precision is ±1 mm, and measurement distance is 1～38 m) dedicated to guide should be mounted on guide posts of the external floating roof tanks, the guide posts are required to be metal pipes with DN150,DN200, DN250 or DN300 fixed diameters, and circular hole and hole distances away from two rows of pipe diameters less than 1/10 on the side walls should not be less than 30 cm. The plane antenna of AHL-6200 series radar liquid level is actually array antenna composed of several small antennas. The radar wave energy emitted concentrates in the middle of the guide post, and the energy the part contact with pipe wall is very tiny, thus it is barely impacted by coarse inner wall of the guide post, which can undergo the influence to measurement caused by crude oil on the pipe wall. It is usually recommended that AHL-6200 series small parabolic antenna radar liquid level indicator (precision is ±1 mm, and measurement distance is 1～40 m) should be mounted on guide posts of the arch crown crude oil tanks. Because the size of its small parabolic antenna is only DN200, wave beam angle of radar is only 3°, it can be mounted in place very near to tank wall. Take 20 m-tank for example, it can be installed in the location where 0.7 m away from tank wall, causing no influence.

In gasoline tank zone are usually internal floating roof tanks below 20000 m³, thus, it is usually recommended that AHL-6200D series plane antenna radar liquid level indicator (precision is ±1 mm, and measurement distance is 1～38 m) dedicated to guide should be mounted guide posts of the tanks. For guide posts less than DN150 such as DN100, DN80, and so forth, AHL-620E0 series horn antenna radar liquid level indicator (precision is ±1 mm, and measurement distance is 20 m) should be selected.

In diesel oil tank zone and aviation kerosene tank zone are usually arch crown tanks below 20000 m³, thus it is usually recommended AHL-6200G antenna or horn antenna radar liquid level indicator (precision is ±1 mm, and measurement distance is1～40 m).

In fuel tank zone and heavy oil tank zone are usually arch crown tanks below 20000 m³., Heating coil is usually installed at the bottom of the tanks to heat and insulate the crude oil. Referring to diesel oil tank zone and aviation kerosene tank zone, it is typically recommended that AHL-6200G horn antenna liquid level indicator (precision is ±1 mm, and measurement distance is1～40 m).

In bitumen tank zone are usually arch crown tanks with heating coils, and the temperature inside the tanks can reach to over 150 °C, coking radar antenna easily. It is typically recommended that AHL-6200D series antenna liquid level indicator (precision is ±1 mm, and measurement distance is 1～38 m) should be installed. With paraboloid of DN450, it can endure influence from coking on antenna caused by bitumen and can operate stably and reliably for a long term.