Sandia Corporation

Sandia National Laboratories

James J Spates

Stephen J Martin

Arthur J Mansure

Philip J Rodacy

David Alexander Jones

Marc L Basiliere

Christopher A Gresham

An integrated apparatus and method for screening an object for a target material is provided. The integrated apparatus comprises a housing and an integrated screener. The housing is positionable adjacent the object, and has a channel therethrough. The integrated screener is positionable in the housing, and comprises a fan, at least one filter, a heater and an analyzer. The fan is for drawing air carrying particles and vapor through the channel of the housing. The filter(s) is/are positionable in the channel of the housing for passage of the air therethrough. The filter(s) comprise(s) at least one metal foam having a plurality of pores therein for collecting and adsorbing a sample from the particles and vapor passing therethrough. The heater is for applying heat to the at least one metal foam whereby the collected sample is desorbed from the metal foam. The analyzer detects the target material from the desorbed sample.

Screening system and method of using same

Acoustic-wave sensor apparatus and method for analyzing a normally liquid petroleum-based composition for monitoring deposition-point temperature. The apparatus includes at least one acoustic-wave device such as SAW, QCM, FPM, TSM or APM type devices in contact with the petroleum-based composition for sensing or detecting the surface temperature at which deposition occurs and/or rate of deposition as a function of temperature by sensing an accompanying change in frequency, phase shift, damping voltage or damping current of an electrical oscillator to a known calibrated condition. The acoustic wave device is actively cooled to monitor the deposition of constituents such as paraffins by determining the point at which solids from the liquid composition begin to form on the acoustic wave device. The acoustic wave device can be heated to melt or boil off the deposits to reset the monitor and the process can be repeated.

Method of and apparatus for determining deposition-point temperature

An acoustic-wave sensor apparatus and method. The apparatus for analyzing a normally liquid petroleum-based composition includes at least one acoustic-wave device in contact with the petroleum-based composition for sensing or detecting the presence of constituents (e.g. paraffins or petroleum waxes) therein which solidify upon cooling of the petroleum-based composition below a cloud-point temperature. The acoustic-wave device can be a thickness-shear-mode device (also termed a quartz crystal mircrobalance), a surface-acoustic-wave device, an acoustic-plate-mode device or a flexural plate-wave device. Embodiments of the present invention can be used for measuring a cloud point, a pour point and/or a freeze point of the petroleum-based composition, and for determining a temperature characteristic of each point. Furthermore, measurements with the acoustic-wave sensor apparatus can be made off-line by using a sample having a particular petroleum-based composition; or in-situ with the petroleum-based composition contained within a pipeline or storage tank. The acoustic-wave sensor apparatus has uses in many different petroleum technology areas, including the recover transport, storage, refining and use of petroleum and petroleum-based products.

Acoustic-wave sensor apparatus for analyzing a petroleum-based

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Albuquerque, NM, United States of America

James J Spates