General Electric Company

Niloy Choudhury

William Albert Challener

Sabarni Palit

Radislav Alexandrovich Potyrailo

Jason Harris Karp

Sandip Maity

Nagapriya Kavoori Sethumadhavan

Cheng-Po Chen

Ansas Matthias Kasten

A scanning system for producing a path averaged concentration map of a leaking plume is provided. The system includes a tunable light source capable of tuning its wavelength over the absorption band of the specimen of interest, a lightweight mirror to scan the light, a lightweight collection optic, an array of detectors to measure reflected light, one or more processors configured to align the scanning with the detected signal and analyze the signal to produce a path averaged concentration map of the leaking plume, the one or more processors configured to use an analytical model of plume dynamics to compare the detected concentration map and calculate leak location and rate, and a flying platform that can fly in a control flight path.

Remote leak detection system

A method for the detection of a gas flowing from a location in a structure is described. A hollow-core optical fiber is placed in a position adjacent the structure. The fiber includes a sound-conductive cladding layer; and further includes at least one aperture extending into its cross-sectional diameter. A beam of pulsed, optical is transmitted into the fiber with a tunable laser. The optical energy is characterized by a wavelength that can be absorbed by the gas that flows into the fiber through the aperture. This causes a temperature fluctuation in the region of gas absorption, which in turn generates an acoustic wave in the absorption region. The acoustic wave travels through the cladding layer, and can be detected with a microphone, so as to provide the location of gas flow, based on the recorded position and movement of the acoustic wave. A related system is also described.

Methods and systems for detecting gas flow by photoacoustic signal generation

A distributed gas detection system includes one or more hollow core fibers disposed in different locations, one or more solid core fibers optically coupled with the one or more hollow core fibers and configured to receive light of one or more wavelengths from a light source, and an interrogator device configured to receive at least some of the light propagating through the one or more solid core fibers and the one or more hollow core fibers. The interrogator device is configured to identify a location of a presence of a gas-of-interest by examining absorption of at least one of the wavelengths of the light at least one of the hollow core fibers.

Distributed gas detection system and method

Microstructured optical fiber (MOF) includes a cladding extending a length between first and second ends. The cladding includes an inner porous microstructure that at least partially surrounds a hollow core. A perimeter contour of the hollow core has a non-uniform radial distance from a center axis of the cladding such that first segments of the cladding along the perimeter contour have a shorter radial distance from the center axis relative to second segments of the cladding along the perimeter contour. The cladding receives and propagates light energy through the hollow core, and the inner porous microstructure substantially confines the light energy within the hollow core. The cladding defines at least one port hole that extends radially from an exterior surface of the cladding to the hollow core. Each port hole penetrates the perimeter contour of the hollow core through one of the second segments of the cladding.

Microstructured optical fibers for gas sensing systems

A method for detecting of components in a fluid includes emitting a modulated light beam from a modulated light source to the fluid in a chamber, wherein the fluid comprises a liquid and a component in the liquid. The method includes producing an acoustic signal in response to the emitted modulated light beam and detecting the acoustic signal via a pressure sensor disposed in the chamber. The method in one example also includes transmitting the acoustic signal from the pressure sensor to a processor based module and determining at least one of a component and a concentration of the component in the fluid via the processor based module, based on the acoustic signal.

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Glenville, NY, United States of America

Niloy Choudhury