March 24, 2021
New radio wave-based analysis technology, developed by the Finnish high-tech company Collo, makes it possible to continuously monitor the state liquids – thick slurries, resins, adhesives, coatings, emulsions, or other fluids – in industrial processes, Collo says.
Collo’s technology is based on an electromagnetic resonator that emits a continuous radio frequency field into the liquid. The signal reacts to interferences caused by different components, chemicals and phases in the liquid. The analyzer immediately warns if the process is disturbed in any way so that the process can be adjusted according to the online data.
“Our sensors can be placed anywhere in the process to optimize for instance the use of raw materials and chemicals in the critical process steps,” says Matti Järveläinen, CEO and founder of Collo. “Our analyzer monitors the process constantly, compared to manual samples that provide a delayed snapshot of the process status at a given time. The advantage of realtime monitoring is that it takes away the guesswork when adjusting the process, which in turn can save a lot of chemicals, materials, energy and time.”
The Collo Analyzer simultaneously measures eight proprietary parameters from a liquid, which together form the liquid’s fingerprint. If these characteristics are changed during processing, for example if unwanted solids are formed or the chemical balance is negatively impacted, the analyzer shows the changes so that corrective measures can be made immediately.
Unlike generic measurement techniques, Collo doesn’t just measure the liquids, but combines data with sophisticated analytics, providing actionable information for improved process performance. Analytics are adjusted for each liquid application for optimal results, the company says.
“The benefit of this continuous quality control is that process deviations are identified immediately when they occur and before they have caused any issues in the process or decreased its performance,” says Mikko Tielinen, Head of Sales. “If the problem is realized too late, it may escalate and become much more expensive to solve.”
