Improved Flexible Sensing Cable System for Leak Detection and Localization

The accuracy of leak localization of conventional sensing cable systems is related to the current stability of constant current source. To improve the performance of sensing cable systems, a novel integrated method is proposed for distributed liquid leak detection and localization, which includes an online self-test and parametric self-calibration, adaptive threshold leak detection and alarm generation, accurate leak localization based on share voltage compensation, and rough estimation of leak contaminant size. With the proposed method and algorithms, an improved flexible sensing cable system employing a standard programmable controller is developed; it performs real time and reliable leakage incident monitoring. The leak detection sensitivity, leak localization accuracy, and effectiveness of the developed system for extendable sensing cable are demonstrated by means of experimental results and simulations.