Kinetik

Increased Use Of Optical Gas Imagery Cameras Helps Kinetik Stay On Top Of Emissions

Kinetik has increasingly used technology to ensure its operations remain safe and environmentally compliant, but the latest tool in the company’s ongoing effort to reduce emissions is the optical gas imagery camera (OGI).

The first thing to know about OGI cameras is they don’t work like a regular camera.  Regular cameras require visible light to hit something, bounce off it and turn it into an image.  An OGI camera makes pictures from infrared energy, not visible light. 

An OGI camera is made up of a lens, infrared sensor, processing electronics and a mechanical housing.  The lens focuses infrared energy onto the sensor.  The sensor can come in a variety of pixel configurations and infrared absorption spectra. 

Kinetik EVP of Operations Matt Wall explains that OGI technology is a great tool that along with proper application of science and supporting data, can provide useful insight and qualitative assessment of emissions from an identified source.   

“We stress the importance of reporting and repairing fugitive emissions but even a properly trained and well-intentioned operator can miss emissions that are invisible to the naked eye.  Since we have incorporated the use of OGI cameras into our preventive maintenance program, we’ve been able to quickly and precisely detect leaks and fix them.  With four plants and over 1,000 miles of pipeline, we must stay on top of our system to ensure that our system integrity remains at a high level. 

“Even though our plants are all relatively new, a valve can go bad or start to leak.  Our investment in OGI cameras allows us to see issues quickly, address them and stay on top of maintenance work so that we continue to operate as safely and environmentally responsibly as possible.”