Mistras - MonPAC

MONPAC™ was developed in co-operation with the Monsanto Chemical Company over many years and more than 2000 tests on metal process industry equipment. It became the de-facto industry standard (ref. IChem.E International Process Safety Group) for in-service testing of LPG spheres, cryogenic tank walls, and stainless steel plant, and is used by the oil and process industry world-wide.

Your Primary In-Service Test for Static Process Plant.

Additions to the MONPAC™ procedure and analysis based on Physical Acoustics experience and software have led to the IPAC™ test today.

The test consists of attaching sensors to the outside of the equipment and monitoring for acoustic emission resulting from cracking, yielding, and corrosion, during a controlled change in stress. Noise sources are eliminated by the use of high frequency sensors and pattern recognition methods. Sensors are usually attached using rope access (see photograph showing CAN personnel attaching and calibrating sensors on a 15m sphere).

MONPAC-IPAC has been used on thousands of tests over many years, and formed the basis for the ASME AE code on new metal vessels. The intensity analysis evaluates the severity of emission and provides the appropriate recommendation, in addition IPAC™ planar source location provides the location of any active or intense sources.

A-Minor source/no action

B-Minor source/visual inspection

C-Source/further evaluation-possible NDT

D-Active source/follow-up NDT

E-Intense source/immediate NDT

IPAC™ brings the following benefits:

Identify plant that needs inspection and repair, leave good equipment on-line

save unnecessary shut-down costs

On-stream test, no need to remove product

100% volumetric test for developing defects

Identifies only flaws that are developing during operation

Rapid testing: 15 metre sphere in 4 days

An effective maintenance planning tool