Windows Users: Open the SETHARDWARE.xls file. (Be sure to follow the procedure outlined in Section 7.4 to enable Macros, read current settings and save data). Type the new values in HP and LP Filter columns. Click Save Setup and exit the program.DOS Users: Press Esc to go to the Main Menu. ArrowUp to System Setup and press Enter. ArrowDown to Unlock Setup and press Enter. Type in the password. Press Esc to return to the Main Menu, ArrowDown to Boiler Leak Monitoring and press Enter. The system is now unlocked. (NOTE: When the system is locked a graphic symbol of a lock is displayed on the bottom center of each screen.)
Windows Users: Click Boiler Selection in the upper left hand section of the menu bar or press Shift F1.DOS Users: Press Alt 1 key combination for first boiler, Alt 2 for second boiler, etc.
Windows Users: Click the Scale button to toggle between 107.8dB and 146dB full scale. Click dB/mV to toggle between dB and mV.DOS Users: Press F2 to toggle between 107.8dB/146dB or 500mV/5000mV. Press Control F2 to select dB or mV.
Windows Users: Click GP/CH to toggle between Group and Channel trend views.DOS Users: Press Ctrl + F5 to toggle between the Group and Channel trend view.
Windows Users: Click the Channel label (CH XX) or Pair Diff. label to toggle between single, pair and differential trends.DOS Users: Press F6 to toggle between single, pair, and differential trends.The differential is the algebraic difference of the selected channel and it associated pair.
Windows Users: Click on the lock symbol on the AMS Toolbar to open the AMS Setup Information box. Click ADMIN in the Setup/Password areType in the password. Click the unlock button. An unlock symbol appears indicating that the admin lock has been removed. Click the exit button.DOS Users: Press Esc to go to the Main Menu. ArrowUp to System Setup and press Enter. ArrowDown to Unlock Setup and press Enter. Type in the password. Press Esc to return to the Main Menu, ArrowDown to Boiler Leak Monitoring and press Enter. The system is now unlocked. (NOTE: When the system is locked a graphic symbol of a lock is displayed on the bottom center of each screen.)
Windows Users: Click on the lock symbol on the AMS Toolbar to open the AMS Setup Information box. Click the Lock All button. A lock symbol indicates the completion of the lock process. Click the exit button.DOS Users: From any screen in the AMS software press the Ctrl Ins key combination.
The white bars represent plant auxiliary parameters such as Load, Liquor Flow, or Feedwater Flow, which are brought into the AMS-2 system. Pressing the g key will turn off all of the white bars along with supplemental information listed below the bar graph. Pressing the g key again turns the bars back on. Also, pressing the number keys 1 through 8 will toggle each individual auxiliary parameter on and off.
This represents the ALARM clock. When a signal goes above the alarm threshold, the bar will turn to yellow. The counter below the magenta ALARM text will turn magenta and begin to count down to zero. The amount of time it takes to count down is the alarm delay and can be set to any value from 1 second to 99 hours. Once the counter reaches zero the bar turns red, the alarm relay closes and the counter will now begin to count up for the duration of the alarm.
This is the Alarm Code. The CODE: by default is set to 1. It can be any value from 0 to 12. It is used to keep the system from alarming during normal operations, such as sootblowing or auxiliary fuel burning. Refer to page 6.3.5 (DOS users) or 7.4.3 (Windows users), Setting the ALARM CODES, for more details.
A Red trouble block is an indication that either the field cable between the output of the preamplifier and the system cabinet is defective, or the preamplifier has failed. To fix this problem, inspect the field coax cable BNC connections. Verify that each end of the cable is terminated properly. Check connectors for corrosion. Use an ohm meter to verify the center conductor is not shorted to the shield. If cable checks out, the problem could be a bad preamp. Obtain a spare preamp and connect it in place of the existing one. If problem still persists, go to system cabinet. Obtain a test BNC-BNC cable and a spare preamp. Remove the field coax cable from the RF Box for the channel under test. Connect one end of test cable to RF Box and other end to the output of spare preamp. Verify the Red Trouble Block goes away. If it does, then the problem is a defective field coax cable. If the block does NOT go away, then the problem could be a bad 50 pin ribbon cable which connects the RF Box to the Amplifier Chassis. Obtain a spare 50 pin ribbon cable and replace the existing one. If block still does NOT go away, the problem could be a bad ribbon cable inside the Amplifier chassis. Contact Triple 5 for further trouble shooting efforts.
The amplifier chassis is not connected, or if one of the power supplies in the amplifier chassis fails. To fix this problem verify the 40 pin ribbon cable is terminated properly. If the problem persists use a multi-meter and measure the DC voltages on J18 of the back plane board located inside the amplifier chassis. To do this, remove the amplifier chassis from the cabinet and place on a test bench. J18 is located on the lower left corner of the back plane board when looking in from the rear of the amplifier chassis. Connect AC power cord to chassis and turn it on. Verify +/- 15VDC and +/- 5VDC are present. If power supply is found to be bad, contact Triple 5.
This condition occurs if the Amplifier chassis is turned off. To fix this problem verify the amplifier chassis is turned on. If problem persists call Triple 5.
This problem can occur under the following conditions:
The sensor is not connected to the Hi-temp cable.
The Hi-temp cable is not connected to the preamp.
The Hi-Temp cable is broken
The sensor is defective.
To fix this problem verify the Hi-Temp cable is terminated properly at the preamp and sensor. Check for corrosion on the connectors.
If that checks out, perform a Capacitance Test. Obtain a capacitance meter. The typical capacitance of the T5-023 sensor is 600pF; the T5-013 is 500pF. The typical capacitance of the hi-temp cable is 30pF/ft. A 20 foot cable would have a capacitance of 600pF. Disconnect the hi-temp cable from the preamp. Measure between the center conductor and shield of the Hi-Temp Cable. The combined capacitance of a 20 foot cable and T5-023 sensor is about 1200pF.
Perform a Short Test. Disconnect the hi-temp cable from the preamp. Use an ohm meter and verify the center conductor of the hi-temp cable is not shorted to the shield.
If the Short Test checks out, perform a Scratch Test. To do this you will need two people. Go to the system cabinet. On the bar graph screen set the pointer under the suspect channel. Turn up the volume on the front of the amplifier chassis. Have someone go to the sensor location on the boiler and rub it with a screwdriver. The bar should jump up and you should hear the scraping sound of the screwdriver out of the speaker.
If there is no response obtain a spare sensor and Hi-Temp cable. Disconnect the existing cable from the input of the preamp. Connect the spare cable and sensor. Rub the spare sensor with a screwdriver. Verify the bar jumps up and you hear the scraping sound of the screwdriver out of the speaker. If this fixes the problem re-connect the Hi-Temp cable to the preamp. Replace the existing sensor with the spare sensor. Perform the scratch test. If this works, then the sensor is bad. If not, the hi-temp cable is defective.
SB stands for Sootblower and NOSB for No Sootblower modes. In the NOSB mode data is collected for trending only during quiet times between sootblowers.
The following formula shows the relationship between dB and the voltage output of the amplifier. dB = 86 + 20 * LOG (N / (5.12*10^(1-N/5000))) where N = mV (0-5000)
To the left of the sensor selection bar there is a button labeled “GP/CH”. This button toggles the trend area between an individual channel and a group of channels. Once in the Group mode, individual channels within the group can be activated/deactivated by clicking on the corresponding channel name in the upper right hand corner of the screen.
The AMS has a 24 Hour, 10 Day, 30 Day and 60 Day Trend. To switch between the trends, click on the button labeled “TND” at the bottom of the AMS interface window. You can also switch between the trends by clicking on the button labeled “TREND” located to the left of the trend area, directly below the word “DAYS:”. The order of the trends are 24 Hour, 10 Day, 30 Day & 60 Day and loop in that order.There is also the ability to view the data at the 2.5 Hour scale. To do this, simply click on the trend line within the trend area or click on the “2.5 HR.” button located in the lower left side of the screen, directly under the “TREND” button. To navigate between 2.5 hour trends, click on the arrows in the lower right on either side of the word “TIME”.
The scale is changed by clicking on the button to the left of the trend area labeled “SCALE”. This changes the scaling of the trend to 0dB-107.8dB (0mV – 500mV) or 92dB – 146dB (500mV – 5000mV).
The Red trace is the channel that is paired with the current channel. This can be toggled on or off by clicking on the channel name on the right hand side of the trend area, above the words “Pair Diff”.
At the bottom of the AMS screen there is a row of buttons. The last button is used to cycle between different boilers or modules that are enabled. There is also a “BOILER SELECTION” dropdown menu in the top menu bar.
To unlock the system, click on the padlock icon in the lower right hand corner of the AMS interface. Once clicked a new display will open. Select the “ADMIN” ot “THLD” radio button as appropriate and then enter the password. Click on the “UNLOCK” button to unlock the system, then click on the “EXIT” button to close the display. The system will now be unlocked, as seen by the open padlock icon. To lock the system, click on the open padlock icon and click on the “LOCK ALL” button. The system will then be locked. Click the “EXIT” button to close the display. The system will automatically lock itself after 20 minutes.
A blue bar indicates that the signal for the channel is low. Possible causes are unit offline, low load/steam flow/liquor flow levels, gains need to be raised or a possible maintenance issue.
The yellow trouble block (under the vertical bar and above the channel number) indicates that the saved (reference) capacitance and the last capacitance reading do not match by a significant percentage for the channel. If the last reading and the reference capacitance are different by ~600pF, the most likely cause is a loose sensor. This can be fixed by checking the connection between the hi-temp cable and the sensor.
A. A Red trouble block (under the vertical bar and above the channel number) indicates an issues between the system cabinet and the AFB. More specifically, there is no communication for the channel. The most common issue is non-compression of the cable under the terminal screws on the terminal block. Check pairs 1, 3 and/or 4 of the daisy chain cable.
The white bars show the current level of the plant auxiliary parameter that is in the AMS. Each plant AUX parameter will have a corresponding white bar on the graph when activated. They can be activated/deactivated by clicking on the parameter name in the upper right hand corner.
The bar graph page shows all of the channels on the system in one place. If the bars are not moving, look for the button to the right of the graph area above the date/time display in the AMS labeled “SB/NOSB”. This button toggles the Sootblower/No Sootblower mode. When the No Sootblower (NOSB) mode is active, the bars are held at the last reading taken before sootblower activity began. By switching modes, the bars will begin to move as the signal levels change.
A plus (+) sign indicated that there was a capacitance alarm registered in the hour. Intermittent capacitance alarms can be caused by a loose sensor. Continuous capacitance alarms can be caused by a sensor becoming disconnected from the cable or a faulty cable. The connection between the sensor and cable may also have ash built up between the central pin and the sensor, causing a short.
A. An “X” in the journal indicates that there was a loss of communication within the hour between the AFB and the system cabinet for that channel. If there are intermittent alarms, check that the daisy chain connection is tight. If the alarm is constant, check the daisy chain connection between the last functioning box in the chain and the first malfunctioning box.
For the most part, yes the Boiler and FWH parts are different. Each part is designed to respond to frequencies specific to the operating conditions of their respective environment. This is true for sensors and AFBs. The hi-temp cables can be swapped between any sensor and AFB with no change to the operation of the channel. Note that a new reference capacitance may need to be saved to avoid yellow trouble blocks.
MISTRAS | Triple 5 provides troubleshooting assistance to our surveillance clients at no charge. Customers without surveillance contracts are still able to received troubleshooting assistance at our published rates. Also, MISTRAS | Triple 5 is available for service trips for more in-depth troubleshooting and/or training.
Yes, MISTRAS | Triple 5 is able to provide individual parts as well as a complete Troubeshooting Kit. For more information, please contact MISTRAS | Triple 5.