PhotoTec
Photomontage For Oct 1 2023 Press Release 2 651ac8c17bbba

PhotonTec brings new spill monitoring tech to U.S.

Oct. 2, 2023
Partnership with European company LDI Innovation provides North American customers with access to new sensor technology for remote oil, fuel spill detection on wet, dry surfaces

Atlanta, Georgia-based PhotonTec recently partnered with European photonics company LDI Innovation to provide North American customers access to LDI’s LED-based fluorometric oil and fuel sensing technology.

The partnership includes regional customer and technical support through PhotonTec.

“The customers we work with have increasingly demanding needs for real-time detection of oil and fuel spills on water and land where conventional sensors are often ineffective,” Juha Saily, PhotonTec business development manager, said in a news release. “Our new sensors outperform competitors in virtually every category providing higher reliability and sensitivity with no false alarms, longest available sensor-to-surface scan range, and detection of all types of hydrocarbons from very light to heavy oils including jet fuels and gasoline.

“They also install and work in the most challenging environments such as rough waters with high waves, areas with large tidal variations, explosive atmospheres, and many battery- and solar-powered applications.”

The new BlueHawk and TinyHawk fluorosensors can be used in various environments such as ports, airports, marinas, terminals, tank farms, industrial facilities, oil rigs, refineries, military installations, water intakes, waterways, and all water bodies, the companies reported. They feature several advanced capabilities, including:

  • Unique patented coaxial optical design (for high sensitivity, eliminates false alarms, high tolerance for varying surface distances, internal LED health monitoring and control)
  • Industry-leading extra-long sensing distance range (33+ ft./ 10+ meters) and widest scan/installation angle range (up to ±45 degrees from vertical)
  • UV-A / UV-B ultraviolet wavelength bands (UV-B is a must for reliable detection of very light and light oils such as jet fuels and gasoline)  
  • Highest available scan rates (up to 10 Hz)
  • Smallest size, lightest weight, lowest power consumption and highest NEMA (IP) rating on the market (NEMA 6P/IP68)
  • Remote access for sensor configuration

Options include:

  • ATEx certified enclosures for explosive environments
  • Wired or wireless alarms
  • Standalone or networked operation
  • Chlorophyll-A detection in algae
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