Testing times for Glycol

Glycol testing is an important part of a regular maintenance programme, not only can it protect your system but will also save you money. Blended Products have been supplying specialist chemicals and gases for almost twenty years and uses its industry knowledge, expertise, and laboratory facilities to provide free glycol testing for its clients. Product development technologist Ben France explains why.

The free glycol tests we do for our customers are all about prevention, protection and catching any issues as early as possible. This saves our customers money as it minimises maintenance and protects against the costly shutdown that would be necessary if a problem escalated into a system failure.

Just one example of this is that we do tests on shipments before they leave to allow for benchmark figures to be given and, if anything is detected in the tests, it means low-cost preventative maintenance can be undertaken now, rather than high-cost shutdowns for significant problem maintenance at a later stage.

The team at Blended Products are experts in this type of testing and this is our guide to the free tests that we do and why they matter:

pH levels check

The most common route of glycol decay is oxidation, this route causes the formation of acidic chemicals which are corrosive. Under normal circumstances corrosion inhibitors will prevent corrosion from small amounts of acidic compounds.

Many corrosion inhibitors are most effective at basic pH levels and if the formation of these acidic compounds lowers the pH it can reduce the effectiveness of the corrosion inhibitor or in some cases stop it working entirely.

Measurement of the glycol pH allows the monitoring of the situation so preventative action can be taken if needed.

Determination of iron content

If corrosion is occurring inside your system, then this can be accurately monitored via the iron content of the glycol. The majority of systems are built with steel and if the metal begins to corrode this can be readily detected by increasing iron content in the glycol mixture.

Our spectroscopic method allows for very accurate determination of the iron content in samples.

Review of conductivity

This measurement allows for determination for dissolved salts in the glycol mixture.

These dissolved solids promote corrosion and can indicate that incorrect water is being used for the loading or top up of the system.

Undertake refractometry

This provides an accurate measurement of glycol within the system. With this information it should be possible to determine if a leak has formed on your system somewhere. As water is used to top up the system as per usual (due to water loss) the glycol content will decrease. It is key to maintain glycol levels to keep the frost protection for your system.

Assess Turbidity

This is a measure of how cloudy the glycol is. Most problems that can occur in your system be it corrosion or otherwise will cause the glycol mixture to go cloudy.

Turbidity measurements allow you to measure this and determine if your glycol is becoming contaminated with suspended solids.

Ammonia Presence Testing

Using our advanced spectroscopic equipment, it is possible to determine if the glycol has been contaminated with ammonia.

This would be indicative of cross contamination between primary and secondary refrigerant.

There is no doubt that preemptive testing should be a core part of any maintenance plan as it saves suppliers and companies both time and money.

Blended Products is delighted to offer this service free to its customers but if you are not yet a customer and would like to know more, Blended is still happy to help.

Blended Products offers the optimal ‘blend’ of speciality chemical expertise, exceptional service and positive attitude that customers can rely on.