NSF Award
1113770
This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project addresses a major need in the glass<br/>manufacturing industry by developing a wireless sensor for 3?]D imaging of glass furnace walls to identify<br/>refractory erosion and molten glass leaks. The furnace walls are comprised of insulation and AZS<br/>(Alumina, Zirconium, Silica) refractories which are highly lossy and very dispersive at high temperatures.<br/>A conventional approach would inevitably be constrained by its system dynamic range, and thus the<br/>most important molten glass?]AZS echo would be virtually invisible regardless of the sophistication of<br/>digital processing on the measured results. This project takes a holistic approach from antenna design to<br/>imaging algorithm to sensor architecture in order to tackle very demanding requirements of the furnace<br/>wall. It aims to accomplish (1) accurate characterization of attenuation and dispersive properties of the<br/>furnace walls (2) optimal antenna design to match with minimum inter?]coupling, (3) high resolution<br/>imaging algorithm that leverages prior knowledge of wall properties, and (4) hardware architecture with<br/>the highest possible dynamic range in such a high temperature environment.<br/><br/>The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is that it offers a 3?]D sensor that will enable a<br/>maintenance program based upon the real condition of the furnace to realize longer life span of high<br/>temperature furnaces and make informed local maintenance without a major interruption in the<br/>production. This translates to significant financial savings for the glass manufacturing industry given the<br/>multi?]million dollar initial capital investment is required to build a furnace, followed by a multi?]million<br/>dollar spending to maintain it. Further, several catastrophic accidents have occurred in the past due to<br/>molten glass leaking from the furnaces. These catastrophic accidents resulted in death of several<br/>employees, significant financial damage and severe production disruption. Therefore, this project will<br/>enable safer manufacturing environment for the glass manufacturing industry since potential areas for<br/>molten glass leakages and structural health of furnace walls will be assessed with the 3?]D imaging<br/>technology being developed under this project. Lastly, this research will also lead to new design<br/>concepts for sensing through dispersive and high loss media in extremely high temperature<br/>environment, thus introducing new approaches for wireless sensing technologies in harsh environments.
