A coarse-fine two-stage leak detection is carried out on sealed, filled containers loaded into container holders or pucks. Failure of the first, coarse leak detection stage, e.g. a pressure-course or impedance or laser-absorption based leak detection stage, causes containers to be rejected together with their corresponding container holders. These are then separated, and the container holder is cleaned and dried before being returned to the system. Any leaking product from inside a grossly leaking container is thus retained within the container holder, thus reducing contamination of subsequent containers and their container holders, preventing such contamination from reaching the fine leak detection stage, e.g. a mass-spectrometer-based leak detection stage.

Provided is a method of testing for a leak in a fluid system. The method includes submerging at least a portion of an electrically conductive body in an electrolyte solution, with the electrically conductive body and electrolyte solution being in an internal chamber of a device. The method further includes directing an electrical signal to the electrically conductive body, causing a reaction between the electrically conductive body and the electrolyte solution to produce hydrogen. The method further includes injecting the hydrogen into the fluid system for leak detection.

In a leak detection device comprising a gas analyzer, a vacuum pump, a first gas inlet, and a second gas inlet, it is provided that a first multi-way valve is connected to a first inlet and at least a first and a second outlet, wherein the inlet is connected to the first gas inlet, a second multi-way valve is connected to first inlet and at least a first and a second outlet, wherein the inlet is connected to the second gas inlet, wherein the two first outlets of the two multi-way valves are connected to the gas analyzer, and the two second outlets of the two multi-way valves are connected to the vacuum pump.

The invention relates to a method for detecting one or more leaks in a battery enclosure (101) of a battery (100), the battery (100) including at least one electrochemical cell (102) enclosed in the battery enclosure (101), or detecting one or more leaks in the at least one electrochemical cell (102) being in the battery enclosure (101) or separate from the battery enclosure (101). The method comprises the steps of obtaining gas, in particular air, from a surrounding of the battery (100) or from a surrounding of the at least one electrochemical cell (102) being in the battery enclosure (101) or separate from the battery enclosure (101), respectively, obtaining an analysis of the gas by analysing the gas with an analysis method and determining on the basis of the analysis whether the gas includes a signature of at least one constituent part of the at least one electrochemical cell (102), the signature indicating a presence of the at least one constituent part of the at least one electrochemical cell (102) in the gas. In case it is determined on the basis of the analysis that the gas includes the signature of the at least one constituent part of the at least one electrochemical cell (102), a leak in the battery enclosure (102) of the battery (100) or in the at least one electrochemical cell (102) being in the battery enclosure (101) or separate from the battery enclosure (101), respectively, is detected. In the analysis method, the gas is ionised by an ionisation source (31) with an ionisation method to ions and the ions are analysed in an analyser (32) by being separated according to one or more physical properties, wherein the ionisation source (31) is a chemical ionisation source and the ionisation method is a chemical ionisation method. The invention further relates to an apparatus (1) for detecting one or more leaks in a battery enclosure (101) of a battery (100) with the method according to the invention.

Disclosed is a device for testing airtightness of a fuel cell stack. The device for testing airtightness of a fuel cell stack including a first reaction gas inflow portion and a first reaction gas outflow portion which a first reaction gas flows in or out, respectively, and a second reaction gas inflow portion and a second reaction gas outflow portion which a second reaction gas flows in and out, respectively, includes i) a detection gas supplier supplying a detection gas to the first reaction gas inflow portion, ii) an intake installed to be movable in a sequential stacking direction of fuel cells in the second reaction gas outflow portion, iii) a detection gas concentration detector intaking a detection gas through the intake and detecting a concentration of the detection gas, and iv) a controller determining an airtightness-defective cell based on a position of the intake by analyzing the detected concentration value of the detection gas detected by the detection gas concentration detector.

An apparatus and methods for testing the integrity of a barrier coating on a vessel. An off gas test fixture includes a face seal positioned about an opening of the vessel. A side seal is positioned about a portion of the vessel's wall and separated from the face seal by a space. Additionally, a cover may be secured to the fixture that encompasses an interface portion of the fixture and the vessel. Before and/or during testing, gas in the space between the side and face seals may be evacuated, as well as gas present in an interior area of the vessel. The vessel may be exposed to test gas(es) that is soluble by the plastic material of the vessel before and/or after being secured to the fixture. During testing, test gas(es) desorbed by the vessel may be evacuated, with the molecular flow being measured using a mass extraction unit.

A gas-specific vacuum leak detector has a multi-stage vacuum pump and a gas-specific gas sensor. The gas sensor is an integral part of the vacuum pump and is thereby adapted to detect a specific gas within the vacuum pump.

Leak detection system and method for monitoring leaks in underground and aboveground storage tanks, pipelines or other containments, including single, double or triple wall containments are provided. A leak detection apparatus includes an oxidation chamber, a chemical marker concentrator, a mass spectrometer (MS) ion trap and a scroll vacuum pump. Vapor samples carrying marker chemicals introduced into a tank, pipeline, or other containment are injected at sample injection point into an oxidation chamber. Oxygen from an oxygen source is fed into oxidation chamber to destroy or oxidize contaminates such as hydrocarbons in the vapor without destroying or oxidizing the chemical markers. Effluent from the oxidation chamber is passed to an elongate conduit with a metal foil or screen suspended within the conduit. The marker chemicals are attracted by a chemical coating on the foil/screen and released by heating the metal. The released marker chemicals are fed into a mass spec ion trap for leakage analysis and results.

A gas injector apparatus and method for use with a tracer gas airflow measurement system that allows for large, continuous tracer gas flow rates while avoiding operation at very cold temperatures that will damage equipment. The controlled and variable heating of high pressure tracer gas flow before a gas regulator allows all points in the system to remain above freezing, and within a safe temperature range. The system has a tracer gas source and a heater that heats the gas isobarically at high pressure (>100 psi) and the hot gas is expanded across a pressure regulator to a lower working pressure to 30 psi. The gas flow is modulated using a mass flow controller with a high turndown ratio and injected into a bulk fluid flow with an injector.

The invention relates to a leak detector comprising a first sensor for detecting a gas component (helium) in a gas taken in. Because the sensor is susceptible to saturation or contamination, a second sensor is provided. The sensor is a thermal conductivity sensor. The thermal conductivity sensor has a lower detection sensitivity, yet, at a high concentration of the gas component, it does not risk being contaminated. The two sensors together allow for a large detection range, from extremely sensitive measurements to instances with high concentrations of the gas components as those which can occur with gross leaks.