SYSTEM FOR REAL-TIME DETECTING LEAKAGE OF UNDERGROUND VOLATILE COMPOUND

Abstract

The present invention relates to a real-time underground volatile organic compound leakage detection system and, more specifically, to a real-time underground volatile organic compound leakage detection system for minimizing contamination and allowing a rapid response by detecting beforehand in real time the spread of contamination in the soil and groundwater from environmental accidents due to leaks of oil, overflow oil and the like from the ground and underground storage tanks of a facility which is to be monitored for oils and harmful chemical substances comprising volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The system comprises: a monitoring well, provided in the periphery of the facility to be monitored, for collecting volatile organic compounds (VOCs) leaked from the facility to be monitored; a gas sensor module provided inside the monitoring well and for detecting the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and measuring the concentration; a communication module for wirelessly transmitting detection and concentration sensor data measured by means of the gas sensor module; and a control center server for displaying the detection and concentration sensor data received from the communication module, and outputting a monitoring screen.

Claims

1. A real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system, comprising: a monitoring well provided near a facility to be monitored for oils and harmful chemicals including volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and configured to collect volatile organic compounds (VOCs) leaking from the facility to be monitored; a gas sensor module provided inside the monitoring well and configured to detect the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and measure a concentration thereof; a communication module configured to wirelessly transmit detection and concentration sensor data measured using the gas sensor module; and a control center server configured to display the detection and concentration sensor data received from the communication module and output a monitoring screen.

2. The real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system according to claim 1, wherein the gas sensor module detects the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) depending on a change in an electrical resistance value when coming into contact with the volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and measures the concentration thereof.

3. The real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system according to claim 1, wherein the gas sensor module comprises an insulating substrate, a pair of thin-film electrodes formed on the insulating substrate, a conductive carbon powder configured to connect the pair of thin-film electrodes, and a permeable thin polymer film applied on the pair of thin-film electrodes and the conductive carbon powder.

4. The real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system according to claim 1, wherein the monitoring screen of the control center server comprises a leakage detection map screen on which the detection and concentration sensor data measured using the gas sensor module of the monitoring well are displayed for each monitoring well on a map on which locations of monitoring wells provided near the facility to be monitored are marked.

5. The real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system according to claim 4, wherein the leakage detection map screen separately outputs normal data indicating that a sensor data value displayed for each monitoring well is equal to or less than a preset allowable value, abnormality detection data indicating detection of an abnormality exceeding a normal data range, and leakage detection data indicating leakage detection exceeding an abnormality detection data range.

6. The real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system according to claim 4, wherein the monitoring screen of the control center server further comprises a detection status screen on which a location of the facility to be monitored, a sensor data value for each well, a normal state, an abnormality detection state, or a leakage detection state for each well, the gas sensor module for each well, the communication module, a battery maintenance or replacement request, and an action status are displayed.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] FIG. 1 illustrates the overall configuration of a leakage detection system according to the present invention;

[0024] FIG. 2 illustrates the structure of a gas sensor module according to the present invention;

[0025] FIG. 3 illustrates the sensor measurement principle of the gas sensor module according to the present invention;

[0026] FIG. 4 illustrates a leakage detection map on the monitoring screen of a control center server according to the present invention; and

[0027] FIG. 5 illustrates a detection status screen on the monitoring screen of the control center server according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0028] The present invention pertains to a real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system, including a monitoring well provided near a facility to be monitored for oils and harmful chemicals including volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and configured to collect volatile organic compounds (VOCs) leaking from the facility to be monitored, a gas sensor module provided inside the monitoring well and configured to detect the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and measure the concentration thereof, a communication module configured to wirelessly transmit the detection and concentration sensor data measured using the gas sensor module, and a control center server configured to display the detection and concentration sensor data received from the communication module and output a monitoring screen.

[0029] The gas sensor module detects the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) depending on a change in the electrical resistance value when coming into contact with the volatile organic compounds (VOCs), and measures the concentration thereof.

[0030] The gas sensor module includes an insulating substrate, a pair of thin-film electrodes formed on the insulating substrate, a conductive carbon powder configured to connect the pair of thin-film electrodes, and a permeable thin polymer film applied on the pair of thin-film electrodes and the conductive carbon powder.

[0031] The monitoring screen of the control center server includes a leakage detection map screen on which the detection and concentration sensor data measured using the gas sensor module of the monitoring well are displayed for each monitoring well on a map on which the locations of monitoring wells provided near the facility to be monitored are marked.

[0032] The leakage detection map screen separately outputs normal data indicating that the sensor data value displayed for each monitoring well is equal to or less than a preset allowable value, abnormality detection data indicating detection of an abnormality exceeding the normal data range, and leakage detection data indicating leakage detection exceeding the abnormality detection data range.

[0033] The monitoring screen of the control center server further includes a detection status screen on which the location of the facility to be monitored, the sensor data value for each well, the normal state, abnormality detection state, or leakage detection state for each well, the gas sensor module for each well, the communication module, the battery maintenance or replacement request, and the action status are displayed.

[0034] Hereinafter, a detailed description will be given of embodiments of the present invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawings so that those of ordinary skill in the art can easily carry out the present invention. However, the present invention may be embodied in a variety of different forms, and is not limited to the embodiments and drawings described herein.

[0035] Specifically, with reference to FIG. 1, the real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system according to the present invention includes a monitoring well provided near a facility to be monitored for oils and harmful chemicals including volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and configured to collect volatile organic compounds (VOCs) leaking from the facility to be monitored, a gas sensor module provided inside the monitoring well and configured to detect the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and measure the concentration thereof, a communication module configured to wirelessly transmit detection and concentration sensor data measured using the gas sensor module, and a control center server configured to display the detection and concentration sensor data received from the communication module and output a monitoring screen.

[0036] Here, the gas sensor module is a gas sensor capable of detecting and sensing VOC gas, and conventional gas sensors include, for example, a complex sensor array for detecting a gas or volatile organic compound (VOC) disclosed in Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2016-0001369 (Laid-open date: Jan. 6, 2016), including a plurality of sensor arrays, each including a plurality of gas sensors configured to detect a gas or volatile organic compound (VOC), the sensor including a substrate, a lower electrode disposed on the substrate, a piezoelectric layer disposed on the lower electrode, an upper electrode disposed on the piezoelectric layer, and a gas-sensing layer disposed on the upper electrode, in which a plurality of sensors, in each of which a receptor (sensitive material) of a gas-sensing layer thereof is a carbon nanotube, and a plurality of sensors, in each of which a receptor is a polymer, are arranged on a single chip, and a complex gas detection sensor disclosed in Korean Patent Application Publication No. 10-2018-0135258 (Laid-open date: Dec. 20, 2018), including a support substrate and a gas detection unit cell disposed on the support substrate, the gas detection unit cell including an electrode layer including a plurality of electrodes and a gas detection construct having a porous structure and including a plurality of unit pattern layers laminated on the electrode layer. However, the gas-sensing layer has to be coated with a carbon nanotube (CNT)-polymer composite as the gas receptor, and the gas detection construct has to contain expensive metal such as tin oxide (SnOx), titanium oxide (TiOx), zinc oxide (ZnO), tungsten oxide (WO), etc. as the detection material, which is undesirable.

[0037] Hence, the gas sensor module according to the present invention is capable of detecting the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) depending on a change in the electrical resistance value when coming into contact with the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and measuring the concentration thereof.

[0038] As illustrated in FIG. 2 to FIG. 3, the gas sensor module includes an insulating substrate, a pair of thin-film electrodes formed on the insulating substrate, a conductive carbon powder configured to connect the pair of thin-film electrodes, and a permeable thin polymer film applied on the pair of thin-film electrodes and the conductive carbon powder.

[0039] Here, the distance between the pair of thin-film electrodes that are spaced apart from each other may be designed to be a narrow width of 1 mm or less, and the gas sensor module of the present invention is preferably provided with a plurality of arrays including the pair of thin-film electrodes, which are spaced apart from each other at the fine width.

[0040] The process of detecting volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and measuring the concentration thereof using the gas sensor module is described below. When the gas sensor module is exposed to volatile organic compounds (VOCs), the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) pass through the permeable thin polymer film and are mixed with the conductive carbon powder. As such, the resistance value of the conductive carbon powder is changed, so the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are detected depending on the changed value, and the concentration thereof is measured.

[0041] Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the monitoring screen of the control center server includes a leakage detection map screen on which the detection and concentration sensor data measured using the gas sensor module of the monitoring well are displayed for each monitoring well on a map on which the locations of monitoring wells provided near the facility to be monitored are marked.

[0042] Here, the leakage detection map screen may separately output normal data indicating that the sensor data value displayed for each monitoring well is equal to or less than a preset allowable value, abnormality detection data indicating detection of an abnormality exceeding the normal data range, and leakage detection data indicating leakage detection exceeding the abnormality detection data range.

[0043] Moreover, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the monitoring screen of the control center server may further include a detection status screen on which the location of the facility to be monitored, the sensor data value for each well, the normal state, abnormality detection state, or leakage detection state for each well, the gas sensor module for each well, the communication module, the battery maintenance or replacement request, and the action status are displayed.

[0044] The above description is merely illustrative of the technical spirit of the present invention, and those skilled in the art to which the present invention belongs will appreciate that various modifications and variations are possible, without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments and drawings disclosed in the present invention are intended not to limit the technical spirit of the present invention but merely to explain the same, and the scope of the technical spirit of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments and drawings. The scope of the present invention is to be determined based on the accompanying claims, and all technical spirits within the scope equivalent thereto are to be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention.

[0045] According to the present invention, the real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system includes a monitoring well provided near a facility to be monitored for harmful chemicals including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), etc. and soil contaminants and configured to collect volatile organic compounds (VOCs) leaking from the facility to be monitored, a gas sensor module provided inside the monitoring well and configured to detect the volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and measure the concentration thereof, a communication module configured to wirelessly transmit detection and concentration sensor data measured using the gas sensor module, and a control center server configured to display the detection and concentration sensor data received from the communication module and output a monitoring screen. Thereby, harmful chemicals including volatile organic compounds (VOCs), etc., particularly volatile organic compound (VOC) gases, can be measured using the gas sensor, so even fine leaks can be detected, and moreover, the system can be reduced in size, thus effectively making it possible to realize size reduction and low cost from technical and economic aspects, whereby the real-time underground volatile-organic-compound leakage detection system of the present invention is industrially applicable.