Page 36 - Gi_April2022

igem news – yppc

Customer engagement FIGURE 2 EXAMPLE OF AN LPG ROAD TANKER
The primary concern in changing to an
odorant of such differing characteristics
is the risk that the odour introduced
will not be recognisable as an actual gas
leak and, therefore, escapes may not be
readily identified. The characteristics
of the odour produced by THT could
be generally described as a chemical,
oily or tarry smell, whereas EM may be
considered more organic – commonly
compared to rotting vegetation.
The challenge lay in how best to
communicate this to a geographic area
consisting of the general public and
actual gas consumers, many of whom
had very limited familiarity or interest
in gas rhinology.
Initially, scratch and sniff cards the concentration satisfactory or not. settled in the storage vessels in
were brainstormed, but due to lack of SGN has trained rhinologists located a liquid phase and across the PE
willing suppliers in a limited timeframe strategically across network points network in vapour phase.
this idea was dismissed. Through who are select individuals, often from
my engagement with SGN internal a larger maintenance department or Conclusion
communications and stakeholder team. The SIU teams have limited The Stornoway town now runs entirely
teams, I produced notification letters resources and as such utilise local from EM-odorised LPG, having
intended for consumers highlighting operatives or managers who carry fully settled into the network. The
the upcoming change. These were out this role. To ensure continued redundant odoriser has since been
issued in phases across the programme, competence, they are regularly decommissioned and removed from the
initially one month in advance of the calibrated through annual or local site with all odorant storage removed,
changeover, one following up to confirm training whereby a test reference further improving the overall safety of
the changeover had taken place and one gas is used and they must determine the site by removing a hazard source.
month following. if the odour intensity is rated on a We have determined that quarterly
The third and final letter was issued 1-5 ‘Sales scale’ . This scale is an bagging samples will continue from
3
in early 2021 as a general follow-up internationally accepted means of rotational site and district sniff points
and reminder to customers of the assessing odour intensity (OI) and, in and all odorant concentration data
changeover. All letters were issued ideal circumstances, the OI should sit at gathered. Ultimately, the key test
to the local town – not limited to SGN between 2 and 2.5. is local rhinology reports and the
customers only – as anyone in proximity The use of the Sales scale is well- concentration will not be adjusted
to the network and its connections could established across the natural gas unless these indicate the need for it.
potentially detect a gas leak. network. However, since propane has I am still working with DNV to
Each letter contained a phone different characteristics, is not widely develop a test reference gas for a
number that linked customers to our used in local networks and uses a more suitable rhinology calibration
local admin team who would pass different odorant as described, there is procedure to be used locally. With
any technical or further queries to no existing ethyl mercaptan OI curve limited data available for EM and the
myself. As expected, we received few to reference. There is an ongoing piece operations of changing gas odorants
responses, however from word of of work, which I commissioned in across small or large networks,
mouth through our local engineers conjunction with DNV, to produce the this project has proved extremely
who frequently spend time in customer world’s first EM reference test gas for challenging with multiple stakeholders
houses for boiler maintenance, it was Stornoway rhinologists to use when interested and numerous technical
clear the local district was well aware of carrying out local calibrations. As there issues to overcome.
the change. is a significant amount of laboratory
To supplement the customer letters and testing work involved, this work is Don’t forget, you can catch up on all the
and reach as many locals as possible, presently still ongoing. presentations from the YPPC 2021 Final
I prepared media releases across The frequency of local sniff testing via our video channel, IGEMtv
local newspapers and social media. was increased to daily checks across
Newspapers such as The Press and five district test points for two months
Journal and Stornoway Gazette wrote following the changeover. To provide
articles on the changeover and assisted more external assurances, I contacted References
in describing the new smell. a lab and extracted gas samples to 1. BS4250: Specification of Commercial Propane
run chromatograph analysis on ppm and Butane, section 5.3, table 1
Testing content where we could compare the 2. GasTec No.72L Ethyl Mercaptan Disposable
Rhinology testing is a critical factor in results provided at each load from Test Tube Data sheet: www.gastec.co.jp/files/user/
determining whether there is adequate the supplier. All results were over asset/pdf/en/detector_tube/72L.pdf
odorant in the gas mix, where this the minimum requirement and, over 3. SGN/PM/GQ/2 – Management Procedure for
practice involves smelling a gas sample time, we noted that this concentration Odorisation, Odour Intensity Monitoring and
at specified explosive limits and deeming increased gradually as the odorant Control

36

17/03/2022 11:09
IGEMNews_YPPC.indd 3 17/03/2022 11:09
IGEMNews_YPPC.indd 3