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DOMINO 

A Family of Moisture-In-Oil Sensors

 What is DOMINO?

DO = Doble
M = Moisture
IN = IN
O = Oil…Sensor

 A product from Doble Engineering that

provides continuous reliable measurement of
water content in insulating liquids.

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 Sensor Elements

DOMINO
Probe

Display/Transmitter

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 What does DOMINO™ measure?

 Relative Saturation (RS) of water in oil (0 to

100%)

 Temperature of the oil (-40 to 180C)

 Converts relative saturation and temperature to

ppm based on a Doble algorithm

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 What is Solubility and Relative Saturation?

 Solubility of an oil is defined as the amount

of dissolved water an oil can hold at a
specific temperature

 Relative saturation is the amount of water

measured in the oil in relation to the
saturation level at that temperature

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 Do Solubility Levels Change?

 Yes, and mainly because of the temperature

 As the oil increases in temperature, the ability

of the oil to hold more water also increases

 For example, solubility of water in oil at 10C

is 36 ppm, whereas at 90 C the solubility
amount is 592 ppm

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Calculated Values of Water Solubility

Temp., C Oil (ppm) Silicone (ppm)

0 22 88
10 36 125
20 55 174
30 83 237
40 121 316
50 173 414
60 242 534
70 331 678
80 446 850
90 592 1052
100 772 1287

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 How is the Solubility Level Determined?

 The solubility levels at various temperatures

have been determined experimentally by
researchers such as Paul Griffin of Doble, T.V.
Oommen of ABB, MIT and others.

 The experiment involves dissolving as much

water as the oil can hold at a specific
temperature and then measuring the amount
dissolved.

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 For Example

 An oil sample was taken from a transformer at

62C and tested for water content and the
result was 11 ppm

 To determine the relative saturation, 11 ppm

would be divided by the solubility level at 62C
which is 259 ppm multiplied by 100 (11
ppm/259 ppm x 100)

 Relative Saturation = 4.25%

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 RS Examples

Saturation Level at 62 C
100% Measured Level 2
90% Measured Level 1

80%
259
70%
Relative Saturation

60%

50%

40%

30%
80
20%

10% 11

0%
PPM

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 800

700
10% RS

50% RS
600
100% Saturation
Water Content, ppm

500

400

300

200

100

Temp., 0 C Temp., 50 C Temp., 100 C

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 Continuous %RS Measurement
14 70

Relative Saturation

Water Content, ppm

12 60
Bottom Oil
Relative Saturation, % and Water Content, ppm

10 50

Temperature, Degrees C
8 40

6 30

4 20

2 10

0 0
1
5
9

17
21
25
29
33
37
41
45
49

57
61
65
69

77
81
85
89

97
13

53

73

93

105

125
101

109
113
117
121

129
133
137
Hours

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 Why Measure Relative Saturation?

 As shown in the previous graph, the water

content is not a static measurement but a
value that is forever changing based on a
number of conditions and therefore dictates
the need for a continuous measurement

 The dielectric strength of a insulating liquid

correlates well to the relative saturation as
opposed to the concentration level in ppm

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 How does it work?
 The sensor measures the capacitance of a thin-
film polymer
 Capacitance changes as a function of the
change in relative saturation of water in the oil
 The mechanism is water vapor being adsorbed
or desorbed from the thin polymer
 Because the sensor is small and the polymer
film thin, the sensor responds quickly to
changes in relative saturation
 Response time is dependent on oil flow
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 DOMINO™ Sensing Element

Upper
electrode
Active thin film
polymer

Lower
electrodes

Supporting glass
substrate
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 Structure of the DOMINO™ Sensor

 Upper electrode
 composed of conductive material
 protects the active material of the sensor from dust,
dirt and conductive particles
 lets through water vapor
 functions as one of the two electrodes in a capacitor
 Active polymer film
 adsorbs and desorbs water vapor

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 Structure of the DOMINO™ Sensor

 Lower electrode
 made of conductive material
 functions as one of the two electrodes in a capacitor
 Glass substrate
 base material that supports the sensor structure

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 Features

 Provides instantaneous results in % RS, ppm or

temperature

 Effectively monitors oil reconditioning

 Continuous measurement allows for estimation

of:
 water content of transformer insulation system
 hazardous conditions which may occur during
temperature cycling (>50% RS)

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 Features (cont’d)

 Operates directly in the insulating liquid

 Very compact in size

 Extremely versatile

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Comparison to the chemical test for
water, ASTM D 1533 & IEC 60814
 The ppm results matches those of the Karl
Fischer Titration

 Can accurately measure water content in oils

with contaminants that adversely affect the
chemical test

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Comparison to the chemical test for water,
ASTM D 1533 (cont’d)
 DOMINO will eliminate the following:
 All the chemicals associated with the chemical
analysis
 sampling, containers and reducing error and
ingress of ambient humidity

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DOMINO™ versus Karl Fischer Titration
60

50

40
Water Content, ppm

30

20

10

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18
Samples
DOMINO Karl Fischer Titration

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 Applications

 Uses:
 Transformer mineral oils
 HMWH - R-temp, Shell Diala HFX, WEMCO-FR,
MEPSOL, Beta Fluid
 Natural Fluids, BIOTEMP, Envirotemp FR3,
BIOTRANS
 Synthetics - ECO Fluid, Polyalphaolefins, Opticool
 Generator thrust bearing oils
 Hydraulic oils
 Cable oils

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 Applications

 Has not been tested on chlorinated liquids

 Install directly on transformers

 Early prototypes have been used in INSITE for

six years

 Install directly in processing equipment

 Install in utility or manufacturers insulating

liquid storage tanks

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 Cost Savings

 DOMINO replaces costly chemicals and hazardous

waste disposal involved in the chemical analysis of
water

 DOMINO can save time and thus money by

providing continuous measurement of the moisture
content in processing applications

 When installed directly on a transformer, there is no

need to even take a sample thus saving labor time,
sample and analysis cost

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 Where to Install

 Any location that the oil can access flowing oil

all the time
 Transformer drain valve, radiator valves, or
valves for on-line monitors
 In-line via a tee or bypass loop for processing
applications
 Not recommended for use in conservator tanks
as this is not indicative of the bulk oil insulation

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 Features of Models

 Powered by either 24 VDC or 115/230 VAC

 Has NEMA 4 Enclosure so it can be installed
outside
 Comes with or without display
 Output provided by RS232 and 4-20 mA
(scaleable within 0-20 mA or 0-10 V)
 Can withstand full vacuum and pressure up to
290 psi
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 Features of Models (cont’d)

 Probe installs into a 1/2 inch NPT opening or

larger

 Accuracy including nonlinearity and

repeatability is  1% RS from 0 to 90% RS.

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 Models
Model/ Display Analog/ Power Cable Alarm Mounting
Feature RS 232 Length Relay Bracket
161  24 VDC 56 cm 
162   24 VDC 56 cm 
165   24 VDC 2m 
165-10   24 VDC 10 m 
263   115/230 56 cm 
264   115/230 2m

264-10   115/230 10 m

PS*   115/230 2m
230

*PS = PortaSampler
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An Installation

Transmitter

Probe Cable

Probe

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Transmitter View

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