Lenterra

Press Release – Lenterra, Inc. Announces Release of RealShear™ M-Series Wall Shear Stress Sensors with Reduced Form Factor and Larger Measurement Range

lenterra — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:29:15 +0000

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Newark, NJ – Mar. 7, 2012 – Lenterra, Inc. today announced the release of the new M-Series line of RealShear™ sensors. A follow-up to the flagship F-Series sensor, the M-Series line features sensors with a substantially smaller footprint. The more miniature design allows installation into equipment with tighter clearances. They are also available with much larger measurement ranges (up to 1 MPa) compared with previous sensors. Like their F-Series cousins, M-Series in-line sensors provide continuous, real-time measurement of wall shear stress at rates of up to 1,000 samples per second with no disruption of process flow. They can also be used to calculate viscosity in combination with known flow parameters. Application areas include industrial mixing, extrusion, and pipelines.
The original F-Series sensors possess a 1/4”-80 (6.4 mm diameter) threaded cylindrical housing. The M-Series housing is almost half that diameter, with a 6-80 thread (0.135 inch [3.4 mm] diameter). This smaller form factor is particularly useful when the radius of curvature of a pipe or mixer stator is small (1 inch [25 mm] diameter or less), or when the mounting location simply can’t accommodate a wider sensor. Models with large measurement ranges are well suited for high-shear mixers. M-Series sensors are offered with the same rugged design as their predecessors, and are available in both standard and high-temperature models, with maximum operating temperatures of 100°C/200°F and 200°C/400°F, respectively.
“This new form factor will give customers greater flexibility in sensor placement,” says Valery Sheverev, President and CEO of Lenterra Inc. “Measurement locations that weren’t accessible before are now possible.”
Lenterra’s novel RealShear™ sensors make it possible to measure the wall shear stress in mixers and extruders in real time. This insight can help process engineers carefully control conditions to consistently produce product with desired properties. Throughput can also be improved by ensuring that no extra or unnecessary mixing is performed. Armed with wall shear stress measurements, engineers can rapidly replicate processes developed in the laboratory on an industrial scale (scale up), thus bringing new products to market faster. The sensors can also be used in pipeline monitoring applications, where knowledge of the wall shear stress induced on the inner surface of a pipe by liquids or gases passing through it can help flow assurance engineers determine what types of components are present in the flow and also the nature of the flow dynamics. This information can be important in crude oil extraction, helping to estimate the relative amounts of hydrocarbons, water, sand, etc., present, and to predict when it is necessary to replace aging pipelines due to corrosion.
RealShear™ sensors work by using micro-optical resonators to detect minute lateral displacements at the face of the sensor when it experiences shear stress from particles/fluids with which it is in contact. These displacements cause the resonant spectrum of the micro-optical resonators to shift, which can be detected by interrogating them with light. Optical controllers that perform the interrogation and communicate measurements with a user’s computer are also available from Lenterra.
The development of wall shear sensors has been supported by the National Science Foundation under the Small Business Innovation Research program.

RealShear™ Sensors Featured in Chemical Engineering Magazine

lenterra — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 15:37:48 +0000

Lenterra’s RealShear™ sensors were featured in the Chementator section of the January 2012 issue of Chemical Engineering Magazine.

Lenterra to Exhibit at the ChemShow 2011 Expo

lenterra — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 18:17:20 +0000

Lenterra will be exhibiting at booth #644 at the ChemShow Process Equipment and Technology Expo at the Javits Center in New York City November 1-3. Customers are invited to stop by to see a live demonstration of a RealShear sensor on an Arde Barinco benchtop high-shear mixer. A presentation will be given at 2:30 on Wed. Nov. 2 in the Exhibitor Product Technology Theater about the technology behind the sensors and applications for their use.

Presentation at the Advisory Board Meeting of the Institute for Corrosion and Multiphase Technology

lenterra — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 15:32:27 +0000

Lenterra’s President Valery Sheverev gave a presentation on the company’s shear stress sensor technology to the Advisory Board of the Institute for Corrosion and Multiphase Technology at Ohio University on Oct. 11, 2011. The presentation is available for download. [Download Powerpoint]

New Patent Issued for Optical Micro-Resonator Sensing

lenterra — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 15:40:13 +0000

Lenterra has been issued a patent entitled “Load Cell and System for Measuring Forces Based on Optical Spectra Shifts ” (U.S. Pat. No. 8028586). This is the third patent awarded to the company.

Press Release – Lenterra, Inc. Announces Release of RealShear™ Line of Wall Shear Stress Sensors

lenterra — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 16:18:10 +0000

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Newark, NJ – Oct 1, 2011 – Lenterra, Inc. today announced the release of its RealShear™ line of sensors for the direct measurement of wall shear stress. These sensors represent the first commercially available system of their kind in the world. The in-line sensors provide continuous, real-time data measurement rates of up to 1,000 per second with no disruption of process flow. They can also be used to calculate viscosity in combination with known flow parameters. Application areas include industrial mixing, extrusion, and pipelines.

When fluids flow along boundaries, or components of mixers rotate inside a fluid, a force is induced between the fluid and the boundary wall that can be represented by two components, one perpendicular to the surface of the boundary and another tangential, or parallel to the surface. The former is known as pressure force, and the latter as shear force. While pressure transducers are readily available commercially for the measurement of the perpendicular force, no sensors for the direct measurement of the shear force, or wall shear stress, are commercially available. Lenterra’s novel RealShear™ sensors make it possible to measure the wall shear stress in mixers and extruders in real time. This insight can help process engineers carefully control conditions to consistently produce product with desired properties. Throughput can also be improved by ensuring that no extra or unnecessary mixing is performed. Armed with wall shear stress measurements, engineers can rapidly replicate processes developed in the laboratory on an industrial scale (scale up), thus bringing new products to market faster.

The sensors can also be used in pipeline monitoring applications, where knowledge of the wall shear stress induced on the inner surface of a pipe by liquids or gases passing through it can help flow assurance engineers determine what types of components are present in the flow and also the nature of the flow dynamics. This information can be important in crude oil extraction, helping to estimate the relative amounts of hydrocarbons, water, sand, etc., present, and to predict when it is necessary to replace aging pipelines due to corrosion.

“As a physicist with more than 30 years experience, I know first hand that wall shear stress has long been an elusive property to measure, and a long sought after problem in fluid mechanics and related applications.” says Valery Sheverev, President and CEO of Lenterra Inc. “We could estimate it, try to calculate it and make our best guesses, but we could not directly measure it — until now. After years of development efforts, we are proud to present the first commercially available solution to this problem, in the form of our line of RealShear™ sensors, which, in combination with known fluid parameters, also provide real time measurement of viscosity, another long-sought after property that, until now, has been difficult to measure in situ. Imagine being able to monitor the real time changes to the properties of a manufactured product – as it is being made. This is now possible with our new line of sensors.”

RealShear™ sensors work by using micro-optical resonators to detect minute lateral displacements at the face of the sensor when it experiences shear stress from particles/fluids with which it is in contact. These displacements cause the resonant spectrum of the micro-optical resonators to shift, which can be detected by interrogating them with light. Optical controllers that perform the interrogation and communicate measurements with a user’s computer are also available from Lenterra.

Since the RealShear™ sensor system is wholly optical, it is free from electro-magnetic interference, while still operating in a host of environments and particle flows (opaque and translucent, as well as transparent).

The development of wall shear sensors has been supported by the National Science Foundation under the Small Business Innovation Research program.

Patent Issued for Shear Stress Sensor

lenterra — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 15:58:00 +0000

Lenterra has been issued a patent entitled “Shear Stress Measurement Apparatus” (U.S. Pat. No. 7770463). The patent protects Lenterra’s design for a sensor that measures fluid shear stress at a wall utilizing a micro-optical resonator. This is the second patent awarded to the company.

Lenterra Featured in NJBiz Magazine

lenterra — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 15:20:58 +0000

Lenterra has been featured in the 2010 edition of Business Profiles published by NJBIZ magazine (“Where Ideas Get Better,” p. 27).

Lenterra Receives NSF Phase II SBIR Grant for WGM Shear Stress Sensor Technology

lenterra — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 19:40:27 +0000

Lenterra has been awarded a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant from the National Science Foundation for a project entitled “Shear Stress Sensor Based on Optical Micro-Spring Technology.” This is a follow-up award that continues work initiated during the Phase I grant awarded for 2009.

New Website Launched

lenterra — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 22:40:52 +0000

Lenterra has launched a brand new website. The new site has a modern look and feel, and contains new information about technology development at the company, including the history of Lenterra, a product pipeline, comprehensive lists of patents, grants, and publications, links to Lenterra’s partners, and new photos and video content.