Tricon system SOE time synchronization issue?
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Recently, one of the compressors in our facility experienced brief surging for about 3 minutes. It is now necessary to investigate the reasons behind this surging. Since the time displayed on the INTOUCH system connected to that compressor differs from the time shown by the DCS system – the INTOUCH time is about 7 minutes behind that of the DCS – by examining the historical trends of parameters such as flow rates and pressures at the compressor’s inlet and outlet in the DCS system, it can be determined that the surging occurred between 7:25 and 7:27 (in DCS time). As the INTOUCH system shows a time 7 minutes later than the DCS system, the historical trends of various parameters as viewed through INTOUCH indicate that the surging took place between 7:32 and 7:34 (in ITCC time). These two times are roughly consistent with each other. Parameters such as temperature, pressure, and flow rate at the compressor’s inlet and outlet are transmitted to both the DCS and CCS systems via safety gates with one input and two outputs. The problem is that when the SOE was activated, it indicated that the compressor emitted a surge signal and the anti-surge valve was fully opened at 7:22. If we assume that the SOE time corresponds to the INTOUCH time, then by looking at the historical trends of the various flow rates of the compressor on the INTOUCH system, it can be seen that everything was normal and stable at 7:22. Similarly, when examining the historical data from the DCS system (whose time should be 7:15), all parameters also appeared normal, which indicates that the values shown by the field instruments regarding the compressor’s flow rates and pressures are generally reliable. The management believes that the SOE time should be used as the basis for analyzing the cause of the surge. On the other hand, if we assume that the SOE time and the DCS time are consistent (since the DCS time is more accurate), then at 7:22 all parameters of the compressor were stable as well, with no signs of surge. This puts me in a difficult position. Have any of you sea friends encountered similar problems? If everything is normal according to the surge time periods recorded by the SOE, how can an accident report be prepared? Crying my eyes out? How can I determine that the SOE time is out of sync with the host computer time?
It seems that nowadays a time synchronizer called GPS is used; the price of domestic versions is around over 10,000 RMB. A switch is needed to connect the systems that need to be synchronized, and an antenna is required to be installed on the roof. LZ can give this a try
The times of Tricon, DCS, and Intouch are different to begin with, and synchronization is required.
If the time between your DCS system and the TRICON system is not synchronized, then the times of these two systems will definitely differ. Moreover, the clock of the controllers in the TRICON system, that is, the SOE time stamps, will also not match the times shown in the historical trend data. In fact, it’s sufficient to synchronize the DCS clock with the TRICON SOE clock; this is usually done during system configuration, and there is a functional block available for this purpose in the TRICON system.
DCS and ITCC are not synchronized in time, which often leads to timing discrepancies; therefore, time synchronization is required on a regular basis, once a day. In my understanding, the SOE time should be consistent with the ITCC time, and the INTOUCH time should be consistent with the computer time; therefore, there is also a difference between the SOE time and the time in the historical trend data. I use the SOE time as the reference to determine when events occur, as it is the ITCC of Tricon that controls the surge protection system. I’m not sure if I understand correctly