Digital twin — that is, a dynamic virtual replica of a physical asset — is emerging as a powerful tool for the asset integrity management (AIM) of chemical plants. In the aftermath of a global pandemic, and with it a rapid transfer to remote working and reliance on digital technology, the true value of digital twin for AIM has become rapidly apparent and proven in recent use cases — translating into improved reliability, rapid access to actionable intelligence, enhanced proactive maintenance and reduced inspection frequency.
Operators need to become more efficient in order to reduce maintenance costs, improve up time, and reduce risk — which they are able to do via a virtual twin of their plants and the assets within them, where the live conditions of the assets can be visualized remotely with the click of a button. The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is the enabler for a digital twin, especially for the chemicals industry. It is the connector between the physical assets and the virtual representation of that same asset. It is the convergence of information technology (IT) to operational technology (OT), bringing to life a visual contextualization of assets that converts big data into actionable information.
What exactly is IIoT, and why should it matter to chemical plants? What is digital twin really in the context of asset integrity management? How substantial are the cost savings, and why should chemical plant operators pay attention? This paper answers those questions and examines not only the benefits of digital twin for AIM, but also the urgency with which it should be implemented and the affordable simplicity with which it can be done.
In this paper, we will examine:
- What digital twin technology is and its context for chemical plants
- Ways asset data is captured and visualized in a digital twin
- The kinds of asset integrity data captured in a digital twin
- How to leverage this data to create value to an AIM program
- Strategies for efficient, affordable implementation
- Use cases specific to the chemical industry
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