Case Study: Early Fire Detection in Incineration Plant

The Amager Resource Center (ARC) is a waste incinerator like no other. From the roof of the Waste to Energy facility, skiers and snowboarders wind their way down on green plastic mats from a height of about 80 meters, even in the summer. The city hall of the Danish capital, Copenhagen, is just five kilometres away. The location, which is almost in the heart of a European capital, as well as its use as a public leisure centre, shows how much confidence operators place in the safety of the ARC. An important component in the security concept is the WASTE-SCAN infrared monitoring system for early fire detection by InfraTec.

At the heart of this solution are two high-performance camera heads, each consisting of an infrared and visual camera as twin systems. They are equipped with pan-tilt heads and are used to monitor the waste bunker and feed hopper. The twin cameras, infrared and visual, allow images of both channels to be superimposed. This ensures excellent orientation within the bunker and supports the reliable assessment of hazardous and process conditions.

Direct connection to complete extinguishing system
Integrated into special protective housings, the cameras are installed on powerful pan-tilt systems. Based on their electronic control, areas can be monitored with maximum resolution and hotspots can be detected as quickly as possible. The infrared cameras are directly connected to the extinguishing system of the ARC. As soon as they detect a fire, an alarm is automatically triggered. As a result, the cameras transmit the information to the extinguishing system concerning which zones are affected. Based on this information, two of the three water cannon systems then extinguish exactly these affected areas of the bunker. If the notification relates to one of the feed hoppers, the sprinkler system there activates.

Read more about the WASTE-SCAN monitoring system for safety in Waste-to-Energy plant