ABB PGC5000B — Smart Oven Process GC

Process GC with smart oven design. Focus: sampling & conditioning, carrier gas stability, oven stability, valve switching, detector stability, and DCS communication.

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Technician rule: For unstable results, check sample conditioning + carrier stability first. GC hardware is very sensitive to pressure hunting and moisture contamination.

Working Principle

Like all GCs, the PGC separates gas components in a column and measures them with a detector. The “smart oven” maintains stable temperature conditions for repeatable retention times and peak shapes.

  • Inject sample through a loop/valve sequence.
  • Separate components in column(s) at controlled oven temperature.
  • Detect peaks and convert peak area to concentration using calibration factors.

Main Components

  • Sample conditioning: filters, coalescers, regulators, heat tracing (if used), drains.
  • Carrier gas system: carrier bottle/header, regulator(s), traps.
  • Valves & sample loop: injection and switching valves, timing control.
  • Smart oven & temp control: heater, sensors, controller.
  • Column module: column(s), fittings, restrictions.
  • Detector module: detector + electronics.
  • Controller & comms: HMI/controller, I/O, network communications.

Calibration Procedure

1) Ensure stable operation (no sample/carrier alarms).
2) Verify carrier and sample pressures are stable (no hunting).
3) Run standard gas for calibration; allow 2–3 stable runs.
4) Update response factors per method; save and document changes.
5) Run verification standard; confirm within acceptance criteria.
6) Return to process, check trending and DCS mapping/scaling/quality bit issues.

Major Troubleshooting

  • Repeatability poor: valve timing, pressure hunting, wet sample, leaks.
  • Retention time shift: oven temperature drift, carrier flow changes.
  • Low response / missing peaks: injection valve/loop issue, restriction, detector fault.
  • No update to DCS: comms/mapping/scaling/quality bit issues.
Use Decision Trees → Chromatogram Guide →

Discussion

Share PGC5000B issues, calibration experiences, valve/peak problems. (Requires GitHub login.)