CETIM, F-60304 Senlis Cedex, France.
Corresponding author: Johann Catty, CETIM, Pôle MCO, 52 Avenue Félix Louat, F-60304 Senlis Cedex, France, ORCiD: 0009-0006-4853-2825,
Diving Hyperb Med. 2024 Sep 30;54(3):204-211. doi: 10.28920/dhm54.3.204-211.
Therapeutic hyperbaric chambers require continuous monitoring and maintenance, including periodic requalification. The primary aim is to verify the suitability for continued safe service. Maintenance is regulated in Europe, and in France requalification is mandatory where a hyperbaric chamber operates above pressures equal to or greater than 4 bar gauge. French requalification requires a hydraulic (hydrostatic) pressure test to determine the absence of deformation and leaks during the test. However, in such cases, it is often necessary to move the chamber if the combined mass of the chamber and water may exceed the allowable floor loading strength. In 2009, an innovative alternative to a hydraulic pressure testing was authorised in France. It consists of carrying out a pneumatic pressure test simultaneously with a non-destructive monitoring technique called 'acoustic emission'. This can be compared to a microseismology technique, where sensors are applied to the pressure retaining boundary of the hyperbaric chamber, and signals emitted by the vessel under load are captured. These signals are analysed, prioritised, and classified, to determine the physical position of any sources (artifacts) through triangulation calculations. This technique makes it possible to assess the behaviour of the vessel very accurately in real time and, a posteriori, to assess its fitness for continued service. This technique reduces the unavailability time of the chamber to two days, compared to potentially several weeks when a hydraulic test is performed. Over and above financial considerations and availability of facilities, this technique provides a baseline of the integrity of pressure vessels and allows monitoring over time of any potential deterioration.
治疗性高压氧舱需要持续监测和维护，包括定期重新鉴定。主要目的是验证继续安全服务的适宜性。在欧洲，维护受到监管，在法国，如果高压氧舱的工作压力等于或大于 4 巴表压，则必须重新鉴定。法国的重新鉴定要求进行液压（静水）压力测试，以确定在测试过程中是否存在变形和泄漏。然而，在这种情况下，如果高压舱和水的总质量可能超过允许的地板承载强度，通常需要移动高压舱。2009 年，法国授权了一种替代液压压力测试的创新方法。它包括同时进行气动压力测试和一种称为“声发射”的无损监测技术。这可以与微地震学技术相媲美，其中将传感器应用于高压氧舱的压力保持边界，并捕获容器在负载下发出的信号。这些信号经过分析、优先排序和分类，通过三角测量计算确定任何源（伪影）的物理位置。该技术可实时非常准确地评估容器的行为，并在事后评估其继续服务的适宜性。与进行液压测试时可能需要数周时间相比，该技术将高压氧舱的不可用时间缩短至两天。除了财务考虑因素和设施可用性之外，该技术还提供了压力容器完整性的基准，并允许随时间监测任何潜在的恶化。
