What?
The Hyper-Gas MkII is a hydrocarbon monitor comprising of a bell
monitor which contains a sensor manifold. It is also designed to
incoporate a topside repeater (sold seperately) which mimics the status
of the bell monitor.
The unit is set to alarm at 10% of the amount of hydrocarbons required to cause anaesthesia.
Note: The Hyper-Gas MkII was not designed to monitor hyperbaric levels of H2S (hydrogen sulphide)
Why?
The unit was designed in 2006 in response to an incident in the North
Sea where a diving bell was contaminated with hydrocarbons brought into
the bell from the seabed by a diver.
Small quantities of hydrocarbons can set off gas in the bell
atmosphere and act as an anaesthetic which could prove potentially fatal
for divers if they are not made aware so that they can take evasive
action.
The Hyper-Gas MkII is now mandated by The Association of Oil &
Gas Producers (OGP) in their “411 Report” which means that any diving
contractor working for an OGP member such as Shell, BP, Total or Chevron
must have a Hyper-Gas MkII installed in their saturation diving system.
The unit is now used in the majority of operational diving bells and recognised as the accepted best industry practice.
Where?
The Hyper-Gas MkII bell monitor is located inside the diving bell so
that the presence of hydrocarbons can be detected rapidly and the divers
alerted quickly.
A topside repeater which mimics the status of the bell monitor for
the dive control team is located in the dive control area. Analox
recommends that the operator keeps a minimum of one spare manifold on
the vessel for every operational bell monitor.
