Multisensor Loggers (MSL)

Owned by jr_pinero
Last updated: Nov 22, 2020
15 min read

NOTE: The nomenclature of the tracks, WRMSL vs STMSL was changed from FWD to AFT tracks after X379???, when the X-Ray Logger was installed on the FWD track.

 

Whole-Round Multisensor Logger - WRMSL (AFT track)


Expedition 390C

Nov 22, 2020 The water pump (sn P305133) of the PWave station starts to stop each 15 seconds during U1558, it was necesary to start it after that time. To solve the problem and continue with the measurements the water pump was changed, sn P303417 was installed. Ets review it, the problem was related with a configuration setting, it has a configuration setting of volume of 10.00 ml, but it should be set to OFF in order to continuously operate. Sn P305133 is intalled again on the PWave station.

Oct 28, 2020 QSG was review and updated in Confluence.

Oct 12, 2020 Jurie Kotze cleaned and grease the guides-brakes of the P-Wave hydraulic system. During lasts expeditions if the track was not used during a period of time, the P-wave system was not closing the first two-three times, after that it continues to work normally. We will continue to grease the system while is working to ensure that if there is grease stack it will go out.

Oct 12, 2020 Luan Heywood, polished the pucks of the transducers.

Oct 9, 2020 Water standard values were a little bit low during X384. These values will be checked during X390C and try to find out why they were low. ONGOING TESTING

 

Expedition 390P II

No Issues

Expedition 384/390P I

See expedition technical report

Expedition 387P/387T

Gamma-Ray Attenuation Densiometry (GRA)

  • Last GRA calibration information was added GRA setup.

 

 

Magnetic Susceptibility (MS)

  • MS3 meter PN 53782 was installed, replacing MS2 meter. Appropriate IMS code changes were made.

  • Drift button was taken out from MS Measurement Editor setup.

  • Inventory of Bartington instruments onboard was done and display on Confluence. Several differences with AMS inventory were found. We are working with Heather Barnes and Lise Sieber to fix those differences.

P-Wave Velocity Logging (PWL)

  • Calibration and tests were performed after software upgrades. The station s working properly.

Suggestions / notes

  • No aditional Emergency Stop was installed to the PWL station for safety reasons, it takes out the power of the transducers hydraulic not allowing the openig. Instead, when the Emergency Stop is pushed the last movement that transducers make is opening.

Expedition 378/378S

  • When the IMS code was updated and committed to SVN the MS control files no longer were being written consistently.  The code from the STMSL was moved over to the WRMSL.  To get the PWAVE to open, an edit needed to be made in the WRMSL defaults.vi so I_PI_PWAVE was included in the enable structure. Algie hard coded this so that STMSL would stop giving errors at launch due to the missing Pwave system.

  • Jan 8, 2020 The IMS code was modified so the file automatically write to the IN folder.  The edit was made in the I_PI_MS2.vi under the SAVE SAMPLE File case statement.  The case statement for WRMSL and STMSL were changed from TEMP to Final.  File appears to write to IN folder immediately. 

  • MS files have been writing to the TEMP folder until the pusher section is run through the track.  The files would then transfer to the IN folder. If the user had to abort, the completed MS files had to be manually moved to the IN folder for upload. This was first noted on Exp 385. 

Expedition 378T

  • Do not use the MS drift feature until further information is available. Its current function is not clear.

  • Dec 8, 2019During the core flow test, the IMS behavior was very slow and showed some bugs that were not present previously. Computer was restarted and it works well again. The reason of that behavior is unknown.

  • Liner Delay is displayed again on the SETUP PWAVE window. This value comes from the calibration.

  • Red rubber cleaners/squeegee on the PWL are replaced.

  • The two Emergency Stop buttons stop only the X-axis actuator and not the pneumatic PWL actuators. When the PWL had the Exlar actuator, it had a dedicated Emergency Stop button. This may need to be re-installed, pending ongoing discussion. 

  • Dec 2, 2019GRA source and detector where realigned to have the maximum gamma ray count and better calibration results and measurements.

Expedition 385

  • GRA driftNov 4, 2019 

  • Offset in GRA data  : Starting at core 10 in the figure attached below, density readings went off the expected range while the core material did not differ from the previous core. It could be caused by considerable dripping of liquid from the core sections while they were being pushed through the track. Light shakes exerted on the core sections from the WRMSL pusher's intermittent displacement may have cause the sandy material to become more fluid, inducing water flow through drilled holes on the liners. The GRA was cleaned and re-calibrated. The density readings were improved.

  • Magnetic Susceptibility data was only uploaded after the 'end sequence' (water rod) while density (GRA) and P-wave velocity data were uploaded right away. This caused MS data loss when the measuring sequence was interrupted and cancelled. The MS files are stored in temporary directory.

  • Pusher stalled while moving back to Load positionOct 21, 2019  : After pushing a core through the track and moving back to Load position, the pusher stalled and the measurement had to be cancelled. This was caused by slippage of the pulley on the drive motor. This issue was fixed by tightening the set screw.

  • P-Wave Calibration: The steel tube delivering water for contact improvement is protruding off the transducer's face plane, causing the standard aluminum block to press against the tube when the caliper is engaging. The laser offset calibration will be incorrect if using that aluminum block. This issue was circumvented by using a standard aluminum block from Gantry track which has the same width but a shorter height so that it is not pressed against the steel tube.

  • IMS bugSep 23, 2019: When doing GRA calibration using the standard (having aluminum bar of different thicknesses and D.I. water), the software did not have the green "Accept Calibration" button. It was found later that there was a bug in the software which would not accept the calibration result if the water density reading does not fall within 0.02%. This issue was resolved onSep 24, 2019

Expedition 379T/385T

  • Scientist discovered why the START button in IMS sometimes disappeared: if the end-of-track limit switch is triggered, the START button disappears after the end of core and water pusher is ran through. Bill corrected the issue in IMS by prioritizing the actions after the switch is triggered.

  • The home and CW limit switches at the beginning of the track were moved inward (i.e. closer to the instrument station) to prevent the grinding sound generated when the head nears the end of the actuator. As a result, the CCW limit switch (close to the GRA) was also adjusted closer to the GRA in order to maintain the available travel offset for the actuator.

  • During the zeroing step of the MS meter, the intruder detection switch does not provide feedback to the software that something is in the loop, and would allow the sample measurement to proceed. They should be re-measured again once the data offset is discovered. The problem is now fixed in IMS.

  • The .MS files on AUX_DATA were recorded with two points in front of ..MS, similar to the output file from the SHMSL. Bill Mills solve that issue.

  • During the MS3 measurements, the time stamp in the MS file is referenced to 01/01/1904. It is necessary to correct this column on the data file in order to have the correct date, but this issue doesn’t affect the measurements result.

  • Switch on the MS detects if there is an object on the loop, but doesn’t communicate that information to the software, so not warning will appear.

  • The top of section switch can detect if there is an object before START a core measurement. If the water pusher is forget inside the track, the top of section switch will not detect it when a new core will begging to be measured.

  • At the beginning of the expedition, the equation to calculate the velocity of P waves in water as a function of temperature was updated to the reference that Gary Acton sent:

  • Vp_water = 1402.385 + 5.038813T - 5.799136E-02T^2 + 3.287156E-04T^3 - 1.398845E-06T^4 + 2.787860E-09T^5   (Marczak, 1997)

  • The GRA was only calibrated once at the beginning of the X379T and the water values were steady between the limits. The only instance that the check measurement slightly increased for water was related to a dirty plastic cover, the cleaning of the debris allowed the values to normalize.

  • The head of screw of the water pusher was broken and in the attempt to take the screw out, the shaft was accidentally pushed inside the liner, which then had to be cut shorter to 119 cm.

  • Routine maintenance on the NSK X actuators were performed: clean and lubricate travel screw, inspect belts and tension correctly, check set screws on gears.

 

  • The AFT track was utilized as the WRMSL for all whole round measurements (MS, GRA) during Expedition 379T. The PWL station was not used because the priority was to collect data for correlation before the core equilibrated to room temperature.

  • Core 999-J1008D was measured several times with different offsets. Data live on IODP_Share/PhysProps/CORE_999_J1008D.

  • Magnetic Susceptibility Logging (MS)

    • Like in the SHMSL, three different software folders (I_PI_MS, I_PI_MS2 and I_PI_MS3) were created inside IMS-10/PLUG-INS/don’t use. Depending on which meter is connected, the PP technician needs to cut and paste the appropriate folder on PLUG-INS.

      • MS: Typical measurements with MS2

      • MS2: Measurements with MS2 for testing purpose. This file is the same on the WRMSL and the SHMSL, in order to compare their measurements.

      • MS3: Measurements with MS3 for testing purpose. This file is the same on the WRMSL and the SHMSL, in order to compare their measurement.

     

    Testing

    • Sections 999-J1008D-1H3 and 1H4 were measured at high resolution (5mm interval) to compare the results between the MS2 and MS3 meters. The main target of these test is to install the MS3 meter on the future in this track. The measurements performed can be used also for compare the MS loop data with the MSPoint data.

     

     

     

    • Experiments for measuring and applying the instrument drift were also performed with MS2 and MS3. The MS will zero the meter before measuring the first section of the core and after the measurement of the water pusher at the end (the program will tell the scientist to pull back the water pusher, out of the loop), at that moment it will correct the measurements for all the sections. Until that time the data will be kept in a temporary file, and after the drift correction, the data will be uploaded to the database.

    • The MS values derived using IMS and Bartington software were also compared.

     

Expedition 383

  • Removed bar code scanner after it was found that labels were being incorrectly read and no files were written after the measurements were completed.  Using the LIMS entry until a solution for bar code scanning issues can be found.

    • Issue may be related to a delay in retrieving SECTION information from a SHLF label in the database.  (Trouble shooting on going)  Problem is intermittent.

    • This problem stopped occurring.  This may have been related to the Result Number overflow we had.

  • Jun 4, 2019 The START button disappears occasionally after the water core is run.  The only fix is to restart the software.

Expedition 382

  • May 10, 2019:  For whatever reason, the WRMSL started having trouble with its top-of-core (TOC) sensor.  Symptoms: IMS complains there is something blocking the TOC sensor w/o any physical objects being present; ditto for the MDrive board's TOC light being lit; the TOC panel shows more than the usual ~200 count separation it does when the sensor is truly clear (but not zero either with a true breaking of the beam).  Solution:  one of the delrin rails was just barely in the way of the beam, leading to a partial-blockage situation.  Etienne shaved the rail down slightly with the Dremel tool right at the beam sensor and things are back to normal.

  • Apr 23, 2019:  We took yet another look at the GRA calibration and why a good calibration yields less than ideal results for the water measurement at the end (typically ~.98 g/cc rather than 1.0).  We noticed that every time the pusher retracts after calibration acceptance the GRA standard thumps down onto the track.  This could indicate some misalignment and could affect the water shot if such misalignment were perpendicular to the axis of the track.  In effect, the water shot expects a 6.6 cm diameter of water but "sees" less due to lateral misalignment.  We then opted to loosen the black delrin pusher with the anti-rotation slot for the GRA standard and let it float as the standard moves down the track.  Result:  a near-perfect value for water. 

Let the pusher "float" when doing a GRA calibration.

 

  • Apr 18, 2019: Both calibration standard and water pusher were re-built using a core liner from the same piece, each with a set of new end caps that with port holes to allow for easier water replacement or bubble removal. The GRA detector was also re-centered and stabilized using the 4 set screws around the housing. The Cs source was also positioned and shimmed to give maximum counts in air from the detector.  The result from a single point measurement similar to the one conducted lastApr 13, 2019 is shown in the plot below. The calibration standard water now has an average density of 0.9926 g/cc (stdev=0.0066), whereas the core pusher has a water density of 0.9942 g/cc (stdev=0.0086).

  • Apr 13, 2019: A single point along the water pusher and the calibration standard was measured multiple times with the GRA. The result is shown in the graph below. For the calibration standard, the water has an average density of 0.9998 g/cc (stdev=0.0071), whereas the core pusher has a water density of 0.9851 g/cc (stdev=0.0070). 

    Could the standard and the water pusher have different core liners used, or a difference from when the water was last replaced?

  • Apr 13, 2019; The same drift in the density check measurement of the water core pusher was noted startingApr 12, 2019. As before, similar steps were made to re-set the USB connection of the detector and re-start the PC. During succeeding core measurements, the water core pusher density was hovering at the lower limit, 0.98 +/-1 g/cc. The recent values are shown in the graph below;

  • Mar 31, 2019: GRA density of water pusher (WRND1561070) displayed a prominent decreasing trend from Apr 1, 20191006H GMT, reaching 0.935 g/cm3 on 1616H. This occurred despite repeated re-calibrations using the aluminum standard. The USB connection was unplugged and re-plugged, and since then, the density of the water pusher has stabilized between 0.99 to 0.98 g/cm3.  No explanation for the problem nor the "solution" can be given at this point.Mar 31, 2019

Expedition 379

No Issues

Expedition 368T

No Issues

Expedition 378P/368X

  • Dec 14, 2017  (DJH): Greased the ballscrew on the STMSL; need to do the WRMSL next expedition. Dec 15, 2017  (BDJ): NSK acutator actually broken after the ballscrew maintenance so has to be returned to shore. Gave ALO the tag number for shipment.

2017

Jun 25, 2018 ????? (DJH): Discussed new PWL first arrival with Bill; testing next two shifts.

 

Special-Task Multisensor Logger - STMSL (FWD track)


Expedition 390C

Oct 28, 2020 QSG was review and updated in Confluence.

Oct 9, 2020 GRA source it is not aligned. Oct 11, 2020 GRA source was positioned and aligned. The amplitude now is around 1350.

Oct 9, 2020 IMS error: The program is asking for laser AR700, MS display doesn't appear and a error message appears because the program cannot find the MS3.

Expedition 390P II

No Issues

Expedition 384/390P I

See expedition technical report

Expedition 384

  • It was observed on 387P/387T MS3 meter kept giving the same magnetic susceptibility reading of ~9,996,000 regardless of what was being measured. The same behavior was seen at the beginning of X384. Adjusting the integration from 1ms to 100ms resolved the issue. The minimum value that can be entered into IMS is 100, so it is believed to be a holdover from something else. After restarting the software and computer several times the integration time never reverted back 1ms.

Expedition 387P/387T

  • MS3 meter PN 53786 was installed, replacing MS2 meter. Appropriate IMS code changes were made.

  • Same changes applied to the AFT station were applied to this station.

Expedition 378/378S

  • Jan 8, 2020 The IMS code was modified so the file automatically write to the IN folder.  The edit was made in the I_PI_MS2.vi under the SAVE SAMPLE File case statement.  The case statement for WRMSL and STMSL were changed from TEMP to Final.  File appears to write to IN folder immediately. 

  • MS files have been writing to the TEMP folder until the pusher section is run through the track.  The files would then transfer to the IN folder. If the user had to abort, the completed MS files had to be manually moved to the IN folder for upload. This was first noted on Exp 385.

Expedition 378T

No Issues

Expedition 385

No Issues

Expedition 379T/385T

  • The GRA source and detector were physically re-aligned in order to have the largest amplitude signal and the source was secured with plastic shims and set-bolts. This should significantly reduce the measurement drift that will require re-calibration during an expedition.

  • Routine maintenance on the NSK X and Y actuators were perform: clean and lubricate travel screw, inspect belts and tension correctly, check set screws on gears (See X-Ray Imager).

Expedition 383

  • The grey block was modified to slide in without removing the screws from the pusher.  This makes the switch between whole round and section half quicker on this track.

  • Jun 13, 2019Replaced fiber optic line after it was found to be broken.

  • Jun 4, 2019Occassional motor issued noted, typically at the end of a STMSL measurement.  The motor would not move home.  Today the motor stopped suddenly midway to home.  The motor was homed and software was restarted.  The motor then began trying to home, but was past the switch and would not find the home, it just kept counting negative like it was moving toward home (doesn't crash and cancel like NGR).  The system was reset and the motor would not move. It could be heard to be attempting to move and slight movements were perceived, but the motor would not move in STMSL or X-RAY configuration.  ET switched out the M-drive.  When first lauched the new motor did not find home (jerky slow attempts to move), but the motion was stopped, the  "initialize motor" button was used, and the new M-drive motor began to work.  Note that we are currently switching cables back and forth between computers to operate the seperate STMSL/X-RAY tracks.  The problem was likely due to loose set screws in the belt wheel allowing the belt to slip during motion commands.

Expedition 382

No Issues

Expedition 379

No Issues

Expedition 368T

No Issues

Expedition 378P/368X

  • WRMSL Issues - Current bug, when doing a PWave calibration. If the Calibration window is opened it automatically turns off the Pwave once the window is closed. If the instrument is then turned back on, the track completely bipasses the GRA. The work around this for now is to do the Pwave calibration and close the program before running. Another issue, the GRA standard was rebuilt and the offsets changed, this needed to be updated in the software. Note, this seemed like it had been updated until we rewrote the .ini file....is this hardwired in IMS some how?

  • WRMSL - Track defaults within the code override the user settings if the .ini files are wiped for any reason, we were able to find these defaults in the code and have changed them to the correct values (the pusher width was increased by 1cm with the addition of the GRA standard connector) ; this was noticed because the top of core sensor was set to the wrong offset and was leaving a 1cm gap between sections as it pushed forward.

  • Nov 27, 2018WRMSL - Manual tab of sample selector does not supply a way to input a length (compared with SHIL).  Can't run any fake names.     

  • Nov 27, 2018WRMSL/PWL - Liner thickness in "Set P-WAVE Logger screen" has incorrect units.  Says cm should be mm.  

  • Nov 27, 2018WRMSL/PWL - After calibration, the liner delay is not displayed in the "Set P-WAVE Logger" screen.  However, the liner velocity is displayed properly.  

  • Nov 27, 2018WRMSL - question... what does the "Restore Track" button do?  

  • Nov 27, 2018WRMSL/PWL - Disabling the velocity filter in "Set P-WAVE Logger screen"  is not honored in practice.  Track continues to apply 'out of bounds' filtering regardless during the measurement pass.  Also, filter hard max is 7000 m/s which is not high enough for naked Al standard run as a core (~7200 m/s). But, behavior is inconsistent and needs further testing.  

  • WRMSL/PWL - if you change the liner thickness in the PWL calibration screen (e.g. after using a default PWL config file) it can take an extra button push to generate reasonable liner velocities and delays.  Something hung up in an array?

  • Nov 27, 2018WRMSL/PWL- When adjusting the offset to the P-wave instrument, the values are written to the Pwave .ini file as soon as the user clicks outside of the text field.  If the user cancels, this incorrect value is still in the .ini file (previous value used stays in the setup window).  If the software is restarted, the incorrect value is pulled from the .ini file.  This does not happen for the MS or GRA.