The search for water leaks is now more efficient, thanks to cosmic rays
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Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Jun 15, 2023 6:00 PM
2023-06-15 Lorenzo Minganti, a non-executive and independent member of Hera S.p.A.’s Board of Directors and of the Company’s Control and Risk Committee, has announced his resignation, due to...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Other press releases -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Jun 14, 2023 11:39 AM
2023-06-14 Hera achieves second place in the overall ranking published by the index measuring the degree to which ESG factors are integrated within the governance of Italy’s top 100 listed...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Other press releases -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date May 15, 2023 11:00 AM
2023-05-15 Kindly note that as of today the minutes of the Shareholders Meeting held on 27 April 2023 are available at company headquarters, on the Hera Group’s website...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Shareholders’ meeting Price sensitive -
Web Content Article · written-by Davide Donnarumma on-date May 10, 2023 3:30 PM
2023-05-10 The Board of Directors of Hera S.p.A. met today and assessed the independence of all members, appointed by the Shareholders Meeting held on 27 April 2023. Based on the declarations made...
Comunicati stampa: Shareholders’ meeting Price sensitive Hera Spa -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date May 10, 2023 12:10 PM
2023-05-10 The consolidated quarterly report at 31 March shows growth in the main operating-financial indicators, once again proving the financial solidity and strength of the Group’s...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Price sensitive Financial Results -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date May 5, 2023 4:41 PM
2023-05-04 The multi-utility’s 2022 Sustainability Report confirms its commitment to a just transition. Pursuing carbon neutrality, regenerating resources, enabling resilience and innovating remain...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Sustainability -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Apr 27, 2023 10:01 AM
2023-04-27 The Group continues along its path of growth, creating value shareholders and the local areas served. Cristian Fabbri appointed Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors and Orazio...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Shareholders’ meeting Price sensitive -
Web Content Article · written-by Davide Donnarumma on-date Apr 20, 2023 3:20 PM
2023-04-21 Please note that the deed of execution dated April 13, 2023 relating to the issue by Hera S.p.A. of a 600 million euro Sustainability-linked Bond, 10 years, due 2033, is available to...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Other press releases -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Apr 13, 2023 5:31 PM
2023-04-14 Strong interest of international investors for the second sustainability-linked bond of the multiutility, for an amount equal to Euro 600 million and a maturity of 10 years, which...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Price sensitive Other press releases -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Apr 12, 2023 10:33 AM
2023-04-12 Hera S.p.A. (the “Company”) announces that on the date hereof the update of its Euro Medium Term Notes programme has been completed, with the increase from euro 3.5 billion to euro 4.5...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Price sensitive Other press releases -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Apr 5, 2023 12:59 PM
2023-04-06 Kindly note that the following documentation, pertaining to the Shareholders Meeting convened for 27 April 2023, is available to the public at the Company headquarters, on the...
Comunicati stampa: Shareholders’ meeting Hera Spa -
Web Content Article · written-by Davide Donnarumma on-date Apr 5, 2023 12:55 PM
2023-04-06 The minority lists containing candidates for the appointment of the Board of Directors and the Board of Statutory Auditors, accompanied by the respective documents required by current...
Comunicati stampa: Shareholders’ meeting Hera Spa -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Apr 4, 2023 12:54 PM
2023-04-06 Bologna, 6 April 2023 – The following table contains the data concerning the shares outstanding and the number of voting rights representing the share capital as at 31 March 2023. ...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Shareholders’ meeting -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Apr 4, 2023 11:34 AM
2023-04-05 Kindly note that the following documents, approved by the Hera S.p.A. Board of Directors, have been made available to the public at company headquarters, on the website...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Shareholders’ meeting Price sensitive Financial Results -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Apr 4, 2023 9:41 AM
2023-04-03 The regional government has awarded funding for 19.5 million euros for the development of a hub that will produce up to 400 tonnes of hydrogen per year from water and renewable energy...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Other press releases -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Mar 21, 2023 12:47 PM
2023-03-21 The year ended positively, with growth in the main operating and financial indicators. The Group’s financial solidity and its multi-business industrial model allowed it to maintain a low...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Price sensitive Financial Results Other press releases -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Mar 14, 2023 10:19 AM
2023-03-14 The transaction represents a strategic step in the business portfolio evolution of both the groups in the IT-TLC sector, in line with their respective industrial plans. Today, the Hera...
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Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Mar 9, 2023 11:28 AM
2023-03-09 The recognition came today in Milan, during the eleventh edition of the Prize that analyses and valorises the performance of the most important Italian companies in the utility sector. ...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Other press releases -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Mar 7, 2023 12:27 PM
2023-03-08 The majority lists of candidates for the appointment of the Board of Directors and the Board of Statutory Auditors, accompanied by the relevant documentation required by the regulations...
Comunicati stampa: Hera Spa Shareholders’ meeting -
Web Content Article · written-by Palvi Andrea Tonziello on-date Mar 8, 2023 10:06 AM
2023-03-08 With reference to the binding agreement signed on 7 November 2022, the partnership was finalised today between Hera and ACR, one of Italy’s leading companies in the sector of...
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Hera continues experimentation of the innovative, fast and low-cost contactless system that uses space technology to detect water leaks in the network more quickly and productively
So far, the method used to find leaks in the water mains that run under our streets has been acoustic detection: technicians walk the kilometres of asphalt above the mains and use special devices to locate leakage points.
Now, however, thanks to a system that uses cosmic rays, detection can also be carried out while following the network path in a car, thus proving faster and more profitable.
Cosmic rays: what are they and how can they be used?
Cosmic rays are an innovative method for water leak detection, based on the analysis of neutrons derived from secondary cosmic rays. It follows the same principle used to test whether there is water on Mars, but it can have different applications; for example, it is used in agriculture in the US for targeted irrigation.
In short, this technology exploits non-damaging particles, the neutrons, from space. These continuously impact Earth, generating collisions between secondary beams, the energy of which decreases according to the material that is passed through. In particular, hydrogen in water interacts with neutrons by slowing them down or absorbing them. The amount of water in the ground can therefore be assessed by monitoring neutrons in the air: ground where water is present in a higher percentage will have a greater moderating/absorbing effect on cosmic rays than a drier area.
By analysing the concentration of free cosmic rays, the presence of a water leak can be determined quickly and accurately, saving considerable time compared to traditional methods of investigation. In fact, this system can control a considerably larger network area, because it can travel on any vehicle on which it is mounted.
The search can be carried out by real-time identification, i.e. simply by the passage of the device over the tube and immediate verification of the leakage as soon as the sensor signals a decrease in the number of neutrons, or by deferred search, when the sensor placed on a moving vehicle passes over the area several times and then indicates the wettest spots.
The operator will no longer need to walk the entire water network with the geophone, but can go directly to the points identified on the map.
Experimentation and results
Together with the Department of Nuclear Physics at the University of Padua, we have developed a device that, mounted on a car, allows operators to travel along the network and monitor the concentration of neutrons on the road surface.
The vehicle moves at a speed of 40-50 km/h along the road under which the water network runs and, using cosmic ray analysis, the levels of detected neutrons are shown on a display. When the concentration drops, it is a sign that the neutrons have been retained under the soil by a cluster of water. When this happens, it means that there may be a water leak in that very spot, underground, and technicians can promptly intervene for repairs.
The testing of this technology, which we have been conducting since 2021, has confirmed the scientific soundness of the method: out of several thousand kilometres investigated, the same number of ruptures were found as with the traditional acoustic method, but with the advantage that the cosmic ray method is more productive, since the operator moves around in a car rather than on foot.
With a network of some 30,000 kilometres to check, having this tool allows us to make great strides. In addition, cosmic rays are sensitive to even modest leaks, such as those from pipe joints, which are more difficult to detect accurately.
This technology, which we have implemented thanks to a partnership with the start-up Cosmic and the team at Neptune Srl, is based on an isotope of lithium, lithium-6, which is the element that allows us to detect neutrons. We will continue to use it alongside the classic acoustic method, to locate all possible leaks and increase the level of effectiveness of interventions.
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