Prisma Photonics Secures Investment for Gas Line Monitoring Tech

Fiber sensing company Prisma Photonics received an investment from Israel Natural Gas Lines. News of the investment follows a deal between the parties last year in which Prisma is to implement its PrismaFlow system for continuous monitoring on gas pipeline segments in Israel.

The fiber optics-based system is designed to use existing optical fiber laid along a pipeline to identify leaks and any excavation in its proximity, and to send an alert about any damaged pipes. The system relies on optical infrastructure installed adjacent to the line, and it operates in real time.

In April, Prisma announced a similar strategic investment, from Israel Electric Corp.; Prisma will monitor the Israeli national power transmission grid via its sensing technology and, specifically, its PrismaPower fiber optics-based electrical overhead powerline monitoring solution. PrismaPower monitors 100 km of grid for electrical faults, physical damage to power towers and transmission lines, and extreme weather conditions.

Prisma Photonics’ fiber sensing technology connects an optical interrogator unit into a standard single-mode optical fiber. The interrogator transmits optical pulses that propagate down the fiber, enabling a fraction of the light to be reflected from each point along the fiber. The interrogator measures the reflected light to determine the strain, temperature, pressure, and other quantities over hundreds of kilometers of fiber with submeter resolution.