OIML R117 accepted!

OIML R117 Accepted!

At the recent CIML Meeting in Bratislava, after years of hard work, all three parts of the R117 – requirements, test procedures and test report format – were accepted. With that, the “world of liquids other than water” breathed a sigh of relief. Many people worked many years on this achievement and our compliments go out to all of them, especially to Mr. Ralph Richter from NIST, USA.

The acceptance by CIML finally ends a timeframe of many years during which clarity on some requirements and test procedures was suboptimal, especially on new technological developments in measurement. Most notable though, is the addition of LNG and Bunkering to the document.

LNG

With the global energy diversification and transition, the share of LNG in the international landscape has grown rapidly over the last decades. With that, the social, environmental and economic impact related to LNG has also increased. The new R117 offers a valuable tool to ease the application of LNG in a fair manner. Among other matters, the document deals with various scenarios for dealing with the so-called boil-off-gas, or vapour.

Bunkering

Much like cars and trucks, see-going ships or vessels need to be refuelled regularly. However, unlike road vehicles, a single “fill her up please” in this world can cost more than 10 million US Dollars. With much of the world’s long distance transport relying on ships, this multi-billion dollar business can now rely on internationally agree upon measurement criteria that offer a huge accuracy improvement over the previous metering practices.

Software

Another highlight of this revision is the increased software part. In our current digital world software is an important aspect. An aspect that must be taken into account when assessing compliance. The new revised document provides tools and guidance in order to make sure the software and firmware in the instrument is meeting the latest standards.

On reflection

Outsiders may have looked at this revision project in some amazement, particularly the time it took for its completion. However, knowing the sheer width of the document scope – which is much wider than that of a typical OIML Recommendation – this accomplishment definitely deserves recognition. Moreover, if ever one was looking for examples of metrology having societal impact, look no further. The new R117 will be of great benefit to the world’s changing energy landscape.