Read Scrubber -> Score Efficiency -> Predict Risk -> Suggest Fix -> Crew Acts

Scrubber and Stack Performance Watchdog

This agent reads your scrubber operating parameters and the stack monitor together and warns when efficiency is falling before the stack reading crosses the limit. It names the parameter driving the decline, for example a rising pressure drop or a drifting recirculation pH. It suggests a maintenance or dosing move so the crew can act before the exceedance becomes reportable.

The Problem

The stack reading went red before anyone looked at the scrubber.

Recirculation pH had been drifting low for two shifts and makeup water was down, but nobody was watching those trends. Scrubber efficiency fell quietly until the stack CEMS reading crossed the limit. By then the exceedance was already on the record and reportable. The parameters that predicted it had been sitting in the logs the whole time.

What Changes

Read the scrubber first, and the stack stays green.

The agent tracks recirculation flow, pH, pressure drop, and makeup water against the ranges that keep the scrubber efficient. When those parameters drift in a way that points to falling efficiency, it flags a rising exceedance risk and names the driver. It suggests a maintenance or dosing action so the crew can correct it before the stack reading moves.

Humans stay in control: the agent flags the falling efficiency and names the driver, but your process crew decides on the dosing or maintenance move and carries it out.

HOW THE AGENT WORKS

TRIGGERLLMAPIDECISIONACTIONWAIT

TRIGGERScrubber log updateFires when a new scrubber log entry lands.

APIFetch scrubber parametersPulls recirculation flow, pH, pressure drop, and makeup water.

APIFetch stack monitoring dataPulls the stack or continuous emission monitoring readings.

LLMScore efficiency and predict riskScores scrubber efficiency against normal and projects exceedance risk.

DECISIONExceedance risk rising?

LLMDraft flag with driver and fixWrites the flag, names the parameter driving the decline, and suggests a fix.

WAITHold for crew reviewPauses so the process crew can read the flag and decide.

ACTIONSend flag to process crewPosts the flag to the crew's channel.

The agent does not adjust the scrubber or raise the dosing. Your process crew does. The agent removes the blind spot between the scrubber logs and the stack reading.

HOW TO BUILD IT

Three levels of depth. Pick the one that matches where you are.

For the ops person who needs to understand what's involved and brief their team.

Scrubber & Stack LogsWhere parameters and readings live

The AgentWorkflow engine + LLM

Process CrewReviews flags and adjusts

WHAT YOUR TEAM PROVIDES ONCE

Efficiency score - how well the scrubber is holding
Risk flag - exceedance risk rising before the stack moves
Driver - the parameter pulling efficiency down
Suggested fix - a dosing or maintenance move
Trend view - how parameters have moved across shifts

What happens day-to-day: the agent reads the latest scrubber parameters and stack readings, scores efficiency, and checks whether risk is climbing. When it is, it flags the crew and names the driver with a suggested fix. The crew decides and adjusts; the agent never controls the scrubber.

For the IT person or technical lead who needs to scope the integration.

INQUIRY SOURCES

Scrubber logs (recirculation flow, pH, pressure drop, makeup water)

Stack or continuous emission monitoring data

Maintenance system work orders and history

WORKFLOW ENGINE (N8N)

New scrubber log entry triggers the run

Pull scrubber, stack, and maintenance data

Align parameter timestamps and units

Score efficiency and project the trend

Name the driver and draft the fix

Send only when risk is rising

Push the flag to the crew channel

CONNECTS TO

Scrubber logs (PLC / historian / Excel like OSIsoft PI / Ignition)Read: flow, pH, pressure drop, makeup water. Write: none

Stack monitoring (CEMS export / historian like PI / ESC)Read: stack concentrations, flow. Write: none

Maintenance system (CMMS like SAP PM / Maximo / Fiix)Read: open work orders, service history. Write: draft work order note

Notification channel (Email / Microsoft Teams / Slack)Read: none. Write: risk flags and suggested fixes

WITHOUT PMS API

Without live feeds, the crew exports the scrubber and stack logs to CSV each shift. The agent still scores efficiency and predicts risk, but the warning is only as current as the last export and logging stays manual.

WITH PMS API

With a live historian and CEMS feed, the agent scores efficiency on every update and can warn shifts before the stack reading moves. Best experience.

For the person who wants to build this agent step by step. Each node below maps to an n8n workflow node.

TRIGGERNode 1

Schedule Trigger - runs each logging interval

Cron set to run hourly during operations

Output: A run event with the interval timestamp

APINode 2

HTTP Request - pulls scrubber and stack data

GET the scrubber, stack, and maintenance endpoints or read the historian CSV export

Output: Raw scrubber parameters, stack readings, and open work orders

APINode 3

Function - computes efficiency and trend

Compare each parameter to its range and compute the slope over recent shifts

Output: A structured object of parameter trends and an efficiency score

LLMNode 4

LLM - names the driver and drafts the fix

Send the trends and ranges to the model with the performance prompt

Output: { efficiency, risk_rising, driver, detail, projected_breach, suggested_action }

You are a scrubber performance assistant. Given the scrubber parameters and stack readings below, score scrubber efficiency, decide whether exceedance risk is rising, name the parameter driving any decline, and suggest one maintenance or dosing action. Scrubber: {scrubber}. Stack: {stack}. Ranges: {ranges}. Respond ONLY with valid JSON. No explanation.

INPUT

{"scrubber": [{"shift": 1, "recirc_ph": 6.8, "pressure_drop": 12}, {"shift": 2, "recirc_ph": 5.4, "pressure_drop": 13}], "stack": [{"shift": 2, "so2": 180}], "ranges": {"recirc_ph_min": 6.5, "stack_so2_limit": 400}}

OUTPUT

{"efficiency": "declining", "risk_rising": true, "driver": "recirc_ph", "detail": "recirculation pH dropped from 6.8 to 5.4, below the 6.5 minimum", "projected_breach": "within 2 shifts if uncorrected", "suggested_action": "raise caustic dosing to restore recirculation pH", "current_stack_so2": 180, "stack_limit": 400}

DECISIONNode 5

IF - routes only rising risk

Pass when risk_rising is true

Output: A filtered flag for the crew

ACTIONNode 6

Send Message - posts the flag to the crew

Format the flag and post to the crew email or Teams channel

Output: A message in the crew channel

MVP vs Advanced — Where To Start

MVP — START HERE

Start with recirculation pH and pressure drop from the scrubber log
Set a healthy range per parameter and score efficiency simply
Pull the latest stack reading to confirm the current margin
Send the flag with the driver and one fix to the crew
Have the crew confirm the fix before any adjustment
Log each flag and the action taken

ADVANCED — ADD LATER

=+ Connect a live historian and CEMS feed for continuous scoring
=+ Add makeup water and recirculation flow to the efficiency model
=+ Draft a CMMS work order for crew approval when maintenance is due
=+ Learn per-scrubber baselines to cut false flags
=+ Add a lead time estimate for how long until the stack moves
=+ Escalate to the environment officer when risk crosses a threshold

Full Video Walkthrough Coming Soon

Watch the agent catch a drifting recirculation pH and warn of exceedance risk two shifts early.

Everything on this page is free to learn.

When you're ready to build — do it yourself or bring us in.

Book a call to scope this

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Frequently asked questions

Scrubber and Stack Performance Watchdog is an AI agent that predicts a stack exceedance from scrubber parameters before the reading goes over.

The stack reading went red before anyone looked at the scrubber. The Scrubber and Stack Performance Watchdog addresses this: predicts a stack exceedance from scrubber parameters before the reading goes over.

No. Your team stays in control. The agent does not adjust the scrubber or raise the dosing. Your process crew does. The agent removes the blind spot between the scrubber logs and the stack reading.

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