Flow Meters : Turbine, Coriolis and Ultrasonic

Submitted By :Akash Sharma B.Tech APE [Upstream] Semester :VII Apoorv Agarwal B.Tech APE [Gas] Semester :VII

Contents
Flow Measurement

Flow Meters
Classification of Flow Meters The Turbine Flow Meter Turbine Flow Meter : Principle Turbine Flow Meter : Working Turbine Flow Meter : Applications Turbine Flow Meter : Limitations

Flow meters
A flowmeter is an instrument used to measure

linear, nonlinear, mass or volumetric flow rate of a liquid or a gas.

Various attributes to flow measurement Linearity Rangeability Reproducibility Repeatability

Selection of flow meter

Accuracy & reliability of device Range of Flow rate Range of flow temperature & pressure. Fluid to be measured Maintenance required Expected life of the device

Flow Measurement
Flow measurement is the quantification of

bulk fluid movement.

Flow can be measured in a variety of ways.

Positive-displacement flow meters accumulate a

fixed volume of fluid and then count the number of times the volume is filled to measure flow.
Other flow measurement methods rely on forces

produced by the flowing stream as it overcomes a known constriction, to indirectly calculate flow.

Methods of measurement
Differential Pressure Method. Flow Restriction Method. Impact.

Classification of Flow Meters

Flow Meters
Differential Pressure
- Orifice Plate
- Venturi Tube - Flow Nozzle - Pitot Tube

Positive Displacement

Velocity
- Turbine

Mass

OpenChannel

- Reciprocating - Oval Gear - Nutating Disk

- Swirl - Electromagnetic - Ultrasonic : Doppler - Ultrasonic :Transit-Time - Coriolis - Thermal

- Weir - Flume

- Elbow Tap
- Target

- Rotary Vane

The Turbine Flow Meter

The turbine flow meter (better described as an

axial turbine) translates the mechanical action of the turbine rotating in the liquid flow around an axis into a user-readable rate of flow.

The Turbine Flow Meter : Principle

The flowing fluid rotates the turbine.
These rotating blades create pulses, which are

recorded and the flowrate can be determined by this.

The rate of pulses directly correlates to the

flowrate of Fluids.

The Turbine Flow Meter : Working

Fluid entering the meter passes through the inlet

flow straightener which reduces its turbulent flow pattern and improves the fluids velocity profile.
Turbine flowmeters use the mechanical energy of

the fluid to rotate a pinwheel (rotor) in the flow stream.

Blades on the rotor are angled to transform

energy from the flow stream into rotational energy.

The rotor shaft spins on bearings. When the fluid

The Turbine Flow Meter : Working

Shaft rotation can be sensed mechanically or by

detecting the movement of the blades.

Blade movement is often detected magnetically, with

each blade or embedded piece of metal generating a pulse.

Turbine flowmeter sensors are typically located

external to the flowing stream to avoid material of construction constraints that would result if wetted sensors were used.
When the fluid moves faster, more pulses are

generated. The transmitter processes the pulse signal to determine the flow of the fluid.

The Turbine Flow Meter : Working

These impulses produce an output frequency

proportional to the volumetric flow through the meter.

The output frequency is used to represent flow

rate of fluid passing through the turbine flow meter.

Transmitters and sensing systems are available

to sense flow in both the forward and reverse flow directions.

The Turbine Flow Meter : Applications

Applications for turbine flowmeters are found in

the water, petroleum, and chemical industries.

Petroleum Industry: High accuracy turbine flowmeters are available for

custody transfer of hydrocarbons and natural gas.

These flowmeters often incorporate the functionality

of a flow computer to correct for pressure, temperature and fluid properties in order to achieve the desired accuracy for the application.

The Turbine Flow Meter : Applications

Water Industry: Water applications include distribution systems

within and between water districts.

OtherUses: Miscellaneous applications are found in the food

and beverage, and chemical industries.

The Turbine Flow Meter :Limitations

Turbine flowmeters are less accurate at low flow rates

due to rotor/bearing drag that slows the rotor.

Make sure to operate these flowmeters above

approximately 5 percent of maximum flow.

Turbine flowmeters should not be operated at high

velocity because premature bearing wear and/or damage can occur.

Be careful when measuring fluids that are non-

lubricating because bearing wear can cause the flowmeter become inaccurate and fail.
In some applications, bearing replacement may need

to be performed routinely and increase maintenance costs.

The Turbine Flow Meter :Limitations

Turbine flowmeters have moving parts that are

subject to degradation with time and use.

Abrupt transitions from gas flow to liquid flow

should be avoided because they can mechanically stress the flowmeter, degrade accuracy, and/or damage the flowmeter.
These conditions generally occur when filling the

pipe and under slug flow conditions. Two-phase flow conditions can also cause turbine flowmeters to measure inaccurately.

Ultrasonic Meters

Working Principle
Ultrasonic flow meters measure the difference of

the transit time of ultrasonic pulses propagating in and against flow direction. This time difference is a measure for the average velocity of the fluid along the path of the ultrasonic beam. By using the absolute transit times both the averaged fluid velocity and the speed of sound can be calculated. Using the two transit times and the distance between receiving and transmitting transducers and the inclination angle one can write the equations:

where is the average velocity of the fluid along the sound path and c is the speed of sound.

Working
Ultrasonic flowmeters use sound waves to

determine the velocity of a fluid flowing in a pipe. At no flow conditions, the frequencies of an ultrasonic wave transmitted into a pipe and its reflections from the fluid are the same. Under flowing conditions, the frequency of the reflected wave is different due to the Doppler effect. When the fluid moves faster, the frequency shift increases linearly. The transmitter processes signals from the transmitted wave and its reflections to determine the flow rate.

 Computes flow velocity. Measures time difference. Two transducers are used Range ability 50:1 Accuracy +,-2% . Outside pipe, dont disturb flow. Portable, offer applicability to large pipes.

Benefits
Low Pressure Drop - Drop is the same as an

equal length of straight pipe Low Maintenance - No moving parts that need replacement due to wear; especially beneficial in severe operating environments Ideal for Problematic Applications - Non-intrusive parts help avoid product buildup on equipment Operational Flexibility - Bi-directional flow reduces time required to redirect product flow

Applications
Measurement of refined petroleum products and

crude oils for: Inventory control Line integrity Off-loading and on-loading Allocation Line balancing

Limitations
The measuring method needs a sufficient number of

reflecting particles in the medium on a continuous basis.

The particles must be large enough to provide sufficiently

good reflections (> /4).

The sound velocity of the particulate material must be

distinctly different from that of the liquid.

The sound velocity of the medium is directly included in

the measurement result.

 The particle velocity often differs noticeably from the

velocity of the liquid.

Usually, the ultrasonic field extends only into the

peripheral flow. That is why indication is heavily dependent on the flow profile.
The velocity needs to be far higher than the critical

velocity at which particles settle.

Very long unimpeded inlet runs (20 x D) are needed

to allow conclusions to be drawn from the flow rate.

CORIOLIS FLOWMETER TECHNOLOGY

Coriolis Flowmeter Technology

Direct mass measurement is insensitive to fluid properties such as: 22 C (40F) Temperature Change 1027L 1000L Pressure Density
The same amount of fluid (1 Tonne) looks like 2.7% (~$18) difference with volumetric measurement

$54,000 difference on a 3000 Tonne bunker

1 Tonne $654

1 Tonne. $654

Bunkers sold on mass but measured by inferred volume

28

Source: Bunkerworld, April 28th

Theory of Operation
The Coriolis effect is an inertia force. In 1835, Gustave-Gaspard de Coriolis showed that this inertia force

must be taken into consideration if the simple Newtons Law of Motion of bodies are to be used in a rotating frame of reference.

Gasparde de Coriolis

Coriolis Effect: The original path is deflected westward by the rotation of the planet

Typical Components of a Coriolis Meter

Theory of Operation Mass Flow

In a Coriolis meter, the inertial force is provided by

vibrating the flow tubes. The tube twist or angle of deflection from the vibration plane is measured and converted into a mass flow measurement.

Micro Motion Confidential Page 31

Theory of Operation Mass Flow

Process fluid enters the sensor and flow is split with half the flow

through each tube. The sensor flow tubes are vibrated in opposition to each other by energizing a drive coil. Tubes are oscillated at their natural frequency.

Magnet and coil assemblies, called pick-offs, are mounted on the flow

tubes. As each coil moves through the uniform magnetic field of the adjacent magnet it creates a voltage in the form of a sine wave.

Theory of Operation Mass Flow

During a no flow condition, there is no Coriolis effect and the sine waves are

in phase with each other. When fluid is moving through the sensor's tubes, Coriolis forces are induced causing the flow tubes to twist in opposition to each other. The time difference between the sine waves is measured and is called Delta-T which is directly proportional to the mass flow rate.

Theory of Operation Mass Flow

The Flow Calibration Factor consists of 10 characters, including

two decimal points.

The first five digits are the flow calibration factor. This calibration

factor, multiplied by a given Delta-T, yields mass flow rate in grams/sec. The last three digits are a temperature coefficient for the sensor tube material. This coefficient compensates for the effect of temperature on tube rigidity (% change in rigidity per 100C). RTD measures tube Three wire platinum
temperature on inlet side of sensor
Applies to liquid and gas, and is linear throughout the entire range of the meter

Accurate to +/- 1.0oC Available as additional process variable

RTD

Theory of Operation - Density

Theory of Operation -Temperature

Coriolis Multi-Variable Capability Three process variables measured independently

Direct Mass Flow

On-Line Density

Temperature

Coriolis Technology Multi-Variable Measurement Capability

Density-dependant variables are also available as either;
Standard Curves (Brix, API, HFCS, etc) Customer-specific Curves (% Mass, % Volume, Alcohol, etc)

Degrees API Degrees Baume Degrees Brix Degrees Plato

% Solids % Mass % Black Liquor Concentration

Specific Gravity Alcohol % HFCS SCFM

Mass Flow Volume Flow Density Specific Gravity Temperature % Solids By Volume Net Solids Temperature % Solids By Mass Mass Flow

Theory of Operation - Volume

Volumetric Flow is a calculated variable.

V olume Flow

Mass Flow Density

Volume can be referenced to standard temperature

using the temperature input. Coriolis meters are preferred for volume measurements.

Low pressure drop Wide turndown High accuracy High degree of linearity

Coriolis Sensor Geometries

All Geometries are not created equal Design trade-offs are made for such things as; Flow sensitivity & turndown Density accuracy Fluid S.G. range (gas/liquid) Materials of construction Temperature effects Drainability and Cleanability Pressure limits

Why Coriolis Volume Measurement

Coriolis meters are unaffected by flow profiles, and provide higher turndown than a typical velocitybased volumetric meters Orifice plate,
Flow conditioner Vortex or Turbine

42 D

6D

No straight run

No Reynolds # Limits No parts to wear out Limits leak points/fugitive emissions Lower life cycle costs Low installed costs