Focus on Liquid Flow Measurement

Controlling the flow rate of liquids is a key control mechanism for any chemical
plant. There are many different types of devices available to measure flow.
Table 1: Comparison of Popular Flow Measurement Devices
Head Devices
Head type devices measure flow by constricting a stream and measuring the resulting
pressure drop. The pressure drop can then be related to a flow.
Orifice Plates
An orifice plate is a very simple device installed in a straight run of pipe. The orifice
plate contains a hole smaller than the pipe diameter. The flow constricts, eperiences a
pressure drop, and then the differential pressure can be related to a flow.
Figure 1: Orifice Plate rrangement
!or a discussion of how pressure drop is
related to liquid flow for concentric orifices, visit
LM!O "ngineering. They have a very good
eplanation on their website.
"t is also important to note that relating
differential pressure to flow across an orifice
depends on the location of the pressure taps in
relation to the orifice. "n !igure # below, the
pressure taps are designated as $% and $#. &D& is the diameter of the pipe and &d& is the
diameter of the orifice.
Figure #: $arious Tap Positions for Orifice Plates
Venturi
A venturi tube 'also called the Herschel (enturi tube) also measures flow rates by
constricting fluids and measuring a differential pressure drop.
(enturi tubes allow for flow measurement with lower head losses than orifice plates.
(enturi tubes of cast iron cones are most commonly used in pipes with diameters of * to
+# inches '%, to -, cm). $ipes of up to %, inches '#. cm) in diameter usually utili/e
machined venturi constrictions. 0arger diameter pipes 'to *- inches or %.# m) usually
employ a welded sheet metal convergence. (enturi accuracy is best for 1eynolds
numbers between %,
.
and %,
2
. Again, for a discussion on relating venturi pressure drops
to flows, see LM!O "ngineering.
Target Flowmeters
A target flowmeter operates 3ust as the name implies. A small &bullseye& is placed
inside the pipe and is connected to a pneumatic transmitter. Typical applications include
flow measurement of steam and outdoor liquids.
"n a target flowmeter, the square of the force eerted on the target is proportional to
the volume or mass flow through the pipe. The force on the target is epressed as4
Rotometers
1ather than using a constant restriction area and a variable pressure differential,
rotometers use a variable restriction and a constant pressure differential to measure flow.
Typically, rotometers are used to measure smaller flows and the reading is usually done
locally, although transmission of the readings is possible.
The rotometer consists of a float that moves vertically through a slightly tapered tube.
As fluid enters the bottom of the rotometer, the float is forced upward until the force is
balanced by gravitational forces. 5ost rotometers are made of glass with markings on
the outside so that flow readings can be taken visually. The advantage to rotometers is
the simplicity of the device and a constant pressure drop. Also, rotometers do not require
straight pipe runs for installation so they can be installed 3ust about anywhere.
(elocity Devices
$robably the most common velocity device used for flow measurement is the
magnetic flowmeter. 5agnetic flowmeters cause no head loss and they can easily
measure liquids with solids in suspension. 6y their design, they produce an electrical
signal ideal for plant transmission.
"n a magnetic flowmeter, the pipe is lined with a nonconducting material and at least
two electrodes are mounted flush with the nonconducting wall. 7lectromagnetic coils
surround the flow path with a uniform magnetic field. !araday8s 0aw dictates that the
voltage produced by a conducting fluid flowing through a magnetic field is directly
proportional to the velocity of the fluid.
The ma3or disadvantage of magnetic flowmeters is that they cannot be used for
hydrocarbons due to hydrocarbon8s low conductivities.
Another velocity device, which can be used for hydrocarbons, is called a vorte9
shedding meter. :ou can read more about these devices here.
Displacement Devices
The most common displacement flow9measuring device is the turbine meter. "n a
turbine meter, a rotor is placed in the flow path. ;sually, the rotor is magnetically
coupled so that each rotation produces a pulse. The spin of the rotor is proportional to
the velocity of the fluid. The turbine meter is highly accurate and durable. Turbine
meters are restricted only by the fact that they must be used in clean, noncorrosive
services.
<ther Devices
Another type of device worth mentioning is the Coriolis meter which measures flow
rates based on the mass of the fluid. 5any applications, such as a reactor feed stream, are
often specified and best measured by mass. "n these applications, using a measuring
device based on volume would require corrections for temperature dependent properties
such as density and viscosity. The Coriolis meter gives a direct mass flow measurement,
independent of temperature and pressure. These devices are remarkable accurate as well
'typically ,.# to ,.,# percent of the total flow).
The Coriolis meter has a sine wave voltage applied to an electromagnetic drive which
produces an oscillating motion of the tube. The amplitudes are related to the mass flow
and the frequency is related to the product density. The reason that the output amplitude
changes with flow may be eplained by the Coriolis effect. The vibration of the tube
gives a slight angular rotation about its center. As the fluid moves away from the center,
there is a resultant Coriolis force which opposes the rotational motion. The flow
movement toward the center produces a Coriolis force which aids the tube rotation. The
resultant force produces the measured sine wave which is measured and converted to the
mass flow reading.
2.2 Flow Measurement
!low measurement is critical to determine the amount of material purchased and sold,
and in these applications, very accurate flow measurement is required. "n addition, flows
throughout the process should the regulated near their desired values with small
variability= in these applications, good reproducibility is usually sufficient. !lowing
systems require energy, typically provided by pumps and compressors, to produce a
pressure difference as the driving force, and flow sensors should introduce a small flow
resistance, increasing the process energy consumption as little as possible. 5ost flow
sensors require straight sections of piping before and after the sensor= this requirement
places restrictions on acceptable process designs, which can be partially compensated by
straightening vanes placed in the piping. The sensors discussed in this subsection are for
clean fluids flowing in a pipe= special considerations are required for concentrated
slurries, flow in an open conduit, and other process situations.
>everal sensors rely on the pressure drop or %ead occurring as a fluid flows by a
resistance= an eample is given in !igure %. The relationship between flow rate and
pressure difference is determined by the 6ernoulli equation, assuming that changes in
elevation, work and heat transfer are negligible.
Figure 1. <rifice flow meter
&ernoulli's equation

(#)
where f represents the total friction loss that is usually assumed negligible. This
equation can be simplified and rearranged to give '!oust et. al, %?-%= @anna, %??+)
general %ead meter
equation

(*)
The meter coefficient, Cmeter, accounts for all non9idealities, including friction losses, and
depends on the type of meter, the ratio of cross sectional areas and the 1eynolds number.
The compressibility factor, :, accounts for the epansion of compressible gases= it is %.,
for incompressible fluids. These two factors can be estimated from correlations 'A>57,
%?.?= @anna, %??+) or can be determined through calibration. 7quation '+) is used for
designing head flow meters for specific plant operating conditions.
Ahen the process is operating, the meter parameters are fied, and the pressure difference
is measured. Then, the flow can be calculated from the meter equation, using the
appropriate values for Cmeter and :. All constants are combined, leading to the following
relationship.
relations%ip for installed
%ead meter

(+)
"n the usual situation in which only reproducibility is required, the fluid density is not
measured and is assumed constant= the simplified calculation is where the density is
assumed to be its design value of o. This is a good assumption for liquid and can
provide acceptable accuracy for gases in some situations. Again, all constants can be
combined 'including o) into C% to give the following relationship.
relations%ip for installed
%ead meter wit% constant
densit,

(-)
"f the density of a gas varies significantly because of variation in temperature and
pressure 'but not average molecular weight), correction is usually based on the ideal gas
law using low cost sensors to measure T and $ according to
relations%ip for installed
%ead meter. gas wit%
constant M/. c%anging T
and P
(0)
where the density 'assumed constant at o), temperature 'To) and pressure '$o) were the
base case values used in determining Co. "f the density varies significantly due to
composition changes and high accuracy is required, the real9time value of fluid density
') can be measured by an on9stream analy/er for use as o in equation '*) 'Clevett,
%?-.).
The flow is determined from equation '.) by taking the square root of the measured
pressure difference, which can be measured by many methods. A ;9tube manometer
provides an ecellent visual display for laboratory eperiments but is not typically used
industrially. !or industrial practice a diaphragm is used for measuring the pressure drop=
a diaphragm with one pressure on each side will deform according to the pressure
difference.
Bote that the pressure in the pipe increases after the vena contracta where the flow cross
section returns to its original value, but because of the meter resistance, the pressure
downstream of the meter '$+) is lower than upstream pressure '$%). This is the 1non2
recoverable3 pressure drop of the meter that requires energy, e.g., compressor work, to
overcome and increases the cost of plant operation. The non9recoverable pressure losses
for three important head meters are given in !igure ..
The low pressure at the point of highest velocity creates the possibility for the liquid to
partially vapori/e= it might remain partially vapori/ed after the sensor 'called flas%ing) or
it might return to a liquid as the pressure increases after the lowest pressure point 'called
cavitation). Ae want to avoid any vapori/ation to ensure proper sensor operation and to
retain the relationship between pressure difference and flow. (apori/ation can be
prevented by maintaining the inlet pressure sufficiently high and the inlet temperature
sufficiently low.
>ome typical %ead meters are described briefly in the following.
Orifice: An orifice plate is a restriction with an opening smaller than the pipe diameter
which is inserted in the pipe= the typical orifice plate has a concentric, sharp edged
opening, as shown in !igure %. 6ecause of the smaller area the fluid velocity increases,
causing a corresponding decrease in pressure. The flow rate can be calculated from the
measured pressure drop across the orifice plate, $%9$+. The orifice plate is the most
commonly used flow sensor, but it creates a rather large non9recoverable pressure due to
the turbulence around the plate, leading to high energy consumption '!oust, %?-%).
Venturi Tube: The venturi tube shown in !igure # is similar to an orifice meter, but it is
designed to nearly eliminate boundary layer separation, and thus form drag. The change
in cross9sectional area in the venturi tube causes a pressure change between the
convergent section and the throat, and the flow rate can be determined from this pressure
drop. Although more epensive that an orifice plate= the venturi tube introduces
substantially lower non9recoverable pressure drops '!oust, %?-%).
Figure #. (enturi flow meter
Flow Nozzle: A flow no//le consists of a restriction with an elliptical contour approach
section that terminates in a cylindrical throat section. $ressure drop between the locations
one pipe diameter upstream and one9half pipe diameter downstream is measured. !low
no//les provide an intermediate pressure drop between orifice plates and venturi tubes=
also, they are applicable to some slurry systems.
Elbow meter: A differential pressure eists when a flowing fluid changes direction due
to a pipe turn or elbow, as shown in !igure + below. The pressure difference results from
the centrifugal force. >ince pipe elbows eist in plants, the cost for these meters is very
low. However, the accuracy is very poor= there are only applied when reproducibility is
sufficient and other flow measurements would be very costly.
Figure *. 7lbow flow meter.
Pitot tube and annubar: The pitot tube, shown in !igure * below, measures the static
and dynamic pressures of the fluid at one point in the pipe. The flow rate can be
determined from the difference between the static and dynamic pressures which is the
velocity head of the fluid flow. An annubar consists of several pitot tubes placed across a
pipe to provide an approimation to the velocit, profile, and the total flow can be
determined based on the multiple measurements. 6oth the pitot tube and annubar
contribute very small pressure drops, but they are not physically strong and should be
used only with clean fluids.
Figure +4 $itot flow meter.
Figure -. !low meter non9recoverable pressure losses 'Andrews and Ailliams, (ol %,
%?C?)
The following flow sensors are based on physical principles other than head.
Turbine: As fluid flows through the turbine, it causes the turbine to rotate with an
angular velocity that is proportional to the fluid flow rate. The frequency of rotation can
be measured and used to determine flow. This sensor should not be used for slurries or
systems eperiencing large, rapid flow or pressure variation.
Vortex shedding : !luid vortices are formed against the body introduced in the pipe.
These vortices are produced from the downstream face in a oscillatory manner. The
shedding is sensed using a thermistor and the frequency of shedding is proportional to
volumetric flow rate.
Positive displacement: "n these sensors, the fluid is separated into individual volumetric
elements and the number of elements per unit time are measured. These sensors provide
high accuracy over a large range. An eample is a wet test meter.
Table 2. Summary of fow sensors
5ensor 6angeabilit,
1
ccurac,
#
D,namics
(s)
dvantages Disadvantages
orifice +..4%
#9*D of full
span
9
9low cost
9etensive
industrial
practice
9high pressure
loss
9plugging with
slurries
venturi +..4%
%D of full
span
9
9lower
pressure loss
than orifice
9slurries do
not plug
9high cost
9line under %.
cm
flow no77le +..4% #D full span 9 9good for
slurry service
9intermediate
pressure loss
9higher cost
than orifice
plate
9limited pipe
si/es
elbow meter +4%
.9%,D of full
span
9
9low pressure
loss
9very poor
accuracy
annubar +4%
,..9%..D of
full span
9
9low pressure
loss
9large pipe
diameters
9poor
performance
with dirty or
sticky fluids
turbine #,4%
,.#.D of
measurement
9
9wide
rangeability
9good
accuracy
9high cost
9strainer
needed,
especially for
slurries
vorte8
s%edding
%,4%
%D of
measurement
9
9wide
rangeability
9insensitive
to variations
in density,
temperature,
pressure, and
viscosity
9epensive
positive
displacement
%,4% or greater
,..D of
measurement
9
9high
reangeability
9good
accuracy
9high pressure
drop
9damaged by
flow surge or
solids
Botes4
%. 1angeability is the ratio of full span to smallest flow that can be measured with
sufficient accuracy.
#. Accuracy applies to a calibrated instrument.