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Introduction to Flow Measurement with Rotameters
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The main application of the rotameter (https://www.omega.co.uk/search/esearch.asp?start=1&search=Rotameters)
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ow meter is to measure the owrate of liquids
Webinarsand gases. It is composed of a plastic, metal or glass tube and oat.
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The oat response to owrate changes is linear, and a 10-to-1 ow range or turndown is standard. (https:/
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The rotameter is the most popular variable area ow meter because of its low cost, simplicity, low pressure drop,
relatively wide rangeability and linear output.
Furthermore, it operates simply: in order to pass through the tapered tube, the uid ow raises the oat. The
higher the level of ow, the higher the oat is lifted. In liquid service, the oat rises due to a combination of the
buoyancy
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By contrast, with gases, buoyancy is disregarded, and the oat responds mostly to the velocity head.
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The metering tube in a rotameter is installed vertically (Figure 2-15) and the small end is at the bottom. The uid
that is going to be measured enters at the bottom of the tube, passes upward around the oat, and exits the top. If
there is no ow, then the oat stays at the bottom. When uid enters, the metering oat begins to rise.
The uid ow rate and the annular area between the oat and the tube wall, and the moving of the oat up and
down are proportional. As the oat rises, the size of (/aboutus.aspx)
About the annular opening increases.
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This is counter proportional to the di erential pressure across the oat. When the upward force exercised by the
owing uid equals the weight of the oat, a stable position is reached in the oat. Arti c
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There is a correspondence between every oat position and a particular owrate for a particular uid's density and
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viscosity. Therefore, you have to size the rotameter for every single application. The ow rate can be determined by
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matching the oat position to a calibrated scale
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has been done in a correct way. Many rotameters come with a built-in valve for adjusting ow manually.
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A number of shapes of oat are available for various applications. An early design of the rotameter was created (/news
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with slots, which caused the oat to spin in order to achieve stabilizing and centering. The term rotameter was
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Rotameters usually have calibration data and a direct reading scale for air or water (or both). In order for the Genom
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(/) rotameter to be sized for other service, the actual ow has to be rst converted to a standard ow. (Subscr
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In terms of liquids, the standard ow is the water equivalent in gpm; for gases, the standard ow is the air ow
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equivalent in standard cubic feet per minute (/engineering-software-index.aspx)
Software (scfm). Tables listing standard water equivalent gpm and/or air scfm
values are provided by rotameter manufacturers. Rules, nomographs, or computer software for rotameter sizing
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are also frequently provided by manufacturers.
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Stainless steel is typically what the oat is made up of, so that it can provide resistance to corrosion. The oat also Genom
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A scale is installed alongside the tube and it is there where the reading is observed. The metering edge also has
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end ttings and connection of a number of materials
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Those include the uids which attack glass metering tubes, such as water over 90 °C (194 °F), with its high pH which
softens glass; wet steam, which has the same e ect; caustic soda, which dissolves glass; and hydro uoric acid,
which etches glass.
The main limitations of the rotameters for general purposes include the pressure and temperature limits of the
glass metering tube. Small tubes of 6 mm (1/4") are suitable for working pressures up to 500 psig, but the
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The feasible temperature limit for glass rotameters is 204 °C (400 °F), although operation at such high
temperatures reduces the operating pressure of the meter to a large extent. Overall, the relationship between the
operating temperature and pressure is linear.
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Similar to glass tube rotameters, the spring-and-piston (/newsletters)determines the owrate, and the ttings and
materials of construction must be chosen in order to satisfy the demands of the applications.
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The metal meters are used in situations where the high operating pressure or temperature, the water hammer or
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other forces would be harmful for the glass metering tubes. Search...
Spring and piston ow meters can be used for most uids, including corrosive liquids and gases. They are
particularly applicable to steam applications, where glass tubes are unacceptable.
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This transducer ensures much greater immunity to electrical noise. Such noise is common for industrial Genom
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A variety of materials is available for oats, packing, O-rings, and end ttings. Rotameter
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(https://www.omega.co.uk/search/esearch.asp?start=1&search=Rotameters) tubes for such safe applications as air
or water can be made of glass, making the glass tubes the most common tubes, formed with precision of safety
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shielded borosilicate glass. As mentioned above, for more unsafe conditions where breakage is possible, metal
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Figure 2-15 shows how a reading is taken from the scale of a correlation rotameter. To get the real ow in
engineering units, the reading is compared to a correlation table for a particular gas or liquid. Correlation charts
are prepared and available for nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen, helium, argon and carbon dioxide.
The correlation meter is not as convenient as a direct reading device is, but it is more accurate. This is because a
direct-reading device is accurate for only one speci
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gas or liquid at a particular temperature and pressure. A
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correlation ow meter can be used with a great number of uids and gases under various conditions. Di erent
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oats in the same tube can measure di News
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When working with pressures up to 500 psig, the more appropriate tube is a small glass tube. However, the
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maximum operating pressure of a large (2 inch diameter) tube may be as low as 100 psig. The practical
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temperature limit is about 400° F, but such high-temperature operation signi cantly reduces the operating medica
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Another appropriate application of the glass-tube rotameters is when several streams of gases or liquids are being
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metered at the same time or mixed in a manifold. Multiple tube ow meters allow up to six rotameters to be
mounted in the same frame. Books (/book-reviews-index.aspx)
Furthermore, metal-tube rotameters can be used for hot and strong alkalis, uorine, hydro uoric acid, hot water,
steam, slurries, sour gas, additives, and molten metals. They can also be applied in cases where high operating
pressures, water hammer, or other forces could damage glass tubes.
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Metal-tube rotameters are available in diameter sizes from K in to 4 in, can operate at pressures up to 750 psig,
temperatures to 540 °C (1,000 °F), and can measure ows up to 4,000 gpm of water or 1,300 scfm of air. A
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Metal-tube rotameters are readily available as(/materials-news-index.aspx)
ow transmitters for integration with remote analog or digital
controls. The way transmitters detect oat position is magnetic coupling. Arti c
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The indication is usually external in the form of rotatable magnetic helix that moves the pointer. The transmitter
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Most rotameters are not in uenced by viscosity variations. The most sensitive are very small rotameters with ball
oats, while larger rotameters are less sensitive to viscosity
Contact e ects. The limitations of each design are published by
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the manufacturer (Figure 2-18). Viscosity limit is in uenced by the oat shape. If the viscosity limit is exceeded, the
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indicated ow must be corrected for viscosity.
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A rotameter can be designed with two oats (one (/search.aspx)
sensitive to density, the other to velocity) so as to approximate
the mass ow rate that results from its sensitivity to changes.
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The more closely the oat density matches the uid density, the greater the e ect of a uid density change will be
on the oat position. Mass- ow rotameters work best with low viscosity uids, such as raw sugar juice, gasoline, jet
fuel and light hydrocarbons.
Upstream piping con guration does not a ect the rotameter accuracy. The meter also can be installed directly
after a pipe elbow without adverse e ect on metering accuracy. Rotameters are inherently self-cleaning because,
as the uid ows between the tube wall and the oat, it produces a scouring action that tends to prevent the
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matter.
Nevertheless, it is always better if rotameters are used on clean uids which do not coat the oat or the tube. A
Liquids with brous materials, abrasives, and large particles should also be avoided. Co
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This information has been sourced, reviewed and adapted from materials provided by OMEGA Engineering Ltd.
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