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Basic of Flow Measurement

Technique
Table of Contents
 Introduction to Flow Measurement
o Why Flow measurement is essential?
o Laminar and turbulent Flow
o Selection of Flow Measurement Devices
o Essential Quantities for Flow Measurement
o Units  for Flow Measurement
 Classification of Flow measurement devices
o Mechanical Type Flow Meters
o Differential Pressure Based Flow Meters
 Direct Volume Flow Rate Measurement
 Venturi Flow Meter
 Orifice Flow Meter
 Solenoid Valve Flow Meter
 Pitot Tubes
 Turbine Flow meter
 Vortex Flow Meter
 Variable Area Flow meter or Rotameter
 Electromagnetic Flow Meter
 Ultrasonic Flow Meter
o Doppler Effect Ultrasonic Flow meter
o Transit Time Difference Ultrasonic (TTDU) Flow meter
 Thermal Mass Flow Meter
 Coriolis Flow Meter
  Piezoelectric Ceramics Flow Meter
 Open Channel Flow Meter
o Triangular Wier ( V-Notch Flow Meter)
o Parshall Flume Flow Meter
 Summary
 References
 You Tube Video on Flow Meters

What
are Flow Measurement
Techniques used in
Industries?
 

Introduction to Flow Measurement

Why Flow measurement is essential?
 Flow meters are widely used to quantify the amount of fluid flowing
through pipe in combustion chamber, boiler, oil and gas, process and
Chemical industries,  thermal power plant, milk and dairy. Flow
measurement of water in open canal and sewage flow is also
essential for preservation and storage of clean water. In every
application, different type of flow meters are used.
 In Fluid mechanics, we learn basic fluid properties like density,
conservation of mass flow rate. How mass flow rate is determined
that should be known to every CFD engineer and process engineers
in power or chemical industries.  Mass flow rate is an essential input
for forced flow CFD Modeling. Incorrect flow rate can lead to wrong
results in both  experiment well as CFD analysis.
 Flow Measurement is the experimental technique of measuring
the amount fluid flowing through duct or open channel
Laminar and turbulent Flow
 The performance of most of flow measurement devices is also
affected by the Reynolds Number. It is a dimensionless number for
ratio of inertia to viscous forces.
 For liquid flow, Reynolds number can defined as the ratio of the
inertial forces to its viscous drag forces.It is useful to determine
whether a flow is laminar or turbulent.
 Lamianr flow rate can be determined using velocity profile. But
turbulent flow rate can not determined easily.  Turbulent flow is
visualized with higher number of vortices if dye or smoke is injected
in fluid flow.
 For internal flow through duct, when the Reynolds number (ReD) is
lower than 2300. Turbulent flow is noted when the Reynolds
number is  greater than 2300 for internal flow. The crictical
Reynolds number for open channel is 5,00,000. The critical
Reynolds number depends on velocity of fluid (V), size of duct (L),
 density (ρ) and viscosity (η) of fluid, roughness of wall, external
material (dirt particles)  and practical conditions.
 A certain range around 2300 is considered the transition flow region
between laminar and turbulent flow.

Selection of Flow Measurement Devices

Flow measurement devices should be designed by following important factors

 Devices should consider Fluctuations in fluid flow

 Easy Integration with Piping System
 High Accuracy of device is recommended to reduce errors in
measurements
 High Turn-Down Ratio of flow rate
 Low capital and maintenance cost
 Sensitivity to Dirt Particles should be minimum
 Minimum Pressure Loss due to fitting of flow measurement devices
 Low use of mechanical or moving Parts
 Devices must be resistant to corrosion and Erosion
Essential Quantities for Flow Measurement
 The volume flow rate (Q) is defined as the volume of fluid that
flows past a given cross sectional area per unit time
                 Q = Cross sectional area*Average Velocity = A*V (m3/hr)
 common volume units of volume flow rate: m3/s, m3/hr, Nm3/hr,
Gallons Per Minute (GPM), Standard Litre Per Minute (SLPM)
 Mass flow rate is defined as
                         m = density * volume flow rate = ρ*Q =ρ*A*V  (kg/hr)
 Some devices both pressure and temperature along with volume flow
rate. Using these measured values, we can find out the density of
fluid using the property table or ideal gas equation
 Coefficient of Discharge (Cd) is an important parameter for flow
meter to consider pressure loss. It is defined as the ratio of actual
mass flow rate to ideal (ρ*A*V ) mass flow rate. After measurement
of actual mass flow rate, the coefficient of discharge can be
determined.
Units  for Flow Measurement
  SI Unit for volume flow rate (volume/time) : Cubic meters
per second (m3 /s)
 Other common units  for volume flow rate
  Litre per minute LPM): 1L/s = 103 cm3 /s
 Cubic centimetre per minute: 103 cm3 /s = 10-3 m3 /s
 Gallons per minute (GPM): 1gal/s = 3.788 L/s
 Cubic feet per minute: 1 cf/min = 4.719×10-4 m3 /s
 Mass flow rate can be calculated by multiplying flow rate the
density (ρ) of measuring fluid

Classification of Flow measurement devices

The list of commonly used flow meters in industry are given below

Mechanical Type Flow Meters

1. Piston Meters
2. Variable Area Meter
3. Turbine Flow Meter
4. Single Jet Meter
5. Woltmann Meter
6. Paddle Wheel Meter
7. Current Meter
8. Nutating Disc Meter
9. Pelton Meter
10.Oval Gear Meter
11. Inferential Meter
12. Thermal mass flow meter
13. Turbine Flow meter: turbine motion is used to calibrate flow rate
14. Electro-Magnetic: electro-magnetic field is related flow
measurement
15. Coriolis flow meter
16. Positive Displacement
17. Vortex Flow meter
18.Ultrasonic Doppler Flow Tub
 19. Reciprocating Piston
20. Rotary Vane Swirl
21. Target
22. Thermal Dispersion
23.Ultrasonic Transit Time
Differential Pressure Based Flow Meters
 Orifice flow meter
 Pitot Tube
 Venturi Tube
 Vortex Weir & Flume
 Differential Pressure Transmitters
 Correlation Method
 Elbow Tap – Elbow flow Meter
 Flow Nozzles
 Variable Area
 Flow measurement techniques are further  classified based
on closed duct (pipe) and open channel flow 
 Flow measurement can  be carried out for volume flow rate (Q) and
mass flow rate (m). Majority of devices of mechanical and pressure
differential techniques measures volume flow flow rate after
determination of the velocity of fluid flow.
 For determination of mass flow rate, the fluid to be isothermal or
fluid density needs  to be known.
         

Direct Volume Flow Rate Measurement

 It needs a large device when the volume flow rate of fluid are high
 For a smaller device, the measured values may not be accurate
 During start or end of measurement, fluctuations in the measuring
values are observed because of the disturbances in opening or
closing of valves
 The measurement the mass (volume) flow of the fluid and the time
may not be consistent.
 

Venturi Flow Meter

 The principle of Ventury effect is used to measure flow rate for
ventury flow meter
 A reduction in fluid pressure occurs when a fluid flows through a
constricted section of pipe. Pressure decreases as flow velocity
increases across reduced cross section
 The following formula derived from Bernoulli’s equation
           A1 and A2 are cross sectional area at inlet and throat of venturi. ρ is the mass
density of fluid.
 Actual flow rate measured by venturi meter

      Where, H is the difference in static pressure head (P1– P2) measured across the
venturi meter, D1 is the diameter of upstream pipe and D2 is the diameter in the
throat section (lowest cross area),Cd is coefficient of discharge for the venturi
device
  
 

Orifice Flow Meter

 The volume flow rate liquid or gas is determined using the orifice
flow meter
 This device creates a pressure drop across the orifice plate which
varies with the flow rate
 The formula for orifice meter is similar to that used for Venturi flow
meter
    
Solenoid Valve Flow Meter
 The amount of flow of a fluid through the solenoid valve is generally
calculated with the flow coefficient (Kv)
 User has to note that for gases (like air, methane and oxygen etc.),
the formula is different with correction factor
 The Kv-value presents the volume flow rate of fluid in m 3/hour in a
valve with a specified pressure drop at ambient temperature (1 bar
and 20°C).
 If K-v volume flow rate is presented in m3/hour, then the kv-value
can be expressed in per unit time (l/min)
 The volume flow rate (Q) is calculated using the volume coefficient
(K-v), density of fluid (ρ), and pressure different between inlet and
outlet of pipe (ΔP = P1 -P2 )
           

 The calculation of volume flow rate for liquid, gases, air and steam is
given below. In the following table, the variables are described as:
Q = volume flow rate of fluid (m3/h)

    P1 = Inlet gauge pressure (bar)

   P2 = Outlet gauge pressure (bar)
     Qn = the normal flow rate (m3/h) for 20° temperature and 760 mmHg of
pressure
  t = Inlet fluid temperature (°C)
 V1 = Inlet specific volume of fluid (m3/Kg )
 V2 = Outlet specific volume of fluid (m3/Kg ) for outlet pressure (P2) and
temperature (t)
G = mass flow rate for steam (Kg/h)
Pitot Tubes
 The pitot tubes are widely used to measure air velocity in many
applications like air ventilation and airplanes
 The pitot tube is used to find the fluid flow velocity by converting the
kinetic energy (dynamic pressure) to potential energy of fluid
 The use of the pitot tube is limited  to point measuring
 It can be annubar or  multi-orifice type. The dynamic pressure
(1/ρ*V^2) is measured, and the annubar is used to get average
velocity.
 The pitot tube is used to measure the air velocity around the aero
plane. It is mounted frontier of outer surface.
Turbine Flow meter
 Turbine flow meter is widely used for flow measurement in
aerospace, pulp and paper, water and waste water treatment, power
plant, food and processing and chemical industries
 It has mainly mechanical (rotor) part and electrical (frequency to
voltage converter) part. There are many designs of turbine flow
meters. But simple design is shown below.
 The principle of turbine flow meter is that as fluid moves through a
pipe, the rotor rotates. The rate of rotor is measured to determine
the volume flow rate.
 

 In actual design, a digital display is placed above the rotor wheel to

provide flow rate directly instead of frequency.
  The turndown ratios fur turbine flow meter can be more than 100:1
 For the turbine flow meter, volumetric flow rate (Q) is proportional
to output frequency (f) of the pickup coil. It is expressed as: Q = k*f

      Where Q is volume flow rate, f is the measured frequency and K is the specific
factor (pulses per unit volume) of turbine blade.
 

Vortex Flow Meter

  This flow meter created strong vortices in a downstream of flow
using an obstruction. Every obstruction body has a vortex shedding
frequency at a critical fluid flow speed. Vortex shedding is the
instance where alternating low-pressure zones are generated in the
downstream. Turbulent flow is created due to strong vortices with
vertex shedding frequency. Turbulent flow is unsteady and posses
more rotating fluid masses (eddies) behind the body of vertex
generator.
 Vortex shedding frequency (f) in fluid flow is directly proportional to
the velocity of fluid (V) in the pipe or volume flow rate of fluid (Q)
 The shedding frequency (f) is independent of fluid properties such as
mass density, viscosity and thermal conductivity. The volume flow
rate is calculated based on vortex shedding frequency
St = f (D/v)
Q = A*V = (A*f*D*B)/St,
Q = f*K
where St is the  Strouhal Number, f is the Vortex Shedding Frequency, D is Width
of the Bluff Body, A is  Cross Sectional Area of duct, V is the average Velocity, of
fluid  B is Blockage Factor, K is  the flow meter Coefficient

 A display is provided to get a direct reading of flow rate in Liter per

minute (LPM)
Variable Area Flow meter or Rotameter
 The rotameter is a variable area flow meter. It comprises a vertically
oriented glass or transparent tapered tube.
 The smaller portion of tapered tube is at kept the bottom and larger
portion at the top. Water enters through bottom and leaves from top
section of tube.
 A metering float is free to move up and down within the tapered tube
as per the net fluid force acting on it
  Fluid flow pushes the float to move up in the tapered tube as the
upward pressure difference and buoyancy force by overcoming the
gravity force
 The float rises till the state of dynamic equilibrium of forces due to
upward differential pressure and buoyancy, and downward gravity
 The height of the float presents the flow rate. The scale (vertical
movement) of float is calibrated in appropriate flow units
(Litre/min).

Electromagnetic Flow Meter

 The working principle of magnetic flow meters is based on Faraday’s
law of electromagnetic induction (EMI). Magnetic flow meters is
used to detect the flow of conductive fluids only.
       

 Electromagnetic flow meter has coil housing, transmitter and display

unit at the top.  The inner surface has coating or Linear (PTPE)


 The electric field generated is a function of fluid velocity
E= B*D*C*V
where E is the  Induced Voltage, B is the Magnetic Field Strength, D is the Inner
Diameter of Pipe, Vis the average  velocity of fluid  , C is the Constant of flow
meter
Ultrasonic Flow Meter
 Ultrasonic wave is passed through across the fluid flow using the
transmitter and a receiver
 Ultrasonic waves are also called Elastic waves which an propagates
through man substances of solid, liquid and gases
 Based on properties of ultrasonic waves, clamp on flowmeters with
unique feature of being can be used to measure flow rate of fluid in
the
 In general, there are two types of ultrasonic flowmeters as per the
following working principles:
Doppler Effect Ultrasonic Flow meter
 This Flow meter uses based on Doppler effect. The reflected
ultrasonic sound is used to calibrate the fluid velocity.
 After measuring the frequency shift between the source of ultrasonic
frequency source and the receiver and the fluid carrier
 The resulting frequency shift is called the Doppler Frequency. It is
proportional to velocity
 The Instantaneous flow rate, Q (t/h) is calculated using the following
formula:
Q = K*H^n
where K is the flow rate constant, H is height of liquid level and n is
the power value
Transit Time Difference Ultrasonic (TTDU) Flow meter
 The measurement principle of this flow meter is based on a time
difference method using the ultrasound wave
 A sensor fitted at one side of pipe emit the ultrasonic wave and it is
propagated in the flowing fluid. The speed of sound wave
propagation will increase in the downstream direction but will
decrease in the backward direction
 During the same propagation distance, there will be different in
transmission times.
 The fluid velocity is calculated based on difference between the up
and down transmission time
 The average velocity is calculated considering the cross-sectional
velocity distribution of the velocity across the pipe
 
  Velocity is calculated based on diameter of pipe and mass and
difference between signal transmission time

       In above equation, D is the diameter of pipe diameter. θ represents the angle
of ultrasonic signal with respect to flow direction. ΔT is the difference between for
upstream (Tup) and    downstream (Tdown) transducers signal transmission times.
 The disadvantage of this flow meter, the flow rate depends on a cross
sectional velocity profile
Thermal Mass Flow Meter
 This flow meter is used to measure mass flow rate of fluid through
the pipe
 This flow meter is also called thermal dispersion or immersible mass
flow meters
 Heat generated by the coil is transferred to fluid by convective mode.
The mass flow rate is function of volume flow rate

 The actual mass flow rate is shown below. The display shows volume
flow rate in Normal Meter Cubed per Hour (N M3/hr)
Coriolis Flow Meter
 Coriolis mass flow meter is used when the measured mass flow rate
is affected due to changes in temperature, pressure, viscosity and
density of fluid. In industries, this meter can measure mass flow rate
of gases, liquids, and slurries
 The mass flow measurement is based on the Coriolis forces. When
fluid passes through the U-shaped vibrating tube that cause angular
harmonic oscillation.
 The U-shaped tube is energized with a fixed level of vibration. As a
fluid medium (gas or liquid) passes through the Coriolis tube, the
momentum of fluid will change vibrations in tube, the tube will twist
resulting in a phase shift. This phase shift is measured as a linear
output Which is proportional to volume flow rate of fluid
  The phenomenon of vibrating tube is presented below

 Coriolis meters are considered the one of the most accurate flow
meters compared to other flow meters. This meter has excellent
accuracy over wide conditions and minimum maintenance cost
 
 

Advantages Coriolis Flow Meter

 A wide range of applications from adhesive, liquid nitrogen,
Newtonian or non-Newtonian liquids, slurries and dense gases
 This flow meter can also be used to measure liquid density
 No restriction for Reynolds number
 Flow rate is not affected due to changes in inlet velocity profile.
 Piezoelectric Ceramics Flow Meter
 Piezo cermaic platea are placed around the tube. As fluid passes
through the tube, the piezo electric properties change. These
changed properties can be related to flow rate
Open Channel Flow Meter
Open channel flow meters are widely used for sewage pipes near the manholes,
water canal or streams and rivers. Flumes and weirs are common in many
applications
 Rectangular Weirs,
 V-Notch Weirs,
 Parshall flumes and
 Palmer Bowlus flumes.
The size of flume or weir is decided based on size of channel, flow rate, and
amount of solids content in water flow

Triangular Wier ( V-Notch Flow Meter)

 Triangular weirs consist of a V shaped opening (or notch). These
notches are fitted over an open canal to measure real time flow rate
of seepage water
 Measurement is generally carried out manually by directly fixing the
V-notch plate or on a staff gauge fitted to the basin wall
 Notch is specified with height, width and angle of openings. Flow
rate is a function of geometric parameter of notches as shown in the
following figures

 Weirs acts as a barrier plate which can be installed across the water
streams or open channel to measure volume flow rate of water.
 A weir plate constraint the flow in an open channel with a fixed-size
opening. Three shapes of weirs such as rectangular, trapezoidal and
triangular are commonly used
 Based on measurement of height and width of water flow, volume
flow rate can be calculated as follows.
Parshall Flume Flow Meter
 Normally in power plant, this type of arrangement is installed.
River/reservoir water coming to plant is measured.
  The amount of fluid flow through Parshall flume depends on
geometric parameters such as converging or diverging angle and
dimensions of throat section
                       Q = C*Hn
Where Q is flow rate, C is the free-flow coefficient and H is the head at throat
section. The constant, n depends on the flume size.

 Ultrasonic flow meter can used to measure flow rate of open canal
flow
 

Summary
 Flow meters are mainly tw0 types mechanical and differential
pressure type. Most of flow meter measure volume flow rate.
 Ideal flow meter should have high turn down ratio, minimum
pressure loss, low initial and maintenance cost and high accuracy for
a wide range
 Electromagnegtic, corilolis and soleniod flow meters provide better
accuaracy