Ultrasonic Flow Meter Transit

time compared with Doppler,

Advantages, disadvantages, and
Applications.

Prepared by: Mohamed Yehia, Lead Instrument & CS Reliability Engineer

(Feel Free to share the document, kindly keep the author’s name, Mohamed Yehia)
Ultrasonic flow meters are instruments that measure flow by
detecting the effect of fluid flow on an ultrasonic beam (or
ultrasonic pulse). There are most common two types of ultrasonic
flowmeter technology: Doppler frequency shift ultrasonic
flowmeter and transit time ultrasonic flow meter.

What is the difference between the doppler

ultrasonic flowmeter and transit time
ultrasonic flowmeter?
According to the principle of signal detection, ultrasonic flowmeter
can be divided into propagation velocity difference method (direct
time difference method, time difference method, phase difference
method and frequency difference method), beam shifting method,
Doppler method, cross-correlation method, spatial filtering
method and noise law.
Ultrasonic flowmeters are generally used in projects that need-to-
know pipeline flow data. There are two options. Doppler is
suitable for open channel, multi-impurity, and multi-bubble liquid
measurement, and is usually not suitable for very clean liquids.
The time difference method is suitable for the measurement of a
low amount of impurities and relatively pure liquid in a full
pipeline.

Transit time Ultrasonic flow meter working

principle.
When the ultrasonic beam propagates in the liquid, the flow of
the liquid will cause a small change in the propagation time, and
the change of the propagation time is proportional to the flow
rate of the liquid, and the relationship is in accordance with the
following expression.
 Transit time Ultrasonic flow meter working principle.

θ is the angle between the sound beam and the liquid flow direction
M is the number of straight-line propagations of the sound beam in the
liquid
D is the inner diameter of the pipe
Tup is the propagation time of the sound beam in the positive direction
Tdown is the propagation time of the sound beam in the opposite direction
ΔT= Tup – Tdown
Suppose the speed of sound in the static fluid is c, the speed of
fluid flow is u, and the propagation distance is L. When the sound
wave is in the same direction as the fluid flow (that is, the
direction of the flow), its propagation speed is c+u; otherwise,
the propagation speed is cu. Place two sets of ultrasonic
generators and receivers (T1, R1) and (T2, R2) at two places
separated by L. When T1 transmits ultrasonic waves in the
forward direction and T2 in the opposite direction, the time
required for the ultrasonic waves to reach the receivers R1 and
R2 respectively is t1 and t2, then
t1=L/(c+u); t2=L/(c-u)

Since in the industrial pipeline, the flow velocity of the fluid is

much smaller than the speed of sound, that is, c>>u, so the time
difference between the two is ▽t=t2-t1=2Lu/cc It can be seen
that when the propagation speed of the sound wave in the fluid is
c When known, as long as the time difference ▽t is measured, the
flow velocity u can be obtained, and then the flow rate Q can be
obtained. The method of measuring flow using this principle is
called the time difference method ultrasonic flowmeter.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of

the transit time ultrasonic flowmeter?
1. Advantage: Ultrasonic flowmeter is a non-contact instrument,
which can measure the flow of medium with large diameter and
can also be used for the measurement of medium that is not easy
to contact and observe. Its measurement accuracy is very high,
and the external clip-type installation can reach the highest
accuracy of ±0.5%. It is almost not disturbed by various
parameters of the measured medium, especially it can solve the
strong corrosiveness, non-conductivity, Flow measurement of
radioactive and flammable and explosive media.
2. Disadvantages: The shortcomings of ultrasonic flowmeters
are mainly that the temperature range of the measurable fluid is
limited by the temperature resistance of the ultrasonic transducer
aluminum and the coupling material between the transducer and
the pipeline, and the original data of the sound transmission
speed of the measured fluid at high temperature is incomplete. .
Currently it can only be used to measure fluids below 200°C.

Types of transit time ultrasonic flowmeters

*Plug-in ultrasonic flowmeter: can be installed and
maintained without production. The ceramic sensor is used for
non-stop installation using a dedicated drilling device. Generally,
it is a single-channel measurement. To improve the measurement
accuracy, multi-channel can be selected.
*Segment type ultrasonic flowmeter: It is necessary to cut
the pipeline to install, but the production cannot be stopped for
future maintenance. Mono or multi-channel transducers can be
selected.
*Clamp-on ultrasonic flowmeter: It can complete fixed and
mobile measurement. Use special coupling agent (room
temperature curing silicone rubber or high temperature long-
chain polymer grease) to install, and the pipeline will not be
damaged during installation.
*Portable ultrasonic flowmeter: portable use, built-in
rechargeable lithium battery, suitable for mobile measurement,
with magnetic sensor.
*Handheld ultrasonic flowmeter: small size, light weight,
built-in rechargeable lithium battery, hand-held use, with
magnetic sensor.
*Explosion-proof ultrasonic flowmeter: used for liquid flow
measurement in explosive environments, it is explosion-proof and
intrinsically safe. That is, the converter is explosion-proof, and
the sensor is intrinsically safe.

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Transit time Ultrasonic Flow Meter Applications

The external clamp or pipe segment ultrasonic flow meter is
based on the principle of “velocity difference method” to measure
the liquid flow in the circular tube. It adopts advanced multi-pulse
technology, signal digital processing technology and error
correction technology, which makes the flow meter more suitable
for the environment of the industrial site, and the measurement
is more convenient, economical, and accurate. The products have
reached the advanced level at home and abroad, and can be
widely used in petroleum, chemical, metallurgy, electric power,
water supply and drainage and other fields.

Transit time Ultrasonic Flow Meter Installation

The measurement line accuracy of the time difference ultrasonic
flowmeter is higher than 1.0%. Due to the diversity of the
industrial site, especially the surrounding environment of the
 pipeline, how to install and debug the ultrasonic flowmeter
According to the specific environment? How to Choose
ultrasonic flow sensor installation points?

Proper installation point is a key for transducer installation.

Following factors must be considered: Full filled pipeline, shaking,
steady flow, scaling, temperature, pressure, EMI, instrument well.
>> Full filled pipeline
Following situations can be full filled of liquid:

Transit time Ultrasonic Flow Meter Installation

>> Shaking
There cannot be obvious shaking on the installation point,
otherwise it needs to be tightened.
>>Steady flow
Steady flow is helpful for ensuring measurement accuracy.
Standard requests for steady flow are:
1. The pipe should be far away from pump outlet and half-open
valve.
10D to upstream and 50D to downstream. (D means outer
diameter)
2. 30D to pump outlet and half-open valve.
 Transit time Ultrasonic Flow Meter Installation
>> Scaling
The inside scaling would have bad effect on ultrasonic signal
transmission and would decrease the inner diameter as well. As
a result, the measurement accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
Please try to avoid choosing the installation point with inside
scaling.
>>Temperature
The liquid temperature on installation point should be in the
working range of transducers. Please try to choose the point with
lower temperature. Avoid choosing points like the outlet of boiler
water and heat exchanger. Return water pipe would be better.
Temperature range of standard clamp on and insertion
transducers: -30 ~ 90℃
Temperature range of high temperature clamp on and insertion
transducers: -30 ~ 160℃
>>Pressure
The maximum pressure for standard insertion and inline
transducer is 1.6MPa
Out of this range need customized.
>>EMI: (electromagnetic interference)
The ultrasonic flow meter, transducer and signal cable can be
easily interfered by interference sources such as frequency
changer, radio station, microwave station, GSM base station and
high-tension cable. Please try to avoid these interference sources
when choosing installation points.
The shield layer of flow meter, transducer and signal cable
should be connected to earth.
Better to use isolated power supply. Do not use the same power
supply with the frequency converter.
>>Instrument well
When measuring underground pipes or need to protect the
measuring points, an instrument well is required. To ensure the
enough installation space, the sizes of instrument well should
meet the following requirements.

Transit time Ultrasonic Flow Meter Installation

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Thank you for your attention, and kindly leave a comment for any further
discussion.

Mohamed Yehia Mursi