Process Instrumentation

CHE426
Dr. Fahad Rehman
CUI, Lahore Campus
CLOs Covered
• CLO1: Fundamentals of Process Instrumentation
• CLO2: Select appropriate instrumentation according to process
requirement

• Contents: Flow meters and their Selection criteria

Thermal Mass Flow meters
• The most common high precision laboratory instruments are the
thermal mass flowmeters. (They are among the most expensive and
can cost over 2000 $.)
• The principle is based on an energy balance: either the entire flow or
a slipstream is heated at a constant rate and the temperature rise is
recorded. The temperature (or temperature difference) of the fluid is
measured and amplified; it is proportional to the mass flow rate:
S = KCpm
• where Cp is the specific heat of the fluid and K is a constant that
includes heat conductivity, viscosity, and density.
Thermal Mass Flow meters
• Generally, the meters are calibrated for a specific fluid at the manufacturer.
• Careful calibration is recommended if a different fluid is to be measured.
• Thermal mass flow meters are generally instrumented with a controller to
be able to set the flow rate at a desired level. These instruments are known
as mass flow controllers (MFCs).
• One of the major limitations of gas MFCs is that there is susceptibility to
contamination by liquids. In many cases, when a contaminated fluid enters
the MFC, it becomes entirely blocked. It is recommended to send it back to
the manufacturer for conditioning. Alternatively, heating the block to a
modest temperature of 50 ◦C, for example, can often unblock the sensing
element.
 Hot Wire Anemometer
• The concept of hot wire anemometry is similar to that of thermal mass
flowmeters : a fine wire is placed in a flow stream and then heated
electrically.
• The heat transfer rate from the fluid to the wire equals the rate heat is
generated by the wire.
• The heat, q, generated by the wire is the product of the square of the
electrical current, i, and the resistance of the wire R at the fluid
temperature,

• The resistance of the wire varies linearly with temperature and is calculated
with respect to a reference temperature,
Hot Wire Anemometry
Oscillatory- Vortex meters
Vortex meters are intrusive because they rely on disturbing the flow regime by
placing an object in the fluid stream to produce an oscillatory motion
downstream. The object can take many shapes but often a thin wire is used,
as shown in Figure, which minimizes the pressure drop. The oscillatory motion
is referred to as a vortex and may be detected by piezoelectric transducers, or
magnetic or optical sensors. The number of vortices present is proportional to
the volumetric flow rate.
Oscillatory- Vortex meters
Vortex meters operate on the principle that when a non-streamlined object is
placed in the middle of a flow stream, vortices are shed alternately downstream
of the object. The frequency of the vortex shedding is directly proportional to the
velocity of the liquid flowing in the pipeline.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOTbOtmtRE8
Turbine meters

The fluid flow rotates the turbine blades- the rotation (rpm) is magnetic pick-up.
• In the ideal situation, the meter response is perfectly linear and determined only by
geometry.
• In some flowmeter designs, the rotor blades are helically twisted to improve efficiency.
• This is especially true of blades with large radius ratios.
• Under steady flow, the rotor assumes a speed that satisfies the following equilibrium:
(1) End fitting — flange
shown;
(2) flowmeter body;
(3) rotation pickup —
magnetic, reluctancetype
shown;
(4) permanent magnet;
(5) pickup cold wound on
pole piece;
(6) rotor blade;
(7) rotor hub;
(8) Rotor shaft bearing —
journal type shown;
(9) rotor shaft;
(10) diffuser support and flow
straightener;
(11) diffuser;
(12) flow conditioning plate
(dotted) — optional with
some meters.
• The difference between the actual rotor speed, rw, and the ideal rotor
speed, rwi , is the rotor slip velocity due to the combined effect of all the
rotor retarding torques , and as a result of which the fluid velocity vector is
deflected through an exit or swirl angle, q.
• Denoting the radius variable by r, and equating the total rate of change of
angular momentum of the fluid passing through the rotor to the retarding
torque, one obtains:

NT is the total retarding torque

Turbine Meter
Coriolis Meters

When fluid is passed through a U-bend, it imposes a force on the tube wall perpendicular to the flow
direction (Coriolis force). The deformation of the U-tube is proportional to the flow rate. Coriolis
meters are expensive but highly accurate.
• A mass flow meter, also known as an inertial flow meter is a device that
measures mass flow rate of a fluid traveling through a tube. The mass flow
rate is the mass of the fluid traveling past a fixed point per unit time. The mass
flow meter does not measure the volume per unit time (e.g., cubic meters
per second) passing through the device; it measures the mass per unit time
(e.g., kilograms per second) flowing through the device.
• A Mass Flow Meter operating on the "Coriolis principle" contains a vibrating
tube in which a fluid flow causes changes in frequency, phase shift or
amplitude.
• The sensor signal is fed into the integrally mounted pc-board. The resulting
output signal is strictly proportional to the real mass flow rate
• In a Coriolis mass flow meter, the “swinging” is generated by vibrating the
tube(s) in which the fluid flows. The amount of twist is proportional to the
mass flow rate of fluid passing through the tube(s). Sensors and a Coriolis
mass flow meter transmitter are used to measure the twist and generate a
linear flow signal.
The vibration causes the tube to deflect due to the Coriolis effect. The
instruments consist of
a straight single tube or a dual curved tube. Depending on the geometry of the
tube, the vibration ranges from 80 Hz to 1000 Hz.
• Volumetric flow rate is the mass flow rate divided by the fluid density.
• If the density is constant, then the relationship is simple.
• If the fluid has varying density, then the relationship is not simple. The
density of the fluid may change with temperature, pressure, or
composition, for example. The fluid may also be a combination of
phases such as a fluid with entrained bubbles. Actual density can be
determined due to dependency of sound velocity on the controlled
liquid concentration.
• Coriolis mass flow measurement is fast and very accurate.

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Magnetic flowmeter
As in the case of many electric devices, the underlying principle of the
electromagnetic flowmeter is Faraday’s law of electromagnetic induction
Faraday’s Law of Induction
This law states that if a conductor of length l (m) is moving with a velocity
v (m/s–1), perpendicular to a magnetic field of flux density B (Tesla), then
the induced voltage e across the ends of conductor can be expressed by:

Based upon Faraday’s Law

The fluid is the conductor, must be electrically conductive.
E=BlVx10-8
Where, E=voltage (volts) , B=magnetic flux density (Tesla/gauss), l= length
of the conductor (cm), V=velocity of the conductor (cm/sec)
The induced voltages in an electromagnetic flowmeter are linearly
proportional to the mean velocity of liquids or to the volumetric flow
rates.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f949gpKdCI4
Magnetic Flowmeters
Electromagnetic Flowmeters
• Magnetic flowmeters have been widely used in industry for many years.

• Unlike many other types of flowmeters, they offer true noninvasive

measurements.

• They are easy to install and use to the extent that existing pipes in a
process can be turned into meters simply by adding external electrodes
and suitable magnets.

• They can measure reverse flows and are insensitive to viscosity, density,
and flow disturbances.

• Electromagnetic flowmeters can rapidly respond to flow changes and they

are linear devices for a wide range of measurements.
Electromagnetic Flowmeters
• Electromagnetic flow meters (magmeters) are considered to be the ideal flow
meter for conductive fluids—they are unsuitable for hydrocarbons, gases,
steam, or ultra-pure water.
• They have a high range of operability, an accuracy of ±0.1%, low space
requirements, and are non-intrusive (that is, they do not affect the flow field).
• if the pipe walls are made from non-conducting elements, then the induced
voltage is independent of the properties of the fluid.
• The accuracy of these meters can be as low as 0.25% and, in most applications,
an accuracy of 1% is used.
• At worst, 5% accuracy is obtained in some difficult applications where
impurities of liquids and the contact resistances of the electrodes are inferior as
in the case of low-purity sodium liquid solutions.
Ultrasonic Flowmeters
Ultrasonic meters have been available for several decades and are an
alternative to magmeters for measuring flow non-intrusively.
They are suitable for a large range of pipe sizes and are particularly
economic versus other methods for large diameter pipe with an accuracy
of about 1%.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bx2RnrfLkQg
 Ultrasonic Flowmeters

• Three types of meters are manufactured: Doppler, Transit Time, and Frequency
Difference.
• The Doppler-effect meter relies on measuring the change of frequency when
an ultrasonic beam is directed toward or away from a moving fluid.
• It makes use of the Doppler frequency shift caused by sound reflected or
scattered from suspensions in the flow path and is therefore more
complementary than competitive to transit time flowmeters.
• This type is more popular and less expensive, but is not considered as accurate
as the transit time flowmeter.
 Ultrasonic Flowmeters

• The Transient Time meter measures the difference in time it takes an

ultrasonic beam to reach one detector upstream of the beam (in the counter-
current direction of flow) and another downstream of the beam (in the co-
current direction).
• This type of ultrasonic flowmeter makes use of the difference in the time for a
sonic pulse to travel a fixed distance.
• First against the flow and then in the direction of flow.
• Transmit time flowmeters are sensitive to suspended solids or air bubbles in
the fluid.
• This is today’s state-of-the-art technology and most widely used type.
 Ultrasonic Flowmeters

• Finally, the Frequency Difference method sends an ultrasonic pulse to each

detector and after each successive pulse reception, another signal is
transmitted. The difference in the frequency of the downstream and upstream
pointing beams is related to the velocity of the fluid.
• These meters require as much as 25 ppm of particles or bubbles with a
minimum 30 μm diameter: the amplitude of the Doppler signal depends on
the number of particles or discontinuities.
Industrial Installation Considerations
Geometrical considerations:
– Position (vertical, horizontal).
– Provision for sufficient straight pipe upstream and downstream.
– Allowance for piping expansion.
– Sufficient clearance for installation and maintenance.
– Provision of bypass lines for servicing.
Industrial Installation Considerations
Mechanical considerations:
– Avoid, minimize vibration.
– Avoid, minimize strong electromagnetic fields in the vicinity.
– Avoid, minimize pressure, flow surges.
– Design and implement a maintenance schedule.
Industrial Installation Considerations
Process considerations:
– Minimize, eliminate gas or vapor in liquid lines (and pressure taps).
– Minimize, eliminate dust, vapor, or liquids in gas/vapor lines (and
pressure taps).
– Filtration upstream.
– Maintain pressure tap lines full.