Assignment

Assign by:
Sir Usman Saeed
Prepared by:
Rashid Saeed
Regd.#
2012-CH-425
MNS-UET Multan

FLOW MEASURING
INSTRUEMENTS

Contents:

Rotameter
Venturi meter
Orifice meter
Pitot tube
Positive displacement meters
Metering pumps

Rotameter

working principle:

A rotameter is a type of flow meter based

on the variable area principle and is used
to indicate flow rates in fluid systems.
The rotameter is placed vertically in the
fluid system with the diameter end of the
tapered flow tube at the bottom. When
the fluid is poured into the tube, the float
is raised from its position at the inlet
allowing the fluid to pass between it and
the wall.

Advantages:

Easy to use
Direct readings
Low cost
Easily maintenence

Venturi meter:

The entry of the venture is cylindrical in

shape to match the size of the pipe through
which fluid flows. This enables the venture to
be fitted to the pipe.
After the entry, there is a converging conical
section with an included angle of 19 to 23.
Following the converging section, there is a
cylindrical section with minimum area called
as the throat.
After the throat, there is a diverging conical
section with an included angle of 5 to 15.

Basic principle:

When a venturi meter is placed in a pipe

carrying the fluid whose flow rate is to be
measured, a pressure drop occurs
between the entrance and throat of the
venture meter. This pressure drop is
measured using a pressure sensor and
when calibrated this pressure drop
becomes a measure of flow rate.

Application:

It is used where high pressure recovery is

required.
Can be used for measuring flow rates of
water, gases, and dirty liquids.
Can be used to measure high flow rates.

Advantages:

Coefficient of discharge is high.

Can be installed vertically, horizontally or
inclined.

Limitations:

They are large in size and hence where

space is limited, they cannot be used.
Expensive initial cost, installation and
maintenance.

Orifice meter:

An orifice plate is a device used for measuring

flow rate, for reducing pressure or for restricting
flow.
An orifice plate is a thin plate with a hole in the
middle. It is usually placed in a pipe in which fluid
flows. When the fluid reaches the orifice plate, the
fluid is forced to converge to go through the small
hole; the point of maximum convergence actually
occurs shortly downstream of the physical orifice, at
the so-called vena contracta point . As it does so,
the velocity and the pressure change. Beyond the
vena contracta, the fluid expands and the velocity
and pressure change once again.

Advantages:

Orifice are small plates and easy to

install/remove.
Offer very little pressure drop of which 60
to 65 % is recovered.
Easy maintenance.

limitations:

Orifice flow range is max. to 1/4 of max.

Only 60 to 65 % of pressure drop is
recovered.

Pitot tube:

A pitot tube is a pressure measuring

instrument used to measure fluid flow
velocity.
The pitot tube is used to measure the
local velocity at a given point in the flow
stream and not the average velocity in
the pipe or conduit.

Principle:

The measuring principle of the pitot tube

utilizes the differences between the
pressure ridge on the upstream side and
the static pressure on its downstream
side.

Working:

The basic pitot tube consists of a tube

pointing directly into the fluid flow. As this
tube contains fluid, a pressure can be
measured; the moving fluid is brought to
rest (stagnates) as there is no outlet to
allow flow to continue. This pressure is
the stagnation pressure of the fluid, also
known as the total pressure or the pitot
pressure.

POSITIVE
DISPLACEMENT
METERS:

PD METERS:
A positive displacement meter is a type of
flow meter that requires the fluid being
measured to mechanically displace
components in the meter in order for any
fluid flow to occur.

Advantages & Applications:

Positive displacement flow meters are

very accurate.
having high turndown.
They can be used in very viscous,
dirty and corrosive fluids
essentially require no straight runs of
pipe for fluid flow stream conditioning.

Drawbacks:

Relatively expensive
Produce the highest differential pressure
subsequently greatest pressure drop
head loss of all the flow meter types

Types:
Nutating

disk
Rotating vane
Lobed impeller

Nutating Disk PD Meters:

Principle of Operation:
Liquid enters a machined chamber containing
a disc which nutates (wobbles). The position of
the disc divides the chamber into
compartments containing an exact volume.
Liquid pressure drives the disc to wobble and a
roller cam causes the nutating disc to make a
complete cycle. The compartments are filled
and emptied each cycle. The movements of
the disc are transmitted by a gear train to a
register/totalizer or pulse transmitter.

Working :

The movable element is a circular disk which is

attached to a central ball. A shaft is fastened to the
ball and held in an inclined position by a cam or roller.
The disk is mounted in a chamber which has spherical
side walls and conical top and bottom surfaces. The
fluid enters an opening in the spherical wall on one
side of the partition and leaves through the other
side. As the fluid flows through the chamber, the disk
wobbles, or executes a nutating motion. Since the
volume of fluid required to make the disc complete
one revolution is known, the total flow through a
nutating disc can be calculated by multiplying the
number of disc rotations by the known volume of fluid.

Advantages and Applications:

Low cost
Moderate pressure loss
Available in several materials of
construction
This type of flow meter is normally used
for water service, such as raw water
supply and evaporator feed.

ROTATING VANE
METERS:

Rotating Vane meters:

There are two or three couples of positive

displacement rotary vanes integrated
with a rotor to form a rotating unit that is
installed inside of the measuring
chamber a meter.The positive
displacement rotary vanes are fitted in
the grooves in the rotor with the
quantities Accordance with the quantities
of the positive displacement rotary
vanes.

Advantages:

Low pressure loss

Applicable to wide variety of gas and
liquid fluids including viscous materials
High temperature and pressure rating
Good accuracy
Available in numerous construction
materials

Disadvantages:

High cost
Sustainable to damage from entrained
vapors and dirty fluids
Low accuracy at low flow rates
Bulky and heavy

LOBED IMPELLER
METER:

Lobed Impeller Meter:

In the rotating lobe design, two impellers

rotate in opposite directions within the
void housing. As they rotate, a fixed
volume of liquid is entrapped and then
transported toward the outlet. Because
the lobe gears remain in a fixed relative
position, it is only necessary to measure
the rotational velocity of one of them.

Advantages:

Increasingly accurate at higher flow rates

where leakage and slip is decreased
Good capacity range
Can be used for corrosive services

Thank You