Turbine flow meters are volume detecting devices. As gas or liquid traverse through the turbine housing, it makes the suspended turbine blades to spin and gyrate. The speed of the turbine rotor is, for the most part, precisely equivalent to the speed of the fluid traversing through the flow meter.
The exterior pickoff attached on the flow meter’s body, detects each rotor blade going past, making the sensor to produce or dispense a frequency output. The rate at which a vibration occurs that constitutes a wave is precisely proportional to the volume of the gas or liquid. (Divinewoodncrafts)
Moreover, either a modulated carrier or magnetic carrier pickup can be, for the most part, utilized to detect and identify the velocity of the turbine rotor. And relying upon your application, there are plenty of turbine flow meter types to select from. For a little help, here are some important things to take note of turbine flow meters. So, take a read.
How Does it Work?
This type of flow meter has a rather simple and straightforward working principle than other flowmeter types available on the market. For the most part, the turbine flow meter utilizes mechanical movement inside the flow meter to measure the flow.
The flow meter has a rotating part with blades attached on a stance and being held up inside the turbine flow meter through a central shaft. If there is a flow in the pipe, the energy of the substance will cause the rotor to rotate.
The rotor blades are made from a material that’s attracted by the poles of a magnet. Thus, the exterior pickoff causes a magnetic field inside the pipe. Moreover, when the blades traverse through this situation, they produce or dispense voltage corresponding to the speed of rotation, wherein you can use to measure the flow rate.
The pickoffs’ signal can pass through an exterior transmitter and transform into other kinds of communication. Also, you can utilize a preamplifier to peruse these signals originating from the flow meter without the aid of the transmitter.
Measuring Range
In case you didn’t know, turbine flow meters do not calculate flow from zero. With that said, you might need a small amount of flow to make the rotor moving to generate or produce electrical pulses.
Typically, you can discover flow meters of this type, providing 10:1 turndown. Thus, you can use the turbine flow meter from small-sized to a huge pipe. You can purchase particular models to operate in fiscal applications to calculate gas flow or liquid flow.
But the flow meter does have one downfall, which is the viscosity change. Calculations can become inexact when the product gets thinner or thicker. Nevertheless, you can discover turbine flow meters engineered to operate in high viscosity or low viscosity. However, some professionals suggest applying turbine flow meters under thirty centipoise to keep the linearity of the flow meter from decreasing.
Pros and Cons
Turbine flow meters are, for the most part, the favored devices to use for low viscosity, filtered, and clean fluids. This kind of flow meter is best known for its preciseness and exactness. The design and inner workings of the turbine flow meters are, more often than not, extremely popular within the industry. But just like anything, there are advantages and disadvantages to utilizing this flow meter.
Okay, so let us begin with the advantages. A turbine flow meter is easy to install, simple to use, and low cost. It has hardly performance problems because their mechanism and technology is straightforward. Turbine flow meters are excellent for liquids and gases and have an extensive case of flow to them.
On the other hand, the drawbacks of this device aren’t quite long. Turbine flow meters need regular flow meter calibration. Plus, their installation must be precise, exact, and accurate to keep away from any errors. Moreover, turbine flow meters require the gases or liquids traversing through the pipe to be clean. Also, there are problems with cavitations and issues because of changes in viscosity.
Furthermore, there are a couple of factors that you need to consider when picking a turbine flow meter, for example, specific application, accuracy range, pressure range, flow range, process temperature, pipe sizing, connection, fluid type, and viscosity.
Takeaway
A turbine flow meter is easy to use and maintain, cost-effective, reliable, and effective for getting precise flow measurement. These flow meters are engineered to minimize pressure drop and maximize pressure drop, keep high flow rates on top of the expanded flow range, and provide frequency output that’s linear to the flow rate.
Further, a turbine flow meter is one of the generally known flow meters used in fiscal applications, for instance, petroleum custody transfer. Overall, turbine flow meters have an uncomplicated structure, simple principle, easy installation, and easy upkeep.
