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Ultrasonic

An ultrasonic flow meter uses ultrasound to measure fluid velocity and calculate volume flow. It works by measuring the transit time difference of ultrasound pulses traveling with and against the flow, or by detecting the Doppler shift in reflected pulses. While accurate, ultrasonic meters are affected by fluid properties and require temperature compensation. They have no moving parts, making them inexpensive to maintain compared to mechanical flow meters. Common applications include measuring flow in water, chemicals, and liquids in industries like oil and gas.

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16 views6 pages

Ultrasonic

An ultrasonic flow meter uses ultrasound to measure fluid velocity and calculate volume flow. It works by measuring the transit time difference of ultrasound pulses traveling with and against the flow, or by detecting the Doppler shift in reflected pulses. While accurate, ultrasonic meters are affected by fluid properties and require temperature compensation. They have no moving parts, making them inexpensive to maintain compared to mechanical flow meters. Common applications include measuring flow in water, chemicals, and liquids in industries like oil and gas.

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Ultrasonic Flow Meter

An ultrasonic flow meter is a type of flow meter that measures


the velocity of a fluid with ultrasound to calculate volume flow.
Using ultrasonic transducers, the flow meter can measure the
average velocity along the path of an emitted beam of ultrasound,
by averaging the difference in measured transit time between the
pulses of ultrasound propagating into and against the direction of
the flow or by measuring the frequency shift from the Doppler
Effect. Ultrasonic flow meters are affected by the acoustic
properties of the fluid and can be impacted by temperature,
density, viscosity and suspended particulates depending on
the exact flow meter. They vary greatly in purchase price but are
often inexpensive to use and maintain because they do not use
moving parts, unlike mechanical flow meters.
Time transit flow meter
Ultrasonic flow meters measure the difference of the
transit time of ultrasonic pulses propagating with and
against flow direction. This time difference is a measure for
the average velocity of the fluid along the path of the
ultrasonic beam.

td, tu - transit times


L - distance between receiving
and transmitting transducers
tita - the inclination angle
v - average velocity
c - speed of sound
Doppler shift flow meters
Another method in ultrasonic flow metering is the use of the
Doppler shift that results from the reflection of an ultrasonic
beam off sonically reflective materials, such as solid particles
or entrained air bubbles in a flowing fluid, or the turbulence of
the fluid itself, if the liquid is clean.
Open channel flow meters
In this case, the ultrasonic element is
actually measuring the height of the water in
the open channel; based on the geometry of
the channel, the flow can be determined
from the height. The ultrasonic sensor
usually also has a temperature sensor with it
because the speed of sound in air is
affected by the temperature.
Advantages Disadvantages
~ adapt to the changes in the profile of the flow, ~ cost of the flow meter is very high
type of the liquid and material of the pipe. ~ needs experts to repair and maintain the flow
~ portable ultrasonic flow meter converter can meters.
be used as a direct method to determine the
flow rates effectively
~ inexpensive to use and maintain as they are no
moving parts in these flow meters.
~ do not obstruct the liquid flow, so they can be
used for sanitary, corrosive and abrasive liquids.
Application
Ultrasonic flow meters are commonly applied to measure the velocity of
liquids that allow ultrasonic waves to pass, such as water, molten sulfur,
cryogenic liquids, and chemicals.
The industries in order of higher to lower are oil and gas, water and
wastewater, power, chemical, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, metals
and mining, and pulp and paper.

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