Flow and Pressure

Measuring Instruments

Presented by:

RINALYN C. BELONIO
Master of Science in Agricultural Engineering
Flow Measurement

The rate at which fluid flows through a closed

pipe can be quantified by either measuring the
mass flow rate or measuring the volume flow rate.
Of these alternatives, mass flow measurement is
more accurate, since mass, unlike volume, is
invariant. In the case of the flow of solids, the
choice is simpler, since only mass flow
measurement is appropriate.
 Mass flow rate
• Conveyor-based methods

These methods are concerned with measurement of the

flow of solids that are in the form of small particles. Such
particles are usually produced by crushing or grinding
procedures in process industries, and the particles are
usually transported by some form of conveyor. This mode
of transport allows the mass flow rate to be calculated in
terms of the mass of material on a given length of
conveyor multiplied by the speed of the conveyor.
The mass flow rate, Q:

Q = Mv / L
 • Coriolis flow meter
The Coriolis flow meter is primarily used to
measure the mass flow rate of liquids, although it has also
been successfully used in some gas-flow measurement
applications. The flow meter consists of either a pair of
parallel vibrating tubes or else a single vibrating tube that
is formed into a configuration that has two parallel
sections.
 • Thermal mass flow measurement

Thermal mass flow meters are primarily used to measure the

flow rate of gases. The principle of operation is to direct the
flowing material past a heated element. The mass flow rate is
inferred in one of two ways, (a) by measuring the temperature rise
in the flowing material or (b) by measuring the heater power
required to achieve a constant set temperature in the flowing
material. Typical measurement uncertainty is ±2%.
 • Joint measurement of volume flow rate and
fluid density

Before the advent of the Coriolis meter, the usual

way of measuring mass flow rate was to compute this
from separate, simultaneous measurements of the volume
flow rate and the fluid density. In many circumstances,
this is still the cheapest option, although measurement
accuracy is substantially inferior to that provided by a
Coriolis meter.
 Volume flow rate
• Differential pressure (obstruction-type) meters

Involve the insertion of some device into a fluid-

carrying pipe that causes an obstruction and creates a
pressure difference on either side of the device. Such
meters are sometimes known as obstruction-type meters
or flow-restriction meters. When such a restriction is
placed in a pipe, the velocity of the fluid through the
restriction increases and the pressure decreases. The
volume flow rate is then proportional to the square root of
the pressure difference across the obstruction.
  Orifice plate
The orifice plate is a metal disc with a concentric hole in it,
which is inserted into the pipe carrying the flowing fluid. Orifice
plates are simple, cheap and available in a wide range of sizes. In
consequence, they account for almost 50% of the instruments used
in industry for measuring volume flow rate. One limitation of the
orifice plate is that its inaccuracy is typically at least ±2% and may
approach ±5%. Also, the permanent pressure loss caused in the
measured fluid flow is between 50% and 90% of the magnitude of
the pressure difference P1 - P2.
 Fig. 5 Profile of flow across orifice plate.

Fig. 6 Pattern of pressure variation either side of orifice plate.

  Venturis and similar devices

The Venturi has a precision-engineered tube of a special shape.

This offers measurement uncertainty of only ±1%. However, the
complex machining required to manufacture it means that it is the
most expensive of all the obstruction devices discussed. Permanent
pressure loss in the measured system is 10 - 15% of the pressure
difference P1 - P2 across it.
  Dall flow tube
The Dall flow tube consists of two conical reducers inserted into
the fluid-carrying pipe. It has a very similar internal shape to the
Venturi, except that it lacks a throat. This construction is much easier
to manufacture and this gives the Dall flow tube an advantage in cost
over the Venturi, although the typical measurement inaccuracy is a
little higher (±1.5%). The Dall tube has one further operational
advantage, in that the permanent pressure loss imposed on the
measured system is only about 5% of the measured pressure difference
(P1 -P2).
  Pitot static tube
The Pitot static tube is mainly used for making temporary
measurements of flow, although it is also used in some instances for
permanent flow monitoring. It measures the local velocity of flow
at a particular point within a pipe rather than the average flow
velocity as measured by other types of flow meter.
The instrument depends on the principle that a tube placed with
its open end in a stream of fluid will bring to rest that part of the
fluid which impinges on it, and the loss of kinetic energy will be
converted to a measurable increase in pressure inside the tube. This
pressure (P1), as well as the static pressure of the undisturbed free
stream of flow (P2), is measured. The flow velocity can then be
calculated from the formula:
 Pitot tubes have the advantage that they cause
negligible pressure loss in the flow. They are also cheap,
and the installation procedure consists of the very simple
process of pushing them down a small hole drilled in the
flow-carrying pipe. Their main failing is that the
measurement inaccuracy is typically about ±5%, although
more expensive versions can reduce inaccuracy down to
±1%.
• Variable area flow meters (Rotameters)

In the variable area flow meter (which

is also sometimes known as a Rotameter),
the differential pressure across a variable
aperture is used to adjust the area of the
aperture. The aperture area is then a
measure of the flow rate. The instrument is
reliable and cheap and used extensively
throughout industry, accounting for about
20% of all flow meters sold. Normally, this
type of instrument only gives a visual
indication of flow rate, and so it is of no use
in automatic control schemes.
 • Variable area flow meters (Rotameters)

The instrument consists of a tapered glass tube containing a

float which takes up a stable position where its submerged weight is
balanced by the up thrust due to the differential pressure across it.
The position of the float is a measure of the effective annular area
of the flow passage and hence of the flow rate. The inaccuracy of
the cheapest instruments is typically ±5%, but more expensive
versions offer measurement inaccuracies as low as ±0.5%.
• Positive displacement flow meters

Positive displacement flow meters account for

nearly 10% of the total number of flow meters used in
industry and are used in large numbers for metering
domestic gas and water consumption. The cheapest
instruments have a typical inaccuracy of about ±2%,
but the inaccuracy in more expensive ones can be as
low as ±0.5%.
• Turbine meters
A turbine flow meter consists of a multi-bladed wheel
mounted in a pipe along an axis parallel to the direction of fluid
flow in the pipe. The flow of fluid past the wheel causes it to
rotate at a rate that is proportional to the volume flow rate of the
fluid. Provided that the turbine wheel is mounted in low friction
bearings, measurement inaccuracy can be as low as ±0.2%.
However, turbine flow meters are less rugged and reliable than
flow-restriction type instruments, and are badly affected by any
particulate matter in the flowing fluid.
• Electromagnetic flow meters

The instrument consists of a stainless

steel cylindrical tube, fitted with an insulating
liner, which carries the measured fluid. A
magnetic field is created in the tube by placing
mains-energized field coils either side of it, and
the voltage induced in the fluid is measured by
two electrodes inserted into opposite sides of
the tube. The ends of these electrodes are
usually flush with the inner surface of the
cylinder. The typical measurement inaccuracy
of around ±1% is acceptable in many
applications, but the instrument is expensive
both in terms of the initial purchase cost and
also in running costs, mainly due to its
electricity consumption.
 • Vortex-shedding flow meters

The vortex-shedding flow meter is a relatively new type of instrument which

is rapidly gaining in popularity and is being used as an alternative to traditional
differential pressure meters in more and more applications. The operating
principle of the instrument is based on the natural phenomenon of vortex
shedding, created by placing an unstreamlined obstacle (known as a bluff body)
in a fluid-carrying pipe. They can measure both liquid and gas flows and a
common inaccuracy figure quoted is ±1% of full-scale reading, though this can
be seriously downgraded in the presence of flow disturbances upstream of the
measurement point and a straight run of pipe before the measurement point of 50
pipe diameters is recommended.
• Ultrasonic flow meters

The ultrasonic technique of volume flow rate

measurement is, like the magnetic flow meter, a non-
invasive method. It is not restricted to conductive
fluids, however, and is particularly useful for
measuring the flow of corrosive fluids and slurries.
Pressure Measurement
Absolute pressure: This is the difference between the pressure
of the fluid and the absolute zero of pressure.

Gauge pressure: This describes the difference between the

pressure of a fluid and atmospheric pressure. Absolute and gauge
pressure are therefore related by the expression:

Absolute pressure = Gauge pressure + Atmospheric pressure

Differential pressure: This term is used to describe the

difference between two absolute pressure values, such as the
pressures at two different points within the same fluid (often
between the two sides of a flow restrictor in a system measuring
volume flow rate).
 • Diaphragms
The diaphragm is one of three types of elastic-element
pressure transducer. Applied pressure causes displacement of the
diaphragm and this movement is measured by a displacement
transducer. Different versions of diaphragm sensors can measure
both absolute pressure (up to 50 bar) and gauge pressure (up to
2000 bar) according to whether the space on one side of the
diaphragm is respectively evacuated or is open to the atmosphere.
These have a typical measurement uncertainty of ±0.5%.
• Capacitive pressure sensor

A capacitive pressure sensor is simply a diaphragm-

type device in which the diaphragm displacement is determined
by measuring the capacitance change between the diaphragm
and a metal plate that is close to it. Such devices are in common
use. It is also possible to fabricate capacitive elements in a
silicon chip and thus form very small micro-sensors. These have
a typical measurement uncertainty of ±0.2%.
 • Fiber-optic pressure sensors

Fiber-optic sensors provide an alternative method of measuring

displacements in diaphragm and Bourdon tube pressure sensors by optoelectronic
means, and enable the resulting sensors to have lower mass and size compared
with sensors in which the displacement is measured by other methods.
Another form is the Fotonic sensor in which light travels from a light
source, down an optical fiber, is reflected back from a diaphragm, and then
travels back along a second fiber to a photo detector. There is a characteristic
relationship between the light reflected and the distance from the fiber ends to the
diaphragm, thus making the amount of reflected light dependent upon the
diaphragm displacement and hence the measured pressure.
 • Bellows
The bellows is another elastic-element type of pressure sensor that operates on
very similar principles to the diaphragm pressure sensor. Pressure changes within the
bellows, which is typically fabricated as a seamless tube of either metal or metal alloy,
produce translational motion of the end of the bellows that can be measured by capacitive,
inductive (LVDT) or potentiometric transducers. Different versions can measure either
absolute pressure (up to 2.5 bar) or gauge pressure (up to 150 bar). Double-bellows
versions also exist that are designed to measure differential pressures of up to 30 bar.
Bellows have a typical measurement uncertainty of only ±0.5%, but they have a
relatively high manufacturing cost and are prone to failure. Their principal attribute in the
past has been their greater measurement sensitivity compared with diaphragm sensors.
However, advances in electronics mean that the high-sensitivity requirement can usually
be satisfied now by diaphragm-type devices, and usage of bellows is therefore falling.
 • Bourdon tube
The Bourdon tube is also an elastic element type of pressure transducer. It is
relatively cheap and is commonly used for measuring the gauge pressure of both gaseous
and liquid fluids. It consists of a specially shaped piece of oval-section, flexible, metal
tube that is fixed at one end and free to move at the other end. When pressure is applied at
the open, fixed end of the tube, the oval cross-section becomes more circular. In
consequence, there is a displacement of the free end of the tube. This displacement is
measured by some form of displacement transducer, which is commonly a potentiometer.
Capacitive and optical sensors are also sometimes used to measure the displacement.
For a C-type tube, the maximum value
for this arc is somewhat less than 360°. C-type
tubes are available for measuring pressures up to
6000 bar. A typical C-type tube of 25mm radius
has a maximum displacement travel of 4 mm,
giving a moderate level of measurement
resolution. Measurement inaccuracy is typically
quoted at ±1% of full-scale deflection. Similar
accuracy is available from helical and spiral types,
but whilst the measurement resolution is higher,
the maximum pressure measurable is only 700
bar.
 • Manometers
Manometers are passive instruments that give a visual
indication of pressure values. The U-tube manometer is the most
common form of manometer. Applied pressure causes a
displacement of liquid inside the U-shaped glass tube, and the
output pressure reading P is made by observing the difference h
between the level of liquid in the two halves of the tube A and B,
according to the equation P = hρg, where ρ is the specific gravity of
the fluid. U-tube manometers are typically used to measure gauge
and differential pressures up to about 2 bar.
 • Resonant-wire devices
Wire is stretched across a chamber containing fluid at unknown
pressure subjected to a magnetic field. The wire resonates at its natural
frequency according to its tension, which varies with pressure. Thus
pressure is calculated by measuring the frequency of vibration of the
wire. Such frequency measurement is normally carried out by electronics
integrated into the cell. These devices are highly accurate, with a typical
inaccuracy figure being ±0.2% full-scale reading. They are also
particularly insensitive to ambient condition changes and can measure
pressures between 5mbar and 2 bar.
 • Dead-weight gauge
The dead-weight gauge is a null-reading type of measuring instrument
in which weights are added to the piston platform until the piston is adjacent to a
fixed reference mark, at which time the downward force of the weights on top of
the piston is balanced by the pressure exerted by the fluid beneath the piston.
The fluid pressure is therefore calculated in terms of the weight added to the
platform and the known area of the piston. The instrument offers the ability to
measure pressures to a high degree of accuracy but is inconvenient to use. Its
major application is as a reference instrument against which other pressure-
measuring devices are calibrated. Various versions are available that allow
measurement of gauge pressures up to 7000 bar.