For years, folks involved in the oil and gas trade have been innovating and creating methods to get correct measurements. From extraction to delivery of those uncooked supplies, everyone within the enterprise has invested a great deal of effort to acquire essentially the most correct measurements.
As a end result, scientists and engineers have been working onerous to search out new methods and methods to make more efficient metrology systems. Thanks to their onerous work, the creation of various move meters was possible and due to this, the oil and gas industry continues to be robust today.
These move meters are used by industry (especially gas and oil) to calculate the mass move or quantity flow of fluids. Such applications outline the capability and sort of flow meters. Gases, liquids and fluids are measured based mostly on mass move and volume flow.
From corrosive subsea environments, offshore production platforms, onshore oil fields or refineries, we now have the flow expertise to deal with these tough jobs. Difficult oil and fuel circulate metering challenges such as excessive pressures, pulsating flows, corrosive media and harsh environments are our daily business. We work with many of our upstream and downstream prospects to develop customized circulate solutions for his or her toughest challenges, dealing with probably the most demanding chemical compounds of their most remote and dangerous areas. We work with you to improve process effectivity, scale back pricey production downtime, and set up real-time monitoring and management.
Table of Contents
Where and how are oil and fuel formed?
Ultrasonic circulate meter
Coriolis circulate meter
Electromagnetic flowmeter
Vortex circulate meter
Turbine flow meter
Thermal circulate meter
Differential flow meter
Positive displacement circulate meter
Oil and gas move meter selection
Where and the way are oil and fuel formed?
Before discussing the different move meters commonly used in the oil and gas trade, you will need to first understand the process of how the industry collects uncooked supplies.
Both of these uncooked supplies exist in numerous geological sources. For essentially the most part, natural gasoline and oil fields exist on sedimentary rocks corresponding to sandstone and limestone. The main cause for that is that these materials transfer simply via the rock, making them easier to accumulate. The capability of the found reservoirs could be determined by their porosity, whereas the production capacity is proportional to their permeability.
To start the flow, they drill inside these rocks, which can make the fluid simpler to extract. To initiate, improve or sustain circulate, water is pumped into the rocks, which are normally located underground. High pressure water is pumped into these rocks, which is able to enhance the flow price and increase fluid extraction. A flow meter referred to as an Apure electromagnetic move meter is used to accurately measure the amount of water pumped inside the rock.
However, in some cases, drilling and pumping is not sufficient to obtain this materials. Most of the oil or gas found in impermeable rocks can’t be shaped in the conventional way. These materials are known as “unconventional hydrocarbons,” they usually embrace shale oil, coalbed methane and shale gasoline. Because of the very low permeability of the rocks, accumulation must be stimulated to begin out the move and allow the extraction process. To do this, a method known as “hydraulic fracturing” is required.
In hydraulic fracturing, a mixture of sand and water is pumped into the rock. Due to the high pressure, small cracks (fractures) are created, which will enable the material to maneuver freely inside the muse. Hydraulic fracturing is achieved by inflicting these fractures to open to permit the fabric to maneuver, which is where the sand is out there in; opening these fractures, resulting in excessive permeability. To precisely measure the blending of fracturing fluid and additives within the combination, Apure’s electromagnetic flow meters are used.
Now that we have explained an outline of how the oil and gasoline business gets these raw materials, the subsequent step is to grasp how they are measured using various kinds of metering methods.
Ultrasonic move meter
Ultrasonic flow meters measure the speed of a fluid flowing through a pipe by using sound waves. Once the speed of the fluid slowly increases, a linear change in its frequency becomes obvious.
Ultrasonic move meters can be utilized to measure the move price of fluids inside and outdoors of a pipe; the inline design installs the meter contained in the pipe, while the clamp-on model makes use of a transducer to measure velocity. However, clamp-on fashions are less correct than inline models. As a outcome, they are solely used for spot checks to acquire instant measurement outcomes.
Ultrasonic flowmeters and other flowmeters designed for crude oil can be utilized to measure 20-inch pipes inline. In addition, the clamp-on design is appropriate for many various things and is sturdy. Not to mention, it requires little or no maintenance.
Coriolis circulate meter
The technology used in Coriolis move meters is not the latest in measuring pure substances in the oil and fuel industry. The first industrial patents for Coriolis flow meters date again to the 1950s. However, it was not till 1970 that the applying of this technology in this area began. Until now, nothing has modified, despite improvements to the meters for extra accurate measurements.
One of the unique designs of the move meter was that it had a single thin-walled tube. It was very accurate; nevertheless, the practicality of the model was the primary problem because of its vibration downside. To remedy this downside, the design was changed to a two-tube design instead of one.
Despite going via totally different designs, the main precept of Coriolis move meters by no means modified. As materials flows by way of them, inertia is created via the oscillating tube and the tube twists. The variety of twists is proportional to the mass circulate price. This is then measured by the flowmeter transmitter and sensor to supply a linear circulate signal.
There are a number of benefits to utilizing a Coriolis move meter. เกจวัดแรงดัน4บาร์ of them is that it is extremely accurate. These flow meters are more generally used to measure numerous petroleum products corresponding to crude oil and natural gasoline. The primary point of the move meter is that it primarily measures mass move somewhat than quantity. It is greatest suited to measuring petroleum products as a result of the main concern in measuring these products is heat quite than quantity.
Typically, this sort of circulate meter is appropriate for pipes with diameters of 1 to 4 inches. Today, nonetheless, larger models are more available than ever before. The solely disadvantage of the Coriolis flowmeter may be that it is more expensive than different kinds of metering methods. This is price it as a outcome of it is less expensive to maintain than different move meters.
Electromagnetic flowmeter
Electromagnetic move meter is based on Faraday’s legislation of electromagnetic induction principle of manufacturing a flowmeter to measure conductive liquids, from its measurement precept may be seen in its limitations: cannot measure steam and fuel, the measured medium have to be conductive, and the conductivity can not be lower than 5μs/cm. Its advantage is that it could measure soiled, viscous and corrosive fluids, similar to pulp, slurry, sewage, and so on.. No strain loss attributable to flow detection, large circulate range, wide range of caliber, for large diameter pipeline can be used insertion sort electromagnetic flowmeter.
Electromagnetic flowmeter electrode and lining are in direct contact with the measured medium, so for the measured medium corrosive and operating temperature to decide on the appropriate electrode and lining supplies.
Vortex flow meter
One of essentially the most versatile move meters, the vortex flow meter, can easily measure the circulate of gases, liquids, and steam.
In years past, vortex flowmeters lacked the required approvals for use in trade. However, in 2007, the American Petroleum Institute permitted a draft standard for using this flowmeter. Since that point, a number of corporations within the industry have been actively working with API to additional develop the usual and its approval.
The standard is applicable to liquid, vapor and gasoline flows and was expanded for additional use in 2010. Although there’s an unsure future, the design is clear for the presence of gases and liquids. In current years, vortex flowmeters have had a restricted impression on the market, but the preference for future firms is steadily growing. However, due to other opponents corresponding to ultrasonic, differential pressure and turbine circulate meters, it has had little impression on the gas trade delivery market.
Turbine circulate meter
Turbine circulate meters use a mechanical rotor which is hooked up to a shaft inside a pipe. It is then used to measure the quantity of the fuel, fluid or steam passing by way of the pipe. As the substance passes via the pipe, the rotor rotates at its pace, depending on the speed at which the substance is passing via the pipe. The rotational speed resulting from the rotation of the rotor is decided by way of a sensor or different mechanical technique.
Typically, magnetism is used to allow the sensor to take readings from the rotor, with the magnet located on the outside of the pipe. Through using a sign, the sensor and transmitter decide the quantity of material flowing in the pipe.
Turbine flow meters are very cheap when it comes to pricing. In addition, they provide more correct outcomes when the substance being measured is a fuel or some other materials that is free of particles at low flow rates.
One drawback of utilizing a turbine flowmeter is that it does not adapt properly to altering move charges, as the mechanical components can wear heavily and need to be replaced instantly. In addition, turbine meters work best when measuring the mass of a gas with unknown traits.
In addition to its makes use of, it is commonly used as a billing meter to measure gas or water in business, industrial and residential buildings. In this respect, however, it competes with volumetric flow meters. The latter is extra appropriate for measuring pipes of 1.5 to 10 inches in dimension, while the turbine flow meter is finest fitted to pipes of 10 inches or extra in size.
Thermal flow meter
In its major sense, a thermal circulate meter measures the rate at which warmth dissipates as it is injected directly into a gasoline stream. In most cases, thermal move meters are used completely to measure gases.
The warmth dissipation is dependent upon the composition and temperature of the gasoline. When the composition or temperature is minimized or this level of accuracy is inside acceptable parameters, the thermal flowmeter is your greatest option.
Differential move meter
Like its distant relative, the ultrasonic move meter, it additionally measures the move via the pipe. It differs from other flowmeters in that it uses Bernoulli’s equation. In addition, differential circulate meters use constriction to gradual the move and stress of material within the pipe.
As the move pressure slowly will increase, the magnitude of the stress drop will increase proportionally. The data from this event is transmitted over different sets of pressure readings. Using this info, it is potential to calculate the strain differential to measure the volumetric flow price.
Differential flow meters are often low-cost. And there are also completely different variations for different substances to make correct measurements for every fluid. However, gases are a special case because to find a way to get correct readings for a selected gasoline, differential move meters should be utilized in mixture with different sensors for different components such as temperature, stress, fuel composition and gas density.
Although it is an excellent flowmeter in its own proper, industry prefers other forms of metering systems. This is mainly because of its inaccuracy in relation to other elements such as temperature, pressure, etc. In addition, in order to obtain probably the most accurate gas measurements, it needs to be utilized in combination with different sensors or a special version of differential stress flowmeter altogether. Due to the above elements, it’s troublesome to acquire correct readings. This is mainly the explanation why the oil and gas business prefers other forms of metering, especially when dealing with gases.
Positive displacement circulate meter
There are several sorts of positive displacement move meters: oval gear, piston, rotary, diaphragm, chapter-actuated disc and screw.
Volumetric circulate meters can be used for quite a lot of issues involving industrial, industrial and residential applications. They are mostly used to measure fuel move. However, turbine flowmeters compete with volumetric flowmeters in this regard. One of its advantages over turbine flowmeters is that it excels at handling a gradual move in pipes 10 inches in diameter or smaller.
Both diaphragm and rotary volumetric flowmeters are typically used to measure gasoline circulate. The latter is most well-liked over rivals such as Coriolis flowmeters, primarily as a result of volumetric flowmeters don’t have the industry approvals required for area functions.
Oil and gasoline flow meter choice
The main elements to assume about in selecting an acceptable flowmeter include: fluid characteristics, flowmeter traits requirements, set up circumstances, environmental situations, and cost.
In addition, the number of circulate meters cannot absolutely pursue high efficiency and excessive precision, which not solely will increase the purchase cost, but additionally increases the worth of spare parts. It can additionally be essential to suppose about the calibration and upkeep of circulate meters.
Accurate measurement and regulation of fluid circulate is the basis for ensuring the security of petrochemical production process, improving product high quality and reducing energy consumption. Due to the complexity and diversity of flow measurement media, there is not any common sort of flowmeter, no flowmeter can be utilized to any different conditions of all kinds of media. Each type of flowmeter has its advantages and limitations of measurement, completely different ideas, completely different buildings, different functions of the flowmeter of their respective applicable scope play a role. Therefore, the selection of flowmeter needs to follow the standard specifications and selection principles on the same time complete consideration of assorted elements affecting circulate measurement.
Extended reading:
Solvent circulate meter
Sewage flowmeter
Ultrasonic move meter working precept
Liquid circulate meter
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For years, individuals involved in the oil and gasoline industry have been innovating and creating ways to get accurate measurements. From extraction to delivery of those raw supplies, everybody in the business has invested quite a lot of effort to acquire probably the most accurate measurements.
As a outcome, scientists and engineers have been working onerous to search out new methods and techniques to make more environment friendly metrology techniques. Thanks to their onerous work, the creation of various move meters was potential and because of this, the oil and fuel trade is still sturdy at present.
These move meters are used by business (especially gas and oil) to calculate the mass flow or quantity flow of fluids. Such functions define the capability and sort of circulate meters. Gases, liquids and fluids are measured based mostly on mass move and volume move.
From corrosive subsea environments, offshore production platforms, onshore oil fields or refineries, we have the flow expertise to sort out these powerful jobs. Difficult oil and gas flow metering challenges such as excessive pressures, pulsating flows, corrosive media and harsh environments are our every day enterprise. We work with lots of our upstream and downstream prospects to develop custom flow solutions for his or her hardest challenges, handling the most demanding chemical substances in their most distant and hazardous areas. We work with you to improve process efficiency, cut back pricey manufacturing downtime, and set up real-time monitoring and control.
Table of Contents
Where and how are oil and fuel formed?
Ultrasonic circulate meter
Coriolis circulate meter
Electromagnetic flowmeter
Vortex move meter
Turbine move meter
Thermal move meter
Differential move meter
Positive displacement flow meter
Oil and fuel move meter choice
Where and how are oil and gasoline formed?
Before discussing the completely different move meters commonly used in the oil and gas trade, it is very important first perceive the method of how the industry collects uncooked supplies.
Both of those raw materials exist in numerous geological sources. For essentially the most part, pure gasoline and oil fields exist on sedimentary rocks similar to sandstone and limestone. The main cause for this is that these supplies transfer easily via the rock, making them simpler to build up. The capacity of the found reservoirs could be determined by their porosity, whereas the manufacturing capacity is proportional to their permeability.
To begin the move, they drill inside these rocks, which can make the fluid simpler to extract. To initiate, enhance or sustain flow, water is pumped into the rocks, which are normally located underground. High stress water is pumped into these rocks, which will improve the circulate rate and improve fluid extraction. A flow meter known as an Apure electromagnetic move meter is used to accurately measure the quantity of water pumped contained in the rock.
However, in some circumstances, drilling and pumping is not enough to obtain this materials. Most of the oil or fuel present in impermeable rocks can’t be fashioned in the standard way. These materials are known as “unconventional hydrocarbons,” and they embody shale oil, coalbed methane and shale gasoline. Because of the very low permeability of the rocks, accumulation must be stimulated to begin out the flow and allow the extraction course of. To do that, a technique referred to as “hydraulic fracturing” is required.
In hydraulic fracturing, a mixture of sand and water is pumped into the rock. Due to the high strain, small cracks (fractures) are created, which will enable the material to maneuver freely inside the foundation. Hydraulic fracturing is accomplished by inflicting these fractures to open to permit the material to maneuver, which is the place the sand is out there in; opening these fractures, resulting in high permeability. To precisely measure the mixing of fracturing fluid and additives within the mixture, Apure’s electromagnetic move meters are used.
Now that we’ve explained an outline of how the oil and fuel industry will get these uncooked materials, the following step is to understand how they are measured using several varieties of metering techniques.
Ultrasonic circulate meter
Ultrasonic move meters measure the rate of a fluid flowing by way of a pipe by using sound waves. Once the speed of the fluid slowly will increase, a linear change in its frequency turns into obvious.
Ultrasonic flow meters can be used to measure the circulate price of fluids inside and outside of a pipe; the inline design installs the meter contained in the pipe, while the clamp-on mannequin uses a transducer to measure velocity. However, clamp-on fashions are less accurate than inline models. As a end result, they’re solely used for spot checks to obtain instant measurement outcomes.
Ultrasonic flowmeters and other flowmeters designed for crude oil can be used to measure 20-inch pipes inline. In addition, the clamp-on design is suitable for lots of different things and is sturdy. Not to say, it requires very little maintenance.
Coriolis flow meter
The know-how utilized in Coriolis circulate meters just isn’t the latest in measuring natural substances in the oil and fuel industry. The first industrial patents for Coriolis move meters date back to the 1950s. However, it was not till 1970 that the applying of this technology on this area began. Until now, nothing has modified, despite enhancements to the meters for extra correct measurements.
One of the original designs of the move meter was that it had a single thin-walled tube. It was very accurate; however, the practicality of the mannequin was the first concern as a outcome of its vibration problem. To solve this drawback, the design was changed to a two-tube design as a substitute of one.
Despite going via different designs, the principle principle of Coriolis circulate meters never changed. As material flows through them, inertia is created via the oscillating tube and the tube twists. The number of twists is proportional to the mass move rate. This is then measured by the flowmeter transmitter and sensor to provide a linear flow signal.
There are a quantity of advantages to using a Coriolis circulate meter. One of them is that it is very correct. These flow meters are extra commonly used to measure numerous petroleum merchandise corresponding to crude oil and pure gasoline. The major level of the flow meter is that it primarily measures mass flow quite than quantity. It is best fitted to measuring petroleum merchandise because the main concern in measuring these merchandise is heat rather than quantity.
Typically, this type of circulate meter is suitable for pipes with diameters of 1 to four inches. Today, however, bigger models are more available than ever before. The solely downside of the Coriolis flowmeter could also be that it is costlier than other kinds of metering methods. This is worth it as a end result of it’s inexpensive to take care of than other circulate meters.
Electromagnetic flowmeter
Electromagnetic flow meter is based on Faraday’s law of electromagnetic induction precept of producing a flowmeter to measure conductive liquids, from its measurement principle could be seen in its limitations: can’t measure steam and gas, the measured medium have to be conductive, and the conductivity can’t be less than 5μs/cm. Its advantage is that it could possibly measure dirty, viscous and corrosive fluids, corresponding to pulp, slurry, sewage, and so forth.. No strain loss caused by move detection, massive circulate vary, wide selection of caliber, for big diameter pipeline can be used insertion type electromagnetic flowmeter.
Electromagnetic flowmeter electrode and lining are in direct contact with the measured medium, so for the measured medium corrosive and operating temperature to choose the suitable electrode and lining materials.
Vortex move meter
One of probably the most versatile circulate meters, the vortex move meter, can easily measure the flow of gases, liquids, and steam.
In years previous, vortex flowmeters lacked the mandatory approvals for use in trade. However, in 2007, the American Petroleum Institute permitted a draft commonplace for the utilization of this flowmeter. Since that time, several corporations within the business have been actively working with API to additional develop the standard and its approval.
The standard is relevant to liquid, vapor and fuel flows and was expanded for additional use in 2010. Although there might be an unsure future, the design is obvious for the presence of gases and liquids. In current years, vortex flowmeters have had a restricted impact on the market, however the desire for future firms is steadily increasing. However, due to different opponents corresponding to ultrasonic, differential stress and turbine flow meters, it has had little impression on the gas commerce delivery market.
Turbine flow meter
Turbine move meters use a mechanical rotor which is hooked up to a shaft inside a pipe. It is then used to measure the amount of the gasoline, fluid or steam passing via the pipe. As the substance passes via the pipe, the rotor rotates at its velocity, depending on the speed at which the substance is passing through the pipe. The rotational speed resulting from the rotation of the rotor is decided by means of a sensor or different mechanical technique.
Typically, magnetism is used to allow the sensor to take readings from the rotor, with the magnet situated on the skin of the pipe. Through the use of a signal, the sensor and transmitter determine the volume of fabric flowing in the pipe.
Turbine flow meters are very inexpensive when it comes to pricing. In addition, they give more accurate results when the substance being measured is a gasoline or some other material that is freed from particles at low flow rates.
One disadvantage of utilizing a turbine flowmeter is that it doesn’t adapt well to changing circulate charges, because the mechanical elements can put on closely and must be replaced instantly. In addition, turbine meters work greatest when measuring the mass of a gas with unknown characteristics.
In addition to its makes use of, it is generally used as a billing meter to measure fuel or water in commercial, industrial and residential buildings. In this respect, however, it competes with volumetric flow meters. The latter is extra appropriate for measuring pipes of 1.5 to 10 inches in dimension, while the turbine move meter is finest suited for pipes of 10 inches or more in size.
Thermal move meter
In its main sense, a thermal circulate meter measures the speed at which warmth dissipates as it is injected immediately into a fuel stream. In most cases, thermal circulate meters are used exclusively to measure gases.
The heat dissipation is dependent upon the composition and temperature of the fuel. When the composition or temperature is minimized or this degree of accuracy is inside acceptable parameters, the thermal flowmeter is your greatest option.
Differential move meter
Like its distant relative, the ultrasonic circulate meter, it additionally measures the circulate via the pipe. It differs from other flowmeters in that it uses Bernoulli’s equation. In addition, differential move meters use constriction to sluggish the move and stress of material within the pipe.
As the circulate strain slowly will increase, the magnitude of the stress drop will increase proportionally. The knowledge from this event is transmitted over totally different units of strain readings. Using this data, it is potential to calculate the strain differential to measure the volumetric circulate price.
Differential flow meters are normally low-cost. And there are also different versions for various substances to make accurate measurements for every fluid. However, gases are a special case as a outcome of in order to get accurate readings for a particular gas, differential move meters ought to be used in combination with different sensors for various components such as temperature, strain, fuel composition and gas density.
Although it is a wonderful flowmeter in its personal right, business prefers different types of metering methods. This is especially as a outcome of its inaccuracy when it comes to different factors such as temperature, pressure, etc. In addition, in order to get hold of the most accurate gas measurements, it must be utilized in mixture with other sensors or a unique model of differential stress flowmeter altogether. Due to the above elements, it’s tough to acquire correct readings. This is principally the explanation why the oil and gasoline trade prefers different kinds of metering, especially when coping with gases.
Positive displacement circulate meter
There are several types of positive displacement move meters: oval gear, piston, rotary, diaphragm, chapter-actuated disc and screw.
Volumetric circulate meters can be used for quite a lot of things involving business, industrial and residential applications. They are most commonly used to measure gasoline flow. However, turbine flowmeters compete with volumetric flowmeters in this regard. One of its advantages over turbine flowmeters is that it excels at handling a gentle move in pipes 10 inches in diameter or smaller.
Both diaphragm and rotary volumetric flowmeters are sometimes used to measure gasoline flow. The latter is most popular over opponents such as Coriolis flowmeters, primarily as a result of volumetric flowmeters wouldn’t have the industry approvals required for field applications.
Oil and gasoline flow meter selection
The primary components to think about in selecting a suitable flowmeter include: fluid characteristics, flowmeter characteristics necessities, installation situations, environmental circumstances, and cost.
In addition, the number of flow meters cannot totally pursue excessive performance and excessive precision, which not only increases the acquisition price, but additionally increases the price of spare components. It can be needed to consider the calibration and upkeep of move meters.
Accurate measurement and regulation of fluid circulate is the premise for guaranteeing the safety of petrochemical production course of, improving product quality and reducing vitality consumption. Due to the complexity and diversity of circulate measurement media, there isn’t any common kind of flowmeter, no flowmeter can be utilized to any totally different situations of every kind of media. Each kind of flowmeter has its advantages and limitations of measurement, different rules, different structures, completely different functions of the flowmeter of their respective applicable scope play a role. Therefore, the choice of flowmeter needs to follow the standard specs and choice rules on the similar time complete consideration of assorted elements affecting move measurement.
Extended reading:
Solvent move meter
Sewage flowmeter
Ultrasonic move meter working precept
Liquid flow meter