Mini Flow Meters
Development of Mini Venturi Flow Meters
For over 100 years, Venturi meters have been used across the entire range of measurement applications. Typically, they are used on water, wastewater, air, oil and other industrial process control applications. The most popular range of line sizes was 2.0” to 36.0”. As the science and art of metal machining continue changing and improving, it is now possible to design, machine and test very small Venturi meters. These mini flow meters have the same long life expectancy (with little to no maintenance), high accuracy and repeatability, and low-cost options in sizes from 0.50” to 2.75”.
PFS Mini Venturi Advantages
Many applications in common practice require measurement of flow occurring in smaller line sizes, typically ½” to 3” in size. To accommodate these needs, users have frequently been forced to resort to flow metering schemes which, by their very nature, are less than reliable. These solutions are prone to regular failure or maintenance demands, or have significant accuracy limitations, some of which may be inherently disguised by the elaborate theories and technologies surrounding them. Many solutions have the unfortunate characteristic of eventually degraded accuracy, yet the user has no reasonable means of determining or knowing this in the field and is therefore unaware of its occurrence. Such shortcomings are especially damaging in instances where the metering involves custody transfer, billing and compliance reporting. There can be equally serious consequences with process control applications.
The PFS Mini-Venturi Meter System is highly accurate and reliable, and offers optimally cost-effective primary flow elements below 3.0” line sizes.
Mini Venturi Construction and Application
The Mini Venturi can be used in many flow metering applications where the accuracy and reliability of the measurement are critical, but cannot be compromised by cost. Applications for these very small line sizes cover the range of municipal, oil & gas, industrial and medical process control facilities. A few considered applications for the Mini Venturi are:
- Chemical Feed System Multi-Product Blending
- Low Volume Gas Flow NIST Traceable Flow Monitoring
- Custody Transfer Billing or Compliance Reporting
- Boiler Efficiency Aviation Fuel Metering
- Choked Flow Applications
Due to the fabricated design of the Mini Venturi, the flow element can be constructed using any weldable and machinable materials. Typically, materials can be mixed to balance economy with process considerations. For example, all stainless steel HVT-FV with Monel entrance section for particle impingement considerations in high-velocity oxygen service. A list of suitable materials includes but is not limited to:
- Carbon Steel Chrome Moly Inconel
- 316 Stainless Steel Aluminum Zirconium
- 304 Stainless Steel Hastelloy B & C Titanium
- Duplex S/S Monel Tantalum
- PVC CPVC HDPE
- Kynar Other Plastics