Chemical Engineering June 2020 - 16

GF Piping
Flexim
FIGURE 3. With no moving parts and less restrictive
installation requirements, the Signet 2580
FlowtraMag is suitable for tight spaces and short
pipe runs
than conventional full-bore magnetic
flowmeters.
according to vollaire, plastic construction
provides environmental
benefits in that there are no coated
metal parts that could chip and
cause corrosion or damage within a
process. streamlined installation is
also beneficial. " the shorter run requirements
after flow disturbances,
such as elbows, valves or pumps,
enable users to fit these flowmeters
into
tighter spaces that otherwise
would not be possible with other flow
technologies, " according to vollaire.
furthermore, adaptive flow measurement
in both the forward and reverse
direction is possible when signet
meters are used alongside the company's
s3l sensors.
another trend in flowmeter design
aims to minimize process disruptions
during installation. " we are increasingly
observing a trend towards noninvasive
and clamp-on instrumentation,
both with respect to ultrasonic
flow measurement and other analytical
applications, " says Jörg wylamrzy, director
of sales at flexim gmbH (Berlin,
germany; www.flexim.com). last year,
flexim released the world's first non-invasive
technology for steam measurement,
the fluxus g601 st (figure 4).
measuring and monitoring steam
flow is an essential task to ensure
energy-efficient operations and reduce
waste. " in particular, non-invasive
flow measurement in steam-distribution
networks can often reveal a
huge energy-efficiency potential for
plants, " adds wylamrzy.
another
common
application
for clamp-on ultrasonic measurement
technology is controlling the
efficiency of heat exchangers for
predictive maintenance tasks. " in
general,
non-invasive
16
measurement
of volume and mass flow, as
FIGURE 4. The Fluxus G601 ST is said to be the first
non-invasive flow-measurement technology for
steam systems
well as concentration and density,
allows for increases in energy efficiency
without affecting plant availability, "
continues wylamrzy. later
this year, flexim plans to release a
new high-temperature steam flowmeter
that overcomes challenges
associated
with high-temperature
steam operations.
Multifaceted flow devices
as flowmeters evolve to handle a
wider range of processing demands,
users increasingly need multifunctional
instruments. " most flowmeters
are starting to be recognized as
multivariable devices, providing flow
information, but also other process
variables, such as density, temperature
and viscosity, " says Howard
siew, chemical industry manager
at endress+Hauser
ind.; www.us.endress.com).
(greenwood,
" users
are continuing to look for qualitative
measurements, not just quantitative
ones. they typically use laboratory
measurements to verify product quality,
but this decreases efficiency and
throughput. through the use multivariable
flowmeters, users can monitor
live product quality and adjust their
process on the fly, if necessary, " adds
siew " rather than thinking of these
devices as flowmeters, it's a change
to thinking of them as process analyzers, "
emphasizes nathan Hedrick,
endress+Hauser's national flow
product manager.
as an example, adam Booth,
flow product marketing manager at
endress+Hauser, highlights the company's
recently launched prosonic
flow g 300/500 inline ultrasonic
flowmeter: " this device is available
with optional integrated pressure and
temperature
measurement,
which
provides an accurate measurement,
even with changing process conditions.
it also features the advanced
gas analysis application package,
which enables the device to compensate
for varying gas compositions
and provides more process variables,
such as energy values, molar mass
and density. "
to illustrate the importance of compensating
for varying process compositions
and measuring values beyond
flow, Hedrick cites the example
of a boiler. " You have some energy
stream in (typically natural gas) that is
converted to a different energy stream
out (steam). with devices like we've
mentioned here, you can immediately
see the efficiency of the boiler
in converting from one energy stream
to another by monitoring the associated
energy values. " one particularly
valuable parameter to measure is
steam quality - endress+Hauser's
prowirl 200 vortex flowmeter (figure
5) can provide a steam quality measurement
down to a dryness fraction
of 80%. Hedrick explains: " saturated
steam that is 100% dry is essentially a
theoretical fluid. as soon as you have
any inefficiency in your steam system
from the boiler, you start to get condensation.
most flow-measurement
devices assume 100% dry saturated
steam in any energy calculations they
provide. as a result, unless you are
using a device with wet-steam measurement,
or a separate steam-quality-measuring
device, you are getting
an overinflated
energy
value
from
the device, " he says.
in hygienic or sanitary processes,
advanced multiparameter meters provide
many benefits - not only for producing
high-quality products, but also
for controlling the frequent rinsing and
Endress+Hauser
FIGURE 5. The Prowirl 200 vortex flowmeter
provides information on steam quality alongside
conventional flowrate measurements
ChemiCal engineering www.Chemengonline.Com June 2020
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Chemical Engineering June 2020

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