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How Do Flow Meters Work - Mass And Volumetric Flow Rates

by: AdrianFletcher
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Liquids and gases passing through a tube or pipe often need to be measured to determine the rate at which they are moving. They are generally measured in terms of their volume or their mass. A volumetric flow rate reading is meters to the power of three divided by time. The mass flow rate is kg's divided by time.

There is a diverse range of uses for flow meters. They have applications for individuals, a common one being to help people with asthma. A peak flow meter measures the lung capacity when someone exhales. This can help to predict an imminent asthma attack.

Other than that, flow meters are used in many industries, like the food processing industry, water management, semi conductor fabrication and many others. This article will give a brief overview of how flow meters work.

Flow meters are generally classified by the principal that governs their operation or possibly by their applications. For instance, mass flow meters measure the flow rate of a medium in terms of it's mass.

One example of a principle governing the name of a meter is the Coriolis flow meter. It uses the Coriolis effect to determine the mass of a fluid passing through two vibrating tubes or pipes. The idea being that by understanding the change in the characteristics of the wave patterns in the vibrating tubes, you can correlate the flow rate of the substance passing through.

Ultrasonic and Doppler shift flow meters also use the changes caused to sound waves to correlate a rate of flow for the medium passing through the meter.

In the case of the ultrasonic flow meter, two transmitters of ultrasonic sound waves are placed at the ends of a pipe where the measure is to take place. Each transmitter sends a pulse of sound.

Receivers at opposite ends of the pipe record the sound waves. One pulse of ultrasonic wave is sent off in the direction of the flow while the other is in the opposite direction.

The flow rate can be determined by the difference in the timings of each ultrasonic wave provided information on the material of the pipe and some details on the medium being measured are known.

Doppler shift flow meters also use waves to determine the flow rate. They work on the principle that a sound wave that bounces off a moving particle in the medium has it's frequency and amplitude changed. By determining the change in these dimensions, the flow rate of the medium can be determined.

A variable area flow meter is a more standard type of meter. It uses a float that is moved by the force of the substance passing through a calibrated tube.

By taking the reading from the calibrated tube an indication of the flow rate can be determined. This is the principle of the peak flow meter used for lung capacity and asthma.

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Learn more about flowmeters, specifically on fuel flow meters at http://www.flowmetermatters.com.

How Do Flow Meters Work - Mass And Volumetric Flow Rates

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