Optimization of ultrasonic flow meters for crude oil metering and export

Abstract

Ultrasonic flow meters, as all velocity or inference type devices, require an adequate flow stream conditioning in order to assure an accurate performance. Typical flow conditioning consists of straightening the upstream and downstream of the measuring section. The upstream section usually contains a tube bundle, which allows the upstream section to be reduced in length. This tube bundle serves to eliminate any swirl in the flow stream before reaching the meter, presenting a symmetrical velocity profile to the turbine rotor. Some ultrasonic flow meters may produce a
non-uniform pulse output, which can prove a wide span of repeatability. For such cases where is a need to correct the velocity flow profiles which affect the robustness of the integration method, this research work tries to develop a mathematical modeling and simulation in MATLAB and Microsoft Excel, with the purpose to combine the individual acoustic path measurements into a full volumetric flow rate measurement procedure. The relationship between velocity and viscosity, using Reynolds Number, was calculated in Microsoft Excel. The Nusselt Number was then used to plot fluid mean temperature and wall temperature diagrams in Microsoft Excel.