Endress+Hauser has produced over two million electromagnetic flowmeters since 1977. “That is more than any other manufacturer,” they claim. “This magic number stands for high-quality measuring technology and, above all, satisfied customers in all kinds of industries,” says Bernd-Josef Schäfer, Managing Director of Endress+Hauser Flowtec AG, the center of competence for flow measuring technology.

The company’s success story as a manufacturer of electromagnetic flowmeters began in the middle of the 1970s. In order to enter the water and wastewater market which was emerging at that time, Endress+Hauser purchased the company Flowtec in Bern in 1977 and moved it to a new location in Reinach (Basel-Landschaft, Switzerland). This is where Endress+Hauser started to produce flowmeters with just three employees in former military barracks.

Work was done on an on-demand basis. “Whereas today,” says Bernd-Josef Schäfer, “our production spans six sites around the globe – in Switzerland, France, the USA, China, India, and Brazil – and boasts state-of-the-art logistics. This infrastructure is what has enabled us to produce two million electromagnetic flowmeters to date in accordance with required quality standards.”

To put this into context: These two million electromagnetic flowmeters could measure a volume corresponding to four times the flow rate of the Amazon. Each production site also features precise calibration facilities which are regularly checked by national accreditation bodies and which guarantee consistently high measuring quality for each individual device.

Constant innovation guarantees customer satisfaction
The company’s success, which spans almost 40 years, is due to many factors. In particular, its inventive talent has enabled Endress+Hauser to keep offering its customers new, groundbreaking devices capable of measuring all kinds of fluids, such as water, milk, acids, alkalis, or ore slurry, with the greatest accuracy.

With clever innovations such as the precision measurement of difficult fluids (Autozero, 1981), microprocessor control (Variomag, 1984), two-wire technology (Eximag, 1987), or the operating matrix (Tecmag, 1990), Endress+Hauser has always managed to stay one step ahead of the competition.

In 1993, all of these device variants were brought together to form a single product family under the name of “Proline”. Alongside this family, however, Endress+Hauser also produces flowmeters for very particular applications – for example, filling bottles at one-second intervals.

Looking to the future with Proline 
Since 1993, the Proline device family has undergone constant development to ensure that it meets the prevailing requirements in a wide range of industries. Following the second generation launched in 2000, the third and most recent Proline generation (2012) offers a multitude of unique functions and device properties.

This means that system operators will not only be able to retrieve measurement and diagnostic data via display, WLAN, web server, or fieldbus, but will also be able to monitor the process comprehensively and, if necessary, check the functioning of a flowmeter during operation.

Bernd-Josef Schäfer sees the future of Endress+Hauser optimistically: “Innovations such as these enable us to align our product portfolio consistently with the needs of every industry. We are looking ahead to our three-millionth electromagnetic flowmeter with great confidence.”

@Endress_Hauser #PAuto

When thinking of alcoholic products that are produced in Britain, a fine malt Whiskey may spring to mind or perhaps beer brewed in one of the numerous breweries that can be found dotted around the country. How many people however, would immediately think of Vodka?

Well, nestled in the Herefordshire countryside, the family run Chase distillery (entry only to over 18 year olds!) thinks a lot about Vodka, in fact it produces the award winning Chase Vodka which is the World’s first super premium English potato Vodka.

The entire process from seed to bottle takes place on the Chase estate ensuring that a close eye can be kept on all stages from growing the potatoes to distilling and bottling. It was at the distilling stage that Chase was looking for a flowmeter that was capable of measuring the flow rate of fermented potato mash. After careful consideration, they decided on Krohne’s OPTIMASS 1300 Coriolis mass flowmeter.

The fermentation process is started with the mashing of potatoes and the addition of a brewer’s yeast. After about a week, the fermented potato mash is distilled four times in a bespoke copper batch pot and then twice more in a rectification column. It is here that the OPTIMASS 1300 is installed in a vertical pipe run feeding the distillation column. The density of the medium going through the meter can vary from 0.95 to 1.1kg/litre and flows at a rate of 2000 l/hr with pressure of 1BarG at a temperature of 30⁰C.

With the available space being limited, Chase required a meter that had a small installation envelope, but could still measure accurately and was capable of being CIP cleaned at 65⁰C. The OPTIMASS 1300 has a dual straight tube design which makes it ideal for use in hygienic applications as there are no crevices or bends for bacteria to gather and the meter can be easily drained and cleaned. Due to the hygienic nature of the application the OPTIMASS 1300 was supplied with hygienic fittings and also has all of the necessary hygienic industry approvals.

Prior to installing the OPTIMASS 1300, Chase used a manual method to monitor the flow of fermented potato mash into the distillation column, however they were looking for a mass flow meter to automate the process. The OPTIMASS 1300 has enabled Chase to monitor the feedstock to finished product ratio accurately and since installation it has also reduced production time by highlighting an underperforming feed pump that was increasing the mash charging time which in turn lengthened the production time.

Tim Nolan, engineering manager at Chase is very pleased with the performance of the OPTIMASS 1300, “Installing the KROHNE meter has meant that we can automate the process and ultimately reduce production time.  It also allows us increased flexibility as we can install the meter on other parts of the process to verify efficiency,” he continues, “KROHNE have supplied us with a meter that complies to our hygienic requirements and has proved to be very reliable.”

Initially, the OPTIMASS 1300 will be used with a local display, however in the future it is planned to interface the meter with the PLC using mA outputs to measure volumetric flow, density and temperature.

Scientific investigations prove adverse effects from contamination in reflecting ultrasonic flowmeters are a myth

Ultrasonic flowmeters for custody-transfer measurement of natural gas are prone to contamination. There have been continuous allegations that ultrasonic flowmeters with soiled reflectors will measure inaccurately due to the contamination on the reflectors. Up to today, there have been no test results that will disprove this allegation.

Exhaustive investigations at the EON Ruhrgas high-pressure gas testing facility in Lintorf (D) on possible effects of contamination on ultrasonic flowmeters (USFM) have irrefutably shown that the accuracy is not affected by the reflection principle. Indeed, the investigations substantiate a significant advantage of reflection technology; actually compared to direct path measurement the level of contamination can be recognised from the reflection properties of the acoustic signal.

Figure 1: Reflectors, left clean, centre slightly roughened, right considerably roughened

Part of the tests included the effect of roughness of the reflector surface. For this reflectors were made with medium and high roughness (see figure 1) and built into test meters.

ALTOSONIC V12 ultrasonic flowmeter for custody-transfer of natural gas

The roughness simulates contamination within the meter. Specifically only the roughness of the reflector surface was changed without changing the inside surface of the meter, in order to exclude any further effects apart from those of the reflector.  The reflected ultrasonic signal was seen to have changes in its amplitude only – not in its shape. The amplitude loss is compensated in Krohne’s ALTOSONIC V12 by an automatic gain control (AGC). For the roughest surface the maxim gain was only 6 dB.

The increase in automatic gain is seen by defining the state on commissioning (the state under clean conditions) as the specified state and comparing it with the actual state after contamination. This reveals the advantages of the reflection principle: the design of non-reflecting USFM’s makes it impossible for them to detect such small quantities of contamination or corrosion inside the meter.

Figure 2: Conditions - clean or contaminated - have no effect on the accuracy

Figure 2 shows the accuracy before and after the “contamination”. There was no adverse effect.

The results shown here are only a part of the comprehensive results that are to be published at the 2010 Flomeko Conference in Taiwan (13/15 October 2010). Further results include the effect of bottom fouling, roughness in the entire meter, as well as roughness in the inlet run.

Krohne products are marketed in Ireland by DWN Instruments.

New online community addresses customer feedback by providing ways to connect and collaborate with peers online about Coriolis flow and density measurement

We have noted before that Emerson seems to be ahead of the posse when it comes to utilising this new thing we call social medal. Here is another example.

Tom Moser, President & Chief Blogger MicroMotion

Emerson Process Management has launched an online resource to help users find new ways to increase their knowledge while connecting with peers on Coriolis flow and density measurement issues. Based on feedback from users of Emerson’s Micro Motion® flow and density meters who wanted to access and share such information online, the Micro Motion Online Community was developed to serve this customer base and introduce Coriolis flow and density measurement technology to new users.

The new Micro Motion Online Community provides a forum for exploring industry-specific measurement challenges, discussing Coriolis flow and density applications, and sharing best practices to optimise user processes. In addition, community members can network with peers, learn more about available Coriolis flow and density measurement technologies, and even poll other members to learn about measurement trends.

The Micro Motion Online Community features blogs, private and public groups, videos, event listings, a knowledge wiki, and polls. Users can build their network by “friending” each other and exchange instant messages directly with these contacts.

“We hope the online community will not only increase our touch points with our Micro Motion customer base, but will encourage conversations among our users and non-users within particular industries and application uses,” said Tom Moser, president and “Chief Blogger” at the Micro Motion division of Emerson. “The social aspect has an important role in the community. We hope this will be more than just a basic ‘question and answer’ session but, instead, will bring users together to share experiences and knowledge and also build their networks.”

If other companies are doing similar things it might be a good idea to publicise it!

The position of the control valve in flowmeters can be crucial when measuring gas flow, regardless of whether the valves are built into the device or separate. If a valve is used to reduce the flow at the inlet of the measuring device, the pressure in the measuring tube behind the valve is reduced. Because gases are compressible, this change in operating pressure results in a significant measurement error.

Krohne DK 800 flowmeter featuring built-in control valve at the inlet or outlet

For example, a pressure reduction from 5 to 4 bars of absolute pressure in the measuring tube of a variable area flowmeter results in a measurement error of almost 12 %. Therefore, more or less gas flows unnoticed through the device than is displayed. However, when the valve is positioned at the outlet, the drop in pressure does not occur until after the measuring tube and thus does not affect measurement.

For this reason, KROHNE offers the “control valve at the outlet” version for its DK series. The DK series consists of a range of low volume flowmeters with glass or metal cones used in many different applications ranging from inlet pipes to gas chromatography and gas inertisation measurements in chemistry to the measurement of gases used for anaesthesia in hospitals.

In some instances, the control valve can be in front of the measuring device, for example when a gas is measured against a constant pressure (e.g. atmospheric pressure). In this case, the measuring device is not calibrated based on the primary pressure but instead based on the constant output pressure prevailing in the measuring tube. The position of the valve is not crucial when measuring liquids, as the compressibility of liquids is negligible even at high pressures.

Andy Muschamp of KROHNE (right) congratulates Derek Wharton of DWN (left) on 25 years successful partnership.

When it comes to celebrating anniversaries, 25 years is normally associated with Silver. However, in service terms, Silver is perceived as second best and in this case, DWN Instrumentation Ltd have provided nothing short of Gold service to their partners across Ireland according to a release received today.

DWN have offices in both Dublin and Cork and have been successfully distributing a broad cross section of KROHNE flow and level instruments for the past 25 years, mainly to the pharmaceutical, dairy and brewing sectors.

Derek Wharton and Eddie Nolan are directors of DWN and they are both thrilled by the relationship that has developed between their company and KROHNE. Derek commented; “whilst we recognise that it is a great achievement, the relationship has been successful because we selected the best manufacturing partner.” Eddie added, “KROHNE are undoubtedly experts in the field of instrumentation and have always managed to meet the exacting demands of our customers.”

KROHNE’s sales manager, Andy Muschamp, responsible for Ireland added, “We have become world class through our R&D capabilities; we developed the world’s first commercially available, single straight tube Coriolis mass flowmeter, an award winning technology. Our production facilities are modern purpose built units incorporating the latest ‘just in time’ and linear manufacturing process. Of course, it’s not all about having the best products; we also have a fully integrated customer service team, which is backed up with service, repair and calibration services. Combining our outstanding products and services with DWN’s distribution, service and commissioning capabilities is a perfect partnership, ensuring that we reach our target market and more importantly sell our products. DWN have done a great job over the last 25 years and we look forward to building the relationship further over the next 25 years!”

KROHNE has enjoyed its success in Ireland by servicing the various markets with its level and flow measurement products such as TDR and FMCW radar level meters and Coriolis, electromagnetic, ultrasonic and variable area flowmeters. KROHNE has a reputation as one of the few manufacturers with such a wide and comprehensive product portfolio, offering a one-stop-shop to industries as widespread as oil and gas, water, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, food & beverages, mining and shipping.

KROHNE and DWN are also expanding their business due to the growing demand from the Oil and Gas sectors in Ireland by supplying the latest custody transfer metering systems, leveraging the wealth of knowledge and experience KROHNE has in this sector.

Turbine flowmeter solution measures diesel fuel consumption

Flow Technology has announced the FT/DF (Diesel Fuel) turbine flowmeter system, which provides accurate measurements of diesel fuel consumption in a wide range of industrial applications.

FT/DF Turbine Meter

End users employ fuel flowmeters to monitor diesel fuel consumption in the automotive, marine, aerospace and power generation industries, among others. For example, mining companies utilizing diesel generators to power their operations require accurate monitoring of diesel fuel usage to ensure the efficiency and reliability of the generators. Flowmeters used in this application must be able to withstand extreme temperature swings in the installation environment.

Pairing these turbine meters with the LinearLink Temperature Compensated Interface (TCI), the FT/DF system can accurate measure diesel fuel at temperatures as low as -50 ° F. The turbine flowmeter incorporates a “fail open” technology, meaning that in the event of a malfunction, fuel continues to be fed to the generator — ensuring there is no interruption of power to the industrial operation.

This flowmeter relies on a proven flow measurement technique to provide exceptionally accurate and reliable digital outputs. Because of its versatility, the FT meter is ideal for a wide variety of
liquid and gas flow sensing applications. The LinearLink TCI represents a sophisticated electronics platform for flowmeter linearization and viscosity correction. It provides significant improvements in flow meter accuracy even under extreme temperature conditions.