A CURRENT-TYPE ELECTROMAGNETIC FLOWMETER FOR TWO-PHASE FLOW

Yeh-Chan Ahn, Byung Do Oh, Moo Hwan Kim
Abstract:
The theory for the current-sensing electromagnetic flowmeter was newly developed. The current-sensing flowmeter has a high temporal resolution so that it can be applied to measure the flows with fast transients like two-phase flow. The signal prediction and the calibration of the current-sensing flowmeter in two-phase flow and the measuring of the characteristics of two-phase flow are the major concerns.
To do this, using a finite difference method, the three-dimensional virtual potential distributions for the electrodes of finite size were calculated for single-phase flow, annular flow and slug flow. With the gradient of the virtual potential, the rectilinear weight functions for the single-phase flow and the annular flow which were the main parameter for the conventional voltage-sensing flowmeter were deduced and compared with existing analytic solutions for the point-electrode. There was a reasonable correspondence between the present and existing results. Particularly the axial weight function and the radial weight function for single-phase flow, annular flow and slug flow were newly defined and computed by taking the gradient of the virtual potential.
The flow pattern coefficient f was introduced to simplify the calibration process for two-phase flow. It was calculated from the solved virtual potential distributions of single-phase and two-phase flow. For annular flow, the coefficient was well-fitted with two decaying exponential functions of the normalized film thickness δ*, f = 1 + 1.3 exp(-7 δ*) + 7.3 exp(-31 δ*). For the slug flow, it was provided as a function of the normalized film thickness δ* and the normalized position of a slug bubble tail L*. The coefficient by the numerical simulation was compared with experimental results obtained by Frequency Response Analyzer (FRA) and Potentiostat/Galvanostat. The comparison clearly showed the agreement between the numerical and the experimental results.
Download:
IMEKO-TC9-2003-055.pdf
DOI:
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Event details
IMEKO TC:
TC9
Event name:
FLOMEKO 2003
Title:
11th Conference on Flow Measurement
Place:
Groningen, NETHERLANDS
Time:
12 May 2003 - 14 May 2003