Common applications

The flow of air is monitored in nearly all industrial settings, including processing applications, determining fuel-to-air mixtures for combistion, cooling, blowing & drying, aeration, ventilation, filtration, and ingredients mixing. Compressed air is essential for pneumatic tools, materials handling, painting, oxidation, fractionation, cryogenics, refrigeration, dehydration, filtration and aeration. A gas flowmeter with a totalizer provides an accurate measurement of compressed air consumption. Flowmeters help ensure efficient operation at rated SCFM output and are also used to detect leaks. Flow rate measurement and totalization of flow usage are vital to efficient operations. The combustion efficiency of burners, furnaces and dryers is enhanced by obtaining repeatable flow measurement of the inlet combustion air. Significant airflow variables include pipe diameters, wide flow ranges, varying velocities and low flow sensitivity. Flow switches are necessary to help maintain flow rates within operational parameters allowing for automatic shutdowns or alarms when they drift out of pre-determined ranges. COMPRESSED AIR FLOW: Air that is compressed and contained at a pressure greater than atmosphere has become industry’s universal power source. Seventy percent of all manufacturers operate compressed air (CA). Process operations dependent upon CA include pneumatic tools; materials handling; painting; oxidation; fractionation; cryogenics; refrigeration; dehydration; filtration and aeration. Flowmeters help ensure efficient operation at rated SCFM output and are also used to detect leaks. A Flowmeter with a Totalizer provides an accurate measurement of CA consumption. MASS FLOW OF AIR: The flow of air (78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen and traces of eight other gases) is monitored in nearly all industrial settings, including applications for processing; air/gas mixing; cooling; blowing & drying; combustion; aeration; ventilation; filtration; ingredient mixing; air sampling, and many others. Significant airflow variables include pipe diameters, wide flow ranges, varying velocities and low flow sensitivity. Large-duct flow applications for Thermatel include combustion air flow used in determining fuel-to-air mixtures for industrial boilers, heaters, furnaces and kilns.The combustion efficiency of burners, furnaces and dryers is enhanced by obtaining repeatable flow measurement of the inlet combustion air. Ducts can vary from six-inches in diameter to many square feet. Too little air and combustion is incomplete; too much air and combustion efficiency is greatly reduced. MASS AIR AND COMPRESSED AIR FLOW: The flow of air is monitored in nearly all industrial settings, including applications for processing, air/gas mixing, cooling, blowing & drying, combustion, aeration, ventilation, filtration, and ingredients mixing. Compressed air (CA) is essential for pneumatic tools, materials handling, oxidation, fractionalization, cryogenics, dehydration, filtration and aeration.Significant air-flow variables include pipe diameters, wide flow ranges, varying velocities and low flow sensitivity. Flowmeters help ensure efficient operation at rated SCFM output and detect air leaks. A flowmeter with a totalizer provides an accurate measurement of CA consumption. AIR AND GAS FLOW MONITORING: From the wellhead to the compression station, monitoring the flow of natural gas is essential. Other flow monitoring applications found in natural gas settings may include mass air and compressed air flow, process and waste gas flow (often required for reporting environmental emissions), and pump protection afforded by the sensing of reduced or no-flow conditions.Significant flow variables include pipe diameters, wide flow ranges, varying velocities, and low flow sensitivity. Flow meters ensure efficient operation at rated SCUM output and also detect leaks. A flow meter with a totalizer provides an accurate measurement of air or gas consumption.

Pump protection is a very common applications in industry. The idea behind the application is to confirm that a pump is actually pushing fluid downstream by confirming there is flow dowwnstream or that the pump is primed or not in air lockup in the case of liquid centrifugal pumps. Some users use pressure switches for pump protection, but these can give false indications from pressure build ups in closed pipes due to temperature changes. The solution is a switch actuatuated by the fluid’s actual flow downstream. This can be accomplished with either one of our proven mechanical flow switches, either vane or disc actuated, or with an ultrasonic or thermal dispersion insertion type switch.

Pumps are used throughout field operations for moving drilling fluids, crude oil and produced water. The gas compression process increases natural gas pressure to facilitate pipeline transport. Flow switches monitor product streams to signal no-flow/low-flow conditions caused by plugging or valve closures, and provide a defense against pump cavitation. A shut down system can also be actuated. Depending upon power availability, mechanical or electronic flow switches provide protection for compressor skids. Solid-state switches provide the highest level of pump protection by offering low flow sensitivity, wide temperature operation and high turndown.

Besides air and single gases, such as O2, N2, H2, etc., there are many gas mixtures being measured and controlled on a daily basis in different industries. One of the most common ones is natural gas used as a fuel or even biogases from decomposition of waste and organic material. There are also gases that are measured to control emissions or as part of environmental laws and restrictions. NATURAL GAS: The cleanest burning fossil fuel, natural gas trails electricity as the second most used energy source in industry. Industrial demand accounts for 40 percent of total natural gas demand, the highest of any sector. With a multitude of industrial uses, natural gas is consumed primarily in pulp and paper; metals manufacture; power generation; petroleum refining; stone, clay and glass manufacture; chemicals production; plastic resin production; and food processing.Natural gas flow at a gas production plant is monitored to provide flow measurement from each individual well. The main custody transfer meter is positioned downstream from where the flow from individual lines is combined. See also liquified gases. DIGESTER GAS FLOW (BIOGAS): In the anaerobic decomposition process, organic matter is converted into stable solids and energy-rich gas, mainly methane (60%) and carbon dioxide (40%). A combustible hydrocarbon of high fuel value, methane can serve as a fuel for in-plant heat exchangers, blower engines or other systems, marketed to the local industrial community, or burned off.Safe and reliable flow measurement is essential in the collection, disposal or re-use of methane gas. Because methane is highly combustible, flow instrumentation must be certified for operation in these hazardous locations. FLARE STACKS, EXHAUST & WASTE GAS FLOW: Industrial waste exhaust gases are present in a wide variety of compositions from benign to toxic. Measurement of the flow of these later gases is often required for reporting environmental emissions, including flared hydrocarbon gases. Off-gases are vapors emitted from extraction and treatment systems that are discharged directly to the atmosphere, captured or destroyed.Thermal dispersion flowmeters are ideal instruments for flare flow measurement due to low flow sensitivity and high turndown. Consideration must be given to changes in gas composition, abruptness of flow change, low pressures, and a wide range of velocities.

Some gases, such as natural gass, nitrogen, oxygen and others, exist and are handled in liquid form in industry. Magnetrol does not offer liquid flow measurement devices other than open channel flow. However, Magnetrol does offer switches than can be used with liquified gases for alarm and/or control purposes. Typical applications include pump protection and high/low flow detection in pipes.

Several of our level transmitters are programmed with open channel flow equations for a number of channel geometries, such as flumes and weirs. We also offer a strapping tableoption to create custom strapping tables for odd shape open channel geometries.

Oxygen, Hydrogen, Carbon dioxide, Nitrogen and Argon are the most commonly measured single gases in industry. Mass gas flow measurement has a greater advantage over volumentric measurement since it is unaffected by pressure and temperature variations. Flow monitoring of feed lines can prevent unsafe conditions that may arise when gas supply is insufficient. It is also usefull when centralized facilities bill the individual plants for gas usage. Oxygen flow increases combustion temperatures in open hearth and blast furnaces. Consideration must be given to Hydrogen’s volatility and its greater cooling effect on the sensor compared to other gases. Retractable probe assemblies allow the installation of the instrument in applications which must remain in continuous operation and in different pipe diameters.

From acids to water treatment additives, a wide array of chemicals are stored at a refinery in vessels that range in size from plastic totes to large steel tanks. Chemicals such as sulfuric and hydrochloric acid, sodium hydroxide, liquid catalysts, blending additives and water treatment chemicals are essential to a refinery’s day-to-day operation. Liquid solution storage and day tanks require stringent level monitoring to ensure ongoing chemical processing. The nature of the chemical, the geometry of the holding vessel, and the presence of mixers or other hardware will determine the most suitable level technology for the chemical feeds or storage application.

A plant has many low-lying drainage reservoirs known as sumps; small sumps include pump enclosures and tank rupture basins that contain leakage. Small sumps are monitored for leak detection with simple, float-operated level switches designed for bracket mounting in floor level sumps or troughs. These switches detect leaks or spills from pumps, valves, vessels, and pipelines.

Finished refinery products stored in tanks with capacities that often exceed 100,000 gallons are motor gasoline, jet fuel, diesel fuel, fuel oils, and LPG. Marketed products also include feedstocks for textiles, tires, pharmaceuticals and plastics. Tank monitoring uses buoyancy, pressure, servo-driven, and radar. Tanks may be provided with automatic overflow control and alarm systems. Automated tank gauging networks with proprietary protocols are a vital part of tank farm architecture. Today, thousands of tanks can be linked in a network offering enhanced data acquisition, field calibration and remote diagnostics.

Generators and gas turbines will have integral lubricating systems to prevent damage caused by excessive friction. Often a portion of the lubricating oil is used in the hydraulic oil systems for hydraulic control devices. Lubricating oil is typically stored in integral stainless steel and carbon steel tanks that are monitored for level. A generator gearbox lube oil system may have a reservoir with a capacity of 3,000 gallons and a turbine oil system may have a reservoir with a capacity of 150 gallons. Level monitoring of lubrication oil tank reservoirs will ensure the proper functioning of turbines, electrical generators and other equipment with integral lubrication systems.

Crude oil, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and water are stored in oil and gas fields. Unlike midstream tank farms at terminals and refineries, field storage consists of smaller vessels associated with oil, gas and water processing. Diesel generator fuel, potable water, and fire water are also stored offshore. NGLs are stored at atmospheric pressure in double-walled tanks. Tank level monitoring can be provided with overflow control and alarm systems or shutdown pumps when storage tank level falls below the specified low level. Interface controls will sense the beginning of an oil/water interface during tank dewatering and control the water draw-off.

This is one of the most common application we handle. A seal pot is a lube oil reservoir used to lubricate gears on machinery and rotating equipment such as pumps and turbines. There are companies that specialize in these small skids and they use a simple level alarm such as our ultrasonic Echotel Model 910 switch or the TK1 mini-Tuffy mechanical switch to alert the operator that it is time to refill the reservoir with lube oil.

Storage for reclaimed water ranges from small tanks for potable and service water use, to large, open or enclosed, reservoirs. Large capacity storage – most commonly in open reservoirs – is necessary for off-line storage of peak flows, flow-through in-line storage, and long term storage of seasonal flows that are discharged during alternate seasons. Level monitoring is essential for water storage tanks. Controls are specified according to the size and geometry of the bulk storage vessel. Level controls in an open water storage reservoir must frequently withstand punishing weather conditions.