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V-Cone Chem Processing flow meter Delivers High Accuracy in a Space-Saver Design
Designed for Production Of Adhesives, Alcohols, Detergents, Fertilizers, Gases, Paints, Plastics, Resins, Rubber, Sealants, Solvents and More

June 8, 2005
Process and plant engineers in the chemical industry looking for a precision flow measurement solution compatible with rugged environments, will find the V-Cone® Chem Processing flow meter from McCrometer offers superior accuracy and repeatability in a highly compact, no-moving parts instrument that requires virtually no recalibration or maintenance over an exceptionally long life.

Designed for the measurement of liquid, steam or gas, the V-Cone Chem Processing flow meter supports a wide range of both chemical production process line and general plant applications. It is an excellent solution for measuring water, other mixed liquids or specialty gas flows within process lines, as well as plant systems for water/wastewater, chilled water, steam, natural gas and HVAC.

McCrometer’s versatile V-Cone Chem flow meter is compatible with the demanding standards set by the chemical industry. It relies on an advanced differential pressure flow sensor designed with built-in flow conditioning to achieve an accuracy of +0.5%, with a repeatability of +0.1. It operates over a flow range of 10:1, and comes in line sizes from 0.5 to 120 inches.

With its unique ability to self-condition flow, the V-Cone Chem flow meter is a real space-saver, eliminating the need for up/down stream straight pipe runs required by other DP technologies, such as orifice plates and venturi tubes. It can be installed virtually anywhere in a piping system or be easily retrofit into an existing piping layout, resulting in significant installation flexibility and initial cost savings.

Unlike traditional DP instruments such as orifice plates and venturi tubes, the V-Cone Chem flow meter’s design is inherently more accurate because the flow conditioning function is built-into the basic flow sensor design. The V-Cone conditions fluid flow to provide a stable flow profile that increases accuracy. The flow sensor‘s design features a centrally-located cone inside a tube. The cone interacts with the fluid flow and reshapes the velocity profile to create a lower pressure region immediately downstream.

The pressure difference, which is exhibited between the static line pressure and the low pressure created downstream of the cone, can be measured via two pressure sensing taps. One tap is placed slightly upstream of the cone and the other is located in the downstream face of the cone itself. The pressure difference can then be incorporated into a derivation of the Bernoulli equation to determine the fluid flow rate.

The cone’s central position in the line optimizes the velocity of the liquid flow at the point of measurement. It forms very short vortices as the flow passes the cone. These short vortices create a low amplitude, high frequency signal for excellent signal stability. The result is a highly stable flow profile that is repeatable for continuously accurate flow measurement. All of this is possible with a minimal straight pipe run of 0 to 3 diameters upstream and 0 to 1 diameters downstream from the flow meter.