Relationship between velocity profile and distribution of induced potential for an electromagnetic flow meter

This paper investigates the relationship between the induced electric potential and the velocity distribution of the conductive continuous phase in two-phase flows in pipes to which an electromagnetic field is applied, with a view to measuring the continuous phase velocity profile. In order to investigate the characteristics of an electromagnetic flow meter in multiphase flow, an alternating current electromagnetic flow meter was modelled using FEMLAB software. Using the model, electrodes could be placed at any position on the insulating internal surface of the flow meter to satisfy the requirement of measuring the induced potentials at specific locations at the boundary of the flow. The induced electric potential or potential differences from the electrodes were analysed for various simulated flow conditions. The numerical simulation results suggest that electromagnetic flow metering may be an effective novel method for measuring the axial velocity profile of the conducting continuous phase. Furthermore, when combined with the local volume fraction distribution of the continuous phase (obtained, for example, using Electrical Resistance Tomography, also known as ERT), it is expected that the measured continuous phase velocity profile would enable the volumetric flow rate of the continuous phase to be obtained.     

Measurement of velocity profiles in multiphase flow using a multi-electrode electromagnetic flow meter

This paper describes an electromagnetic flow meter for velocity profile measurement in single phase and multiphase flows with non-uniform axial velocity profiles. A Helmholtz coil is used to produce a near-uniform magnetic field orthogonal to both the flow direction and the plane of an electrode array mounted on the internal surface of a non-conducting pipe wall. Induced voltages acquired from the electrode array are related to the flow velocity distribution via variables known as ‘weight values’ which are calculated using finite element software. Matrix inversion is used to calculate the velocity distribution in the flow cross section from the induced voltages measured at the electrode array. This paper presents simulations and experimental results including, firstly the effects of the velocity profile on the electrical potential distribution, secondly the induced voltage distribution at the electrode pair locations, and thirdly the reconstructed velocity profile calculated using the weight values and the matrix inversion method mentioned above. The flow pipe cross-section is divided into a number of pixels and, in the simulations, the mean flow velocity in each of the pixels in single phase flow is calculated from the measured induced voltages. Reference velocity profiles that have been investigated in the simulations include a uniform velocity profile and a linear velocity profile. The results show good agreement between the reconstructed and reference velocity profiles. Experimental results are also presented for the reconstructed velocity profile of the continuous water phase in an inclined solids-in-water multiphase flow for which the axial water velocity distribution is highly non-uniform. The results presented in this paper are most relevant to flows in which variations in the axial flow velocity occur principally in a single direction.     

Capacitance sensor for void fraction measurement in water/steam flows

A capacitance sensor operating at RF range for void fraction measurements was developed. Two electrodes of the capacitor are mounted on the outer side of pipe walls. The variations in the percentage of phases in two-phase flow cause changes of the equivalent permittivity of the dielectric between the electrodes. The capacitor is connected in a resonant circuit of an oscillator tuned to high frequency of 80 MHz. The changes of frequency generated by the oscillator are the measure of the void fraction in the two-phase flow. An eight-channel system with capacitance sensors of this type was used for determination of the phase conversion along a steam injector.     

Adaptive filtering techniques for velocity estimation of tomographic electric capacitance signals of two-phase gas/oil flows

The development of adaptive real-time flow velocity estimation algorithms for two-phase flows can contribute to monitoring the pipelines of various complex processes, such as energy, chemical, petroleum and nuclear industries. Among the different non-invasive tomography techniques, electrical capacitance tomography (ECT) is gaining increasing attention for its potential use in real-time imaging and characterization of multiphase flow systems. The nature of ECT signals for two-phase flows can significantly degrade the velocity estimation process with cross-correlation approaches. We address the unique challenges of such signals and propose a preprocessing technique to improve the performance and robustness of the velocity estimation algorithm. Two adaptive filters are used to estimate the velocity of a two-phase type flow. A least mean square (LMS) and a fast block LMS (FBLMS) are used to model the time delay between the two signals captured by the twin sensor (ECT). Performance of the proposed technique is assessed by applying it to ECT data obtained from an experimental flow rig. The computed estimates are then compared with the calculated velocity from tracking motion of bubbles captured by a high speed camera monitoring the two phase flow in the pipe. Results show that the proposed technique provides consistent results across various flow patterns, and is advantageous compared to cross-correlation based techniques, specially for chaotic flow conditions. Furthermore, the proposed estimation algorithms can be applied to other electric based tomographic techniques.     

Capacitance sensor for hold-up measurement in high-viscous-oil/conductive-water core-annular flows

Capacitance sensors are widely used in multiphase flows, for example, to estimate the hold-up in a given section of the pipe, taking advantage of the different permittivity values of the two liquids. The estimation is obtained by capacitance measurements between two electrodes, flush mounted on the external surface of the experimental pipe. Usually, capacitance sensors are used to investigate flows with non-conductive fluids, but they have the possibility to work also when, for example, conductive water is used. However, the capacitance technique applied to conductive fluids develops some issues. In this paper, we present a concave electrode sensor system developed for oil/conductive-water flows. A key contribution is to propose a modelization to the problem of capacitive sensing in presence of conductive fluids, based on a new approach to the parasitic couplings outside the measurement section. Thanks to this modelization, we propose a new design method for the working frequency and the electrode measurement head.     

Electromagnetic inspection of a two-phase flow of GaInSn and argon

In the continuous casting process, an adequate control of liquid steel flow through the submerged entry nozzle is essential for maintaining steel cleanliness and ensuring good surface quality in downstream processing. Monitoring the flow in the nozzle presents a challenge for the instrumentation system because of the high temperature environment and the limited access to the nozzle in between the tundish and the mould.In this paper, the distribution of a two-phase liquid metal/gas flow is studied by using a liquid metal laboratory model of an industrial steel caster and an inductive sensor array. The experiments were performed with the liquid eutectic alloy GaInSn as an analogue for liquid steel, which has similar conductive properties as molten steel and allows the measurements at room temperature. A scaled (approx. 1:10) experimental rig consisting of a tundish, a stopper rod, a nozzle and a mould was used. Argon gas was injected through the centre of the stopper rod and the behavior of two-phase GaInSn/argon flows was studied.The electromagnetic system used in the experiments to monitor the behavior of two-phase GaInSn/argon flows consists of an array of 8 equally spaced inductive coils arranged around the object, a data acquisition system and a host computer. The present system operates at 10 kHz and has a capture rate of 10 frames per second.The results show clearly that the injection of the argon gas is distinguishable from the single phase flow by observing the appearance of oscillation patterns. These oscillations become more dominant with the increase of the argon flow. In some cases two main oscillation patterns were present in the raw signals. In general, the signals and the reconstructed void fractions in the nozzles are highly correlated with the observed oscillations of the level height in the mould and the pressure in the nozzle.     

Doppler spectrum analysis and flow pattern identification of oil-water two-phase flow using dual-modality sensor

Horizontal oil-water two-phase flow widely exists in petroleum and chemical engineering industry, where the oil and water are usually transported together. As one of most importance process parameters to describe the two-phase flow, the flow pattern can reflect the flow characteristics of inner flow structure and phase distribution. The identification of flow pattern will contribute to develop more accurate measurement model for flow rate or phase fraction and ensure the safety and efficiency of operation in industry. A dual-modality sensor combining with continuous wave ultrasonic Doppler sensor (CWUD) and auxiliary conductance sensor, was proposed to identify flow patterns in horizontal oil-water two-phase flow. In particular, the oil-water flow characteristic was analyzed from Doppler spectrum based on the CWUD sensor. Besides, the dimensionless voltage parameter based on conductance sensor was applied to provide the information of continuous phase in the fluid. Several statistical features were directly extracted without any complicated processing algorithm from Doppler and conductance signals. The extracted features are put into a multi-classification Support Vector Machine (SVM) model to classify five oil-water flow patterns. The results show that the overall identification accuraccy of 94.74% is satisfactory for horizontal oil-water two-phase flow. It also demonstrates that the noninvasive ultrasonic Doppler technique not only can be used for flow velocity measurement but also for flow pattern identification.     

管内螺旋导流板引发的气液两相旋流场

用数值模拟的方法研究某种螺旋导流板结构引发的管内气液两相旋流的流动特点。空气为主相,水为次相,入口为雾状流。研究旋转给流型转变、气液相分布、速度分布及旋流衰减带来的影响。发现雾状流在螺旋导流板的作用下,转变为环状流。螺旋导流板内有二次涡的生成,且二次涡结构不断发展变化,离心力分布不均匀而形成沿管壁周向不连续的液膜;流出螺旋导流板后,二次涡会衰减消失,流体做螺旋向前运动,液膜沿圆管周向逐渐分布均匀。管中心处气相切向速度小,气相切向速度较大的区域远离旋流中心区,旋流中心与圆管中心存在小的偏心距;与直管及螺旋纽带相比,螺旋导流板引发的气液两相旋流在圆管中心的气相轴向流速远高于光管和螺旋纽带;与螺旋纽带相比,螺旋导流板引发的旋流强度更大且衰减减慢。     

An experimental study on characteristics of two-phase flows in vertical pipe

The characteristics of two-phase flow in a vertical pipe are investigated to provide information for understanding the excitation mechanisms of flow-induced vibration. An analytical model for two-phase flow in a pipe was developed by Sim et al. (2005), based on a power law for the distributions of flow parameters across the pipe diameter, such as gas velocity, liquid velocity and void fraction. An experimental study was undertaken to verify the model. The unsteady momentum flux impinging on a ‘turning tee’ (or a ‘circular plate’) has been measured at the exit of the pipe, using a force sensor. From the measured data, especially for slug flow, the predominant frequency and the RMS value of the unsteady momentum flux have been evaluated. It is found that the analytical method, given by Sim et al. for slug flow, can be used to predict the momentum flux.     

Relative errors in evaluating the electromagnetic flowmeter signal using the weight function method and the finite volume method

In the signal analysis of an electromagnetic flowmeter, the weight function method (WFM) involves a numerical integration of products between the magnetic flux density vector, the weight function and the velocity profile function in two-dimensional analysis. The electromagnetic flowmeter signal can also be predicted by solving the governing flowmeter equation by the finite volume method (FVM). The present study is aimed at comparing the calculation accuracies of WFM and FVM. The test flows are fully developed laminar and turbulent flows in a straight pipe under uniformly distributed magnetic field. The calculation accuracies are also compared between different O-type grid systems. It was found that the accuracy of both methods depended strongly on the grid system. In particular, for turbulent flow whose axial velocity component changes very rapidly near the wall, the accuracy of WFM was found to depend strongly on the cell configuration near the electrodes.     

A two-phase flow meter for determining water and solids volumetric flow rates in stratified,inclined solids-in-water flows

This paper describes the design and implementation of a two-phase flow meter which can be used in solids-in-water two phase pipe flows to measure the in-situ volume fraction distributions of both phases, the velocity profiles of both phases and the volumetric flow rates for both phases. The system contains an Impedance Cross Correlation (ICC) device which is used in conjunction with an Electromagnetic Velocity Profiler (EVP). Experimental results were obtained for the water and solids velocity and volume fraction profiles in upward inclined flow at 30° to the vertical, in which highly non-uniform velocity and volume fraction profiles occur.     

Quality check of wire-mesh sensor measurements in a vertical air/water flow

Extensive measurements were executed for a vertical upward air/water flow to generate a high-quality database for the development and validation of CFD-Codes for two-phase flows (e.g. for models on bubble forces or on coalescence and break-up). Thereto, in a pipe with a nominal diameter of 200 mm, the wire-mesh sensor technology was used. The present paper aims on the assessment of uncertainty caused by the experimental procedure and especially global deviations arising from the use of the wire-mesh sensor technology. Special attention was paid to the plausibility and accuracy of the data regarding the evolution of the vertical multiphase flow. In the result, a clear and consistent trend regarding their evolution with increasing distance from the position of the gas injection was found. Comparisons of the trend of time and cross-section averaged gas volume fraction along the pipe height with the theoretically expected values were carried out. From the measured radial profiles of the void fraction and the velocity of the gas phase, the superficial gas velocity at the wire-mesh sensor is integrated over the cross-section and compared with the set value from the test matrix. Thus, a general uncertainty analysis of the sensor data is possible.     

Voidage measurement of gas–liquid two-phase flow based on Capacitively Coupled Contactless Conductivity Detection

Based on Capacitively Coupled Contactless Conductivity Detection (C⁴D) technique, a new method for the voidage measurement of conductive gas–liquid two-phase flow is proposed. 15 Conductance signals, which reflect voidage distribution of gas–liquid two-phase flow, are obtained by a six-electrode C⁴D sensor. With the conductance signals, the flow pattern of gas–liquid two-phase flow is identified by flow pattern classifiers and then the voidage measurement is implemented by a corresponding voidage measurement model (for each typical flow pattern, a corresponding voidage measurement model is developed). The conductance measurement of the six-electrode C⁴D sensor is implemented by phase sensitivity demodulation (PSD) method. The flow pattern classifiers and the voidage measurement models are developed by partial least squares (PLS) technique and least squares support vector machine (LS-SVM) technique. Static voidage measurement experiments and dynamic voidage measurement experiments show that the proposed voidage measurement method is effective, the developed six-electrode C⁴D sensor is successful and the measurement accuracy is satisfactory.     

超声多普勒谱修正的油水两相流流速测量

针对水平管道油水两相流流速的无扰动测量问题,提出一种基于超声/电学双模态传感器的流速测量方法。测量系统由连续波超声多普勒传感器和基于电容与电导的电学传感器构成,分别用于获取两相流流速和分相含率。由于连续波多普勒的测量区域集中于管道中心,受流速剖面、含率分布影响,所测得流速并非流体的总表观流速。在假设含率分布满足高斯分布的前提下,建立相含率加权的多普勒能量谱模型,将含率分布的影响因素引入总表观流速的测量,并建立总表管流速和分相表观流速的计算模型。在试验基础上,分别确定水连续和油连续时总表观流速计算模型的参数。试验表明,通过模型计算出的表观流速与实际测量的流速能够较好吻合,总表观流速的相对误差小于6.32%,分相表观流速的方均根误差小于5.64%。     

Imaging stratifying liquid–liquid flow by capacitance tomography

Electrical capacitance tomography offers a non-intrusive technique for on-line visualisation of two-phase liquid–liquid flows. It has been applied on a facility which provides metered flows of water and kerosene to a test section at the start of which they pass through a dispersing multi-hole orifice plate. The test section consists of a sudden expansion with an internal diameter of 63 mm inlet and 100 mm outlet and which can be inclined. Beyond this the mixture is separated into the two constituents and returned to their individual tanks. Tomography measurements were made using a PTL-300 electronic system coupled to a 12-electrode sensor which was built in-house. The sensor is fitted on the outside of one of the plastic pipe lengths of the test section. By varying the input oil fractions from 20% to 70%, using mixture velocities of 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4 m/s and positioning the pipe at angles of +6,+3,0, −4 and −7 to the horizontal, different flow patterns were established in the test section. A specially developed calibration method is used in all experiments and tomographic images of the stratifying liquid–liquid flow were obtained. These images show clearly that the spatial distribution in a pipe cross-section is strongly dependent on the mixture velocity and the distance from expansion in the range studied. Concave interfaces were observed in horizontal and downward inclination flow for all cases while convex interfaces were identified only in an upward inclination flow at the high input oil fractions and high mixture velocities. This application illustrates very clearly the capability of the ECT for on-line imaging of liquid–liquid two-phase flows.     

Theoretical study of vertical slug flow measurement by data fusion from electromagnetic flowmeter and electrical resistance tomography

Electrical resistance tomography (ERT) can be used to obtain the conductivity distribution or the phase distribution of gas/liquid flows (e.g. slug flow). Using proper parameter models and flow regime identification models, the measurement of phase size, void fraction, and pattern recognition can be realized. Electromagnetic flowmeters have been used to measure conductive single-phase liquid flows. However, neither ERT nor electromagnetic flowmeters (EMF) can provide accurate measurement of gas/liquid two-phase flows. This paper presents an approach to fuse the information from ERT and an electromagnetic flowmeter. A model for the measurement signal from the electromagnetic flowmeter has been developed based on the flow pattern and the phase distributions, which are obtained from the reconstructed images of ERT, aiming to reduce the measurement error of the electromagnetic flowmeter and enhance the measurement accuracy. Through the simulation research of virtual current density distribution, the feasibility of fusion of electromagnetic flowmeter and ERT to measure gas/liquid two-phase vertical slug flow is verified. By theoretical analysis, the relationship between the output of electromagnetic flowmeter and flow parameters is established. The electrical potential difference of the electromagnetic flowmeter, average velocity, volume flow rate and gas void fraction between the bubble size and location are also investigated. The fusion approach can be used to measure vertical slug flows.     

Analysis of crude palm oil composition in a chemical process conveyor using Electrical Capacitance Tomography

In this work, we aim to analyse the capability of using a 16-segmented Electrical Capacitance Tomography (ECT) sensor system to monitor the internal composition of a chemical process conveyor that carries crude palm oil (CPO) multiphase flow. The source used to excite the electrodes is a differential potential, instead of the conventional single potential source, in order to obtain an improved sensitivity of the sensor, especially in the central area of the pipe. This system aims to recognise the phase concentration of the flow. The attained concentration profile that is received from the capacitance measurements is capable of providing an image of the liquid and liquid mixture in the pipeline, making the separation process (between oil and liquid waste) much easier and the CPO's quality can be dependably monitored. Experimental results and analysis are presented, and the new excitation technique is shown to provide better sensor sensitivity in the central pipe area. The visualisation results deliver information regarding the flow regime and concentration distribution in a two-phase flow-rate measurement system incorporating a liquid flow-measuring device. The information obtained will assist the design of process equipment, and the verification of existing computational modelling and simulation techniques.     

Three-dimensional MHD simulations of the electromagnetic flowmeter for laminar and turbulent flows

The interaction between an electrically conducting fluid and an external magnetic field in an ideal cylindrical electromagnetic flowmeter is numerically investigated for both laminar and turbulent flows. Induced electric potential in the fluid, and the difference in potential at the measuring electrodes are directly obtained by including MHD effects in the CFD simulations. Fully developed laminar and turbulent flows are simulated. The computed electric potential difference on the electrodes agrees with analytical values for small Hartmann number cases, where the induced Lorentz force is small. Turbulent flow produces a more uniform electric potential distribution in the flow meter cross-section than laminar flow. These integrated MHD/CFD simulations couple the MHD effect with flow dynamics without deriving a weighting function with an assumed velocity profile, which will be necessary for electromagnetic flow meters when the Hartmann number is not small.     

管内盐析两相流动的PDPA试验研究

管内伴有盐析两相流动的研究是了解盐析机理的重要途径。运用相位多普勒粒子分析仪(Phase-Doppler particle analyzer, PDPA)对层流状态下管内Na2SO4溶液的盐析流动规律进行了测量,并详细分析盐析粒子成核速度和溶液流动参数之间的相互关系。试验采用激光单点测量方法对管内充分发展的层流溶液不同截面进行非接触式两相流测量,测量结果表明,随着溶液过饱和度、流动速度及降温速度的变化,管内Na2SO4晶体的盐析速率均会发生不同的变化;盐析粒子的出现对管内层流场产生一定的扰动,扰动引起的湍流脉动提高传热效率从而又加快盐析粒子的形成;所运用的试验手段及分析方法将为研究盐析两相流、掌握动态盐析机理及输送盐溶液装置的优化设计提供一定的参考。     

Flow rate measurement in flows with asymmetric velocity profiles by means of distributed thermal anemometry

Flow rate in closed conduits is one of the most frequently measured parameters in industrial processes and in gas and water supply. For an accurate measurement, flow meters typically require a fully developed symmetric flow profile with preferably no radial or tangential velocity components. This is commonly secured by mounting flow meters in a pipe at a sufficiently long distance downstream any change in cross-section or pipe direction. In this paper, we introduce a new approach for flow rate measurement of gases or liquids that employs a novel spatially resolving fluid velocity sensor basing on thermal anemometry. The new principle allows accurate flow rate measurements for non-axisymmetric velocity profiles, even directly after pipe bends, T-junctions or other alterations in the pipe geometry. This is exemplified for air flow in three different pipe bend configurations.