THEORY:

Measurement of flow rates of fluids is of great practical interest in many industrial

applications. An enormous number of methods have been developed regarding the flow
measurement of fluid. These range from the very crude to the extremely sophisticated. The
main purpose of this experiment is to conduct the direct comparison of flow measurement
using venturi, orifice and bench which will be focused on measurement of flow in a fully
enclosed channel (i.e., in a pipe or a tube). Initially, the flow measurement is the
quantification of bulk fluid movement in a flow system. The flow rate is determined
inferentially by measuring the fluids velocity or the change in kinetic energy. Velocity
depends on the pressure difference that is forcing the fluid through a pipe or conduit. Because
the pipes cross sectional area is known and remains constant, the average velocity is an
indication of the flow rate. The flow rate can be measured in volumetric or mass flow rates
(such as L/s or kg/s.). Basically, in this experiment, the quantification of fluid is in volumetric
flow rate. The basic relationship for determining the fluids flow rate is:
Q=VA
Where,
Q = the flow rate of the fluid through the pipe
V = average velocity of the fluid flow
A = cross-sectional area of the pipe
In this experiment, a specially designed apparatus is used to gain the flow rate measurement
by applying three basic type of flow measuring techniques, which are float-type flow meter,
venturi meter and the orifice meter.
The instrument

These are the differential pressure flow meters.In a differential pressure drop device the flow
is calculated by measuring the pressure drop over an obstructions inserted in the flow. The
differential pressure flow meter is based on the Bernoullis Equation, where the pressure drop
and the further measured signal is a function of the square flow speed.With an orifice plate,
the fluid flow is measured through the difference in pressure from the upstream side to the
downstream side of the partially obstructed pipe. The plate obstructing the flow offers a
precisely measured obstruction that narrows the pipe and forces the flowing fluid to constrict.

The fluid flow through an orifice plate

In the Venturi Tube the fluid flowrate is measured by reducing the cross sectional flow area in
the flow path, generating a pressure difference. After the constricted area, the fluid is passes
through a pressure recovery exit section, where up to 80% of the differential pressure
generated at the constricted area, is recovered.After the pressure difference has been
generated in the differential pressure flow meter, the fluid pass through the pressure recovery
exit section, where the differential pressure generated at the constricted area is partly
recovered. These flow meters rely on the Bernoullis principle which states that there is a
relationship between the pressure of the fluid and the velocity of the fluid. When the velocity
increases, the pressure decreases and vice versa.

The fluid flow through a venturi meter

The recovery graph of the differential pressure generated.