Surface Production Operations ENPE 505 Lecture Notes #9 Flow measurement

Hassan Hassanzadeh EN B204M hhassanz@ucalgary.ca

Flow measurement

Learning Objectives identify various flow measurement equipments, select appropriate measurement devices, and perform flow measurement calculations for gas and oil streams.

Flow measurement

Accuracy in measurement is of prime importance. 1% error for a typical pipeline delivering 300 MMSCFD can result in an error of approximately 1.1 BCF/year of gas which, at a typical gas price of 5.00 MSCF, would amount to a loss of $5.5 million to the buyer or seller.

Measurement fundamentals

Accuracy: is a measure of flowmeters ability to indicate the actual flow rate within a specified flow-range.

Rangeability: is the ratio of the maximum flow rate to the minimum flow rate at the specified accuracy.

Repeatability: reproducibility or precision, repeatability is the ability of a meter to reproduce the same measured readings for identical flow conditions over a period of time.

Linearity: is a measure of the deviation of the calibration curve of a meter from a straight line.

The selection of a measurement device depends upon: Accuracy, reliability, range of flow rate-maximum and minimum, range of flow temperature and pressure, fluid type, maintenance requirements, expected life of the device, and its initial and operating costs, simplicity, availability of power or other inputs 4

Methods of Measurement (cont.)

Differential Pressure Method

In this method, the flow rate is computed using the pressure differential over a flow interval or restriction.

Some of the commonly used differential pressure devices are: 1. Orifice meter 2. Venturi meter 3. Flow nozzle 4. Pitot tube 5. Orifice well tester 6. Critical flow provers

Displacement Meters These meters measure the volumetric displacement of the fluid at flowing conditions. The number of such known volumes through the meter per unit time, corrected to the base pressure and temperature, are counted to give the flow rate, instantaneous and/or cumulative, through the meter.
5

1.Rotary or impeller 2.Slide-valve diaphragm

Methods of Measurement (cont.)

Orifice meter This is by far the most commonly used device for metering natural gas. it consists of a flat metal plate with a circular hole, centered in a paired flanges in a straight pipe section. The pressure differential is measured across this plate to yield the flow rate. This is a simple and economical device, and can handle a wide range of flow rates. Orifice meters have a rangeability of about 3.5:1, with an accuracy on the order of of 1 % (Corcoran and Honeywell, 1975).

Methods of Measurement (cont.)

The Venturi meter

This type of meter consists of a short pipe section tapering into a throat, coupled with a relatively longer diverging pipe section for pressure recovery. It is similar to an orifice meter, with the advantage of low pressure loss, and is a preferred choice where less pressure drop is available. Venturi meters have a rangeability of 3.5:1, with an accuracy of 1 % (Corcoran and Honeywell, 1975).

http://www.ddc-online.org

Methods of Measurement (cont.)

Flow nozzles

Flow nozzles have a rounded edge that aids the handling of solids in the flow stream. The analysis is similar to orifice meters. Flow nozzles are used for high flow rate streams, because they permit, for the same line size and pressure differential, of 60% greater rate of flow than an orifice plate. Flow nozzles have a rangeability of 3.5:1, with an accuracy of of 1.5-2% (Corcoran and Honeywell, 1975).

http://www.ddc-online.org

Methods of Measurement (cont.)

Pitot tube

Measures the difference between the static pressure at the wall of the flow conduit and the flowing pressure at its impact tip where the kinetic energy of the flowing stream is converted into pressure. It gives the flow velocity only at a point (at the tip).

Aircrafts use pitot tubes to measure air speed

http://www.SpiraxSarco.com/us/

Methods of Measurement (cont.)

Orifice Well Tester

This device consists of a nipple, equipped with a flange to facilitate the attachment of different sharp-edged orifice plates at its end. The device discharges the gas to the atmosphere, and only the static pressure just upstream of this plate needs to be measured. It has limited accuracy, but finds application where gas is at relatively low pressures and is being produced to the atmosphere.
http://www.reynoldsequipment.com

Critical flow provers

Similar to the orifice well tester, a critical-flow prover consists of a special nipple equipped to facilitate the attachment of orifice plates at its end, and it discharges the gas to the atmosphere. The critical-flow prover, however, is based upon the principle of critical flow of gases through flow restrictions. In this device, critical flow is maintained, and it is only necessary to determine the upstream pressure, gas gravity, and the flowing temperature in order to calculate the gas flow rate. It is important to note that the critical-flow prover uses a rounded-edge orifice, because sharp-edged orifices do not conform to critical flow theories http://www.hawk-eye.com 10 and do not give a good repeatability

Methods of Measurement (cont.)

positive displacement meters

A positive displacement meter (PD) flowmeters make volumetric flow measurements taking finite increments or volumes of the fluid. A basic analogy would be holding a bucket below a tap, filling it to a set level, then quickly replacing it with another bucket and timing the rate at which the buckets are filled .

Rotary or impeller

Diaphragm

11

Methods of Measurement (cont.)

Turbine meter

It consists of a turbine that turns at a speed proportional to the velocity of the gas flowing past it, converting linear velocity to rotational speed. The speed of the turbine is measured as pulses that give the rate. These pulses are counted to give the instantaneous rate, or accumulated to give the cumulative rate.

Turbine meters typically have a rangeability up to 100:1 for gases, with an accuracy of 0.25 and a repeatability of 0.05% (Evans, 1973).

http://www.litremeter.com 12

Methods of Measurement (cont.)

Rotameter

A Rotameter is a device that measures the flow rate of liquid or gas in a closed tube. It belongs to a class of meters called variable area meters, which measure flow rate by allowing the cross-sectional area the fluid travels through to vary, causing some measurable effect. Rotameters have a rangeability of 10:1 with an accuracy of 1% (Corcoran and Honeywell, 1975).

Elbow meter A differential pressure exists when a flowing fluid changes direction due to a pipe turn or elbow, as shown below. The pressure difference results from the centrifugal force. Since pipe elbows exist in plants, the cost for these meters is very low. However, the accuracy is very poor; there are only applied when reproducibility is sufficient and other flow measurements would be very costly.

http://www.pc-education.mcmaster.ca

13

Orifice meter

An orifice meter consists of a thin plate, 0.115-0.398 in. thick depending upon the pipe size and pressure, held perpendicular to the direction of flow by a pair of flanges, with a circular sharp square-edged orifice (hole) accurately machined to the required size in the center of the plate. Pressure taps are provided on the upstream as well as downstream end in the fitting that holds the orifice plate. A pressure measuring and recording device is connected to the pressure taps. The orifice fittings are designed to permit easy changing and inspection of orifice plates

1. Most common 2. Ease of fabrication 3. 0.5% accuracy

1. For two-phase flow 2. Suspended solids 3. 1.5-2% accuracy

1. Does not retain solids on the upstream

14

Size and Location of Orifice

The ratio of the orifice to pipe diameter, , should be between 0.15 and 0.70 for meters using flange taps, and between 0.20 and 0.67 for meters using pipe taps (GPSA, 1981). The thickness of the orifice plate at the orifice edge should not exceed 1/50 of the pipe diameter and 1/8 of the orifice diameter.

15

Orifice meter (cont.)

[
0.5

The following relationship gives the flow rate for an orifice

qsc = K hw p f

where hw : differential pressure at 60oF, inches of water pf : absolute static pressure of the flowing fluid, psia and the constant K is expressed as a product of several different factors as follows (AGA, 1969): K =Fb FrYFpbFtbFgFpvFmFlFa where Fb = basic orifice factor, scf/hr [from table] Fr = Reynold's number factor (from table) Y = expansion factor (from table) Fpb = pressure-base factor (=14.73/pb) Ftb = temperature-base factor (=520/Tb) Ftf = flowing temperature factor (=[520/Tf]0.5) Fg = specific gravity factor (=1/ g0.5) Fpv = supercompressibility factor (=Zb/Z0.5) also from table Fm = manometer factor (for mercury manometer) (from table) Fl = gauge location factor (from table) Fa = orifice thermal expansion factor [See next slide]

16

Orifice meter (cont.)

Supercompressibility factor, Fpv

f pg = g 13.84 yCO 2 + 5.420 y N 2

f tg = g 0.472 yCO 2 0.793 y N 2

These fpg and ftg values are used to determine the pressure and temperature correction factors from tables. The corrections then added to the actual flowing P and T of the gas to estimate the supercompressibility factor from table or equation. Orifice thermal expansion factor, Fa

This factor accounts for the expansion or contraction of the orifice hole with flowing temperature, calculated as follows:

Fa = 1 + [0.0000185( Tf - 528)] for stainless steel Fa = 1 + [0.0000159( Tf - 528)] for monel

where Tf = gas flowing temperature at the orifice, oR

17

Natural gas liquids measurement using orifice meters

Natural gas liquids are generally measured under static conditions using conventional tank-gauging methods. For flowing liquid streams, orifice meters are used quite often. For volumetric flow rate measurement in gallons per hour, the American Meter Company (1973) provides the following equation: Q= FbFgtFr(hw)0.5

where Q : liquid flow rate, gal/hr hw = differential pressure across the orifice, in. of water Fb = basic orifice factor Fgt = specific gravity factor (for temperature correction) Fr = Reynolds number factor

For mass flow rate measurement in pounds per day, the following equation by the Foxboro Company (1961) may be used: mL= 68045Sd2 (Lhw)0.5

hw = differential pressure across the orifice, in. of water S = a constant determined by the orifice and pipe diameters d = inside diameter of the meter tube, in.

18

Two-phase flow measurement using orifice meters

Flow meter accuracy is generally quite poor for measuring two-phase Flow streams. No good method is currently known-most techniques give only an approximate value. Murdock (1962) gives the following equation for two-phase flow through orifice meters:

mTP =

359 K g Yg Fa d 2 g1 (hw )TP

[
0 .5

(1 X ) + 1.26 X (K gYg / K L )( g1 / L1 )

0 .5

where mTP : mass flow rate of two-phase flow, lbm/hour Kg, KL : orifice flow coefficients for gas and liquid, respectively Yg : expansion factor for the orifice Fa : orifice thermal expansion factor d = orifice diameter, in. g, L= gas and liquid densities respectively, lbm/ft3 (hw)TP = effective differential head for the two-phase flow, in. of water X = liquid weight fraction in the flow stream

and subscript 1 represents the value at the orifice inlet.

19