US20100251829A1 - Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body - Google Patents
Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20100251829A1 US20100251829A1 US12/817,842 US81784210A US2010251829A1 US 20100251829 A1 US20100251829 A1 US 20100251829A1 US 81784210 A US81784210 A US 81784210A US 2010251829 A1 US2010251829 A1 US 2010251829A1
- Authority
- US
- United States
- Prior art keywords
- wall
- ultrasonic
- ultrasonic signals
- frequency
- pipe
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Images
Classifications
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01F—MEASURING VOLUME, VOLUME FLOW, MASS FLOW OR LIQUID LEVEL; METERING BY VOLUME
- G01F1/00—Measuring the volume flow or mass flow of fluid or fluent solid material wherein the fluid passes through a meter in a continuous flow
- G01F1/704—Measuring the volume flow or mass flow of fluid or fluent solid material wherein the fluid passes through a meter in a continuous flow using marked regions or existing inhomogeneities within the fluid stream, e.g. statistically occurring variations in a fluid parameter
- G01F1/708—Measuring the time taken to traverse a fixed distance
- G01F1/7082—Measuring the time taken to traverse a fixed distance using acoustic detecting arrangements
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01F—MEASURING VOLUME, VOLUME FLOW, MASS FLOW OR LIQUID LEVEL; METERING BY VOLUME
- G01F1/00—Measuring the volume flow or mass flow of fluid or fluent solid material wherein the fluid passes through a meter in a continuous flow
- G01F1/66—Measuring the volume flow or mass flow of fluid or fluent solid material wherein the fluid passes through a meter in a continuous flow by measuring frequency, phase shift or propagation time of electromagnetic or other waves, e.g. using ultrasonic flowmeters
- G01F1/667—Arrangements of transducers for ultrasonic flowmeters; Circuits for operating ultrasonic flowmeters
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01F—MEASURING VOLUME, VOLUME FLOW, MASS FLOW OR LIQUID LEVEL; METERING BY VOLUME
- G01F1/00—Measuring the volume flow or mass flow of fluid or fluent solid material wherein the fluid passes through a meter in a continuous flow
- G01F1/704—Measuring the volume flow or mass flow of fluid or fluent solid material wherein the fluid passes through a meter in a continuous flow using marked regions or existing inhomogeneities within the fluid stream, e.g. statistically occurring variations in a fluid parameter
- G01F1/708—Measuring the time taken to traverse a fixed distance
- G01F1/712—Measuring the time taken to traverse a fixed distance using auto-correlation or cross-correlation detection means
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01F—MEASURING VOLUME, VOLUME FLOW, MASS FLOW OR LIQUID LEVEL; METERING BY VOLUME
- G01F1/00—Measuring the volume flow or mass flow of fluid or fluent solid material wherein the fluid passes through a meter in a continuous flow
- G01F1/74—Devices for measuring flow of a fluid or flow of a fluent solid material in suspension in another fluid
Definitions
- the present invention pertains to the field of processing ultrasonic signals, and more particularly to apparatus and methods for using ultrasonic signals to measure one or more parameters of a fluid flowing within an internal passage of an elongated body.
- Flow meters utilizing ultrasonic transducers can be used to sense fluid flow properties such as velocity, volumetric flow rate, etc.
- Cross correlation ultrasonic flow meters for example, can measure the time required for ultrasonic beams to transit across a flow path at two, axially displaced locations along a pipe. Within this measurement principle, variations in transit time are assumed to correlate with properties that convect with the flow, such as vortical structure, inhomogeneities in flow composition, and temperature variations to name a few.
- CCUFs utilize high frequency acoustic signals, i.e. ultrasonics, to measure much lower frequency, time varying properties of structures in the flow. Like all other cross correlation based flow meters, the physical disturbances which cause the transit time variations should retain some level of coherence over the distance between the two sensors. CCUFs are typically much more robust to variations in fluid composition than the other ultrasonic-based flow measurement approaches such as transit time and Doppler based methods.
- Transit time defined as the time required for an ultrasonic beam to propagate a given distance, can be measured using a radially aligned ultrasonic transmitter and receiver.
- the transit time is given by the following relation:
- a variation in transit time is analogous to a variation in sound speed of the fluid.
- variations in the transverse velocity component will cause variations in transit time.
- Variations in the thermophysical properties of a fluid such as temperature or composition will also cause variations. Many of these effects convect with the flow.
- influence of transverse velocity of the fluid associated with coherent vortical structures on the transit time enables transit time based measurements to be suitable for cross correlation flow measurement for flows with uniform composition properties.
- the combination of sensitivity to velocity field perturbation and to composition changes make transit time measurement well suited for both single and multiphase applications.
- TTUF transit time ultrasonic flow meters
- TTUFs tend to require relatively well behaved fluids (i.e. single phase fluids) and well-defined coupling between the transducer and the fluid itself
- TTUFs rely on transmitting and receiving ultrasonic signals that have some component of their propagation in line with the flow. While this requirement does not pose a significant issue for in-line, wetted transducer TTUFs, it does pose a challenge for clamp-on devices by introducing the ratio of sound speed in the pipe to the fluid as an important operating parameter. The influence of this parameter leads to reliability and accuracy problems with clamp-on TTUFs.
- Signal-to-noise ratio i.e., the ratio of a desired signal to a noise signal containing no useful information
- flow meters that utilize non-wetted ultrasonic sensors that send and receive signals through the walls of the vessel (e.g., pipe) in which the fluid flow is passing.
- vessel e.g., pipe
- differences in material properties between the pipe walls and the fluid flow traveling therein can create impedance mismatches that inhibit signal propagation. Attenuated signals undesirably decrease the signal-to-noise ratio, and likely also decrease the accuracy of information available from the signal. Consequently, it would be desirable to provide a method for improving the strength and quality of a signal produced and received by an ultrasonic sensor unit utilized within a flow meter, and an apparatus operable to do the same.
- an object of the present invention to provide a method for improving the strength and quality of a signal produced and received by an ultrasonic sensor unit utilized within a flow meter, and an apparatus operable to do the same.
- a method for measuring at least one parameter of a fluid flowing through an internal passage of an elongated body includes the steps of providing an array of at least two ultrasonic sensor units, operating the sensor units to transmit ultrasonic signals at one or more frequencies substantially coincident with at least one frequency at which the transmitted ultrasonic signals resonate within the first wall, receiving the ultrasonic signals with the sensor units, and processing the received ultrasonic signals to measure the at least one parameter of fluid flow within the internal passage.
- a method for sensing flow within an internal passage of a pipe is provided.
- the internal passage is disposed between a first wall of the pipe and a second wall of the pipe.
- the method includes the steps of providing a flow meter having an array of at least two ultrasonic sensor units, operating the sensor units to transmit ultrasonic signals at one or more frequencies substantially coincident with at least one frequency at which the transmitted ultrasonic signals resonate within the first wall, and receiving the ultrasonic signals with the sensor units.
- ultrasonic transmitters within the sensor units are pulsed between an active period when ultrasonic signals are transmitted and an inactive period when ultrasonic signals are not transmitted.
- the active periods each have a duration sufficient to enable the transmitted ultrasonic signals resonating within the first wall to increase in amplitude an amount that readily distinguishes the transmitted ultrasonic signals from signal noise.
- one or more of the sensor units further includes the ability to receive ultrasonic signals transmitted from the transmitter and reflected within the first wall. This can be accomplished by using a transmitter capable of acting as a receiver, or by using an independent feedback ultrasonic receiver located on the exterior surface of the first wall proximate the transmitter.
- an apparatus for sensing flow within an internal passage of a pipe is provided.
- the internal passage of the pipe is disposed between a first wall of the pipe and a second wall.
- the apparatus includes an array of at least two ultrasonic sensor units.
- Each sensor unit includes an ultrasonic transmitter mountable on an exterior surface of the first wall and an ultrasonic receiver mountable on an exterior surface of the second wall and substantially aligned with the transmitter to receive ultrasonic signals transmitted therefrom.
- the apparatus further includes a processor adapted to operate the ultrasonic transmitters to transmit ultrasonic signals at one or more frequencies substantially coincident with at least one frequency at which the transmitted ultrasonic signals resonate within the first wall of the pipe, and adapted to receive signals from the ultrasonic receivers.
- FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a flow meter having an array of ultrasonic sensor units disposed axially along a pipe for measuring the volumetric flow of the fluid flowing in the pipe, in accordance with the present invention.
- FIG. 1A is the same block diagram as that shown in FIG. 1 , with the exception that independent feedback receivers are included.
- FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an alternative embodiment of a sensing device of a flow meter embodying the present invention similar to that shown in FIG. 1 .
- FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a pipe having a turbulent pipe flowing having coherent structures therein, in accordance with the present invention.
- FIG. 4 is a frequency-amplitude graph showing transmitted spectra, with high peaks in amplitude representing resonant conditions.
- FIG. 5 is a frequency-amplitude graph showing reflected spectra, with sharp valleys in amplitude representing resonant conditions.
- FIG. 6 is diagrammatic representation illustrating the application of a signal monitoring technique wherein a dither at a frequency of w is applied to a fundamental resonance frequency F r .
- a flow meter is provided to measure the velocity and/or volumetric flow rate of a single phase fluid 12 (e.g., gas, liquid or liquid/liquid mixture) and/or a multi-phase mixture 12 (e.g., process flow) flowing through an elongated body having an internal passage such as a pipe 14 .
- a single phase fluid 12 e.g., gas, liquid or liquid/liquid mixture
- a multi-phase mixture 12 e.g., process flow
- the multi-phase mixture may be a two-phase liquid/gas mixture, a solid/gas mixture or a solid/liquid mixture, gas entrained liquid or a three-phase mixture.
- the flow meter 10 embodiment shown in FIG. 1 includes a sensing device 16 comprising an array of ultrasonic sensor units 18 - 21 .
- the array includes at least two ultrasonic sensor units and may have as many as “N” number of ultrasonic sensor units, where “N” is an integer.
- Each sensor unit comprises a pair of ultrasonic sensors 40 , 42 , one of which functions as a transmitter (Tx) 40 and the other as a receiver (Rx) 42 .
- the sensor units 18 - 21 are spaced axially along the outer surface 22 of a pipe 14 having a process flow 12 propagating therein, at locations x 1 , x 2 , x 3 , . . . x N , respectively.
- the distances between sensor units should be known or determinable; but do not necessarily have to be uniform.
- the pair of sensors 40 , 42 within each sensor unit is diametrically disposed on the pipe to provide a through transmission configuration, such that the sensors transmit and receive an ultrasonic signal that propagates through the fluid substantially orthogonal to the direction of the flow of the fluid within the pipe.
- the ultrasonic sensors 18 - 21 are clamped onto, or are otherwise attached to, the outer surface 22 of the pipe 14 .
- the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 diagrammatically shows transmitters 40 attached to a first wall portion 23 of the pipe 14 and the receivers 42 diametrically disposed and attached to a second wall portion 25 of the pipe 14 .
- Externally attached sensor units 18 - 21 may be referred to as “non-wetted”, as opposed to “wetted” sensor units which are in direct contact with the process flow.
- FIG. 2 illustrates an alternative sensor arrangement wherein the transmitter (Tx) 40 and receiver (Rx) 42 of each sensor unit 18 - 21 may be offset axially such that the ultrasonic signal from the transmitter sensor has an axial component in its propagation direction, as shown in FIG. 2 .
- the sensors 40 , 42 may alternatively simply oppose each other on the pipe.
- the sensor units 18 - 21 may be at different radial location on the pipe compared to each other.
- each pair of ultrasonic sensors 40 , 42 is operable to measure a transit time (i.e., time of flight (TOF), or phase modulation) of an ultrasonic signal propagating through the process flow 12 from the transmitting sensor 40 to the receiving sensor 42 .
- the transit time measurement or variation is indicative of a coherent property that convects with the flow 12 within the pipe (e.g., vortical disturbances, inhomogeneities within the flow, temperature variations, bubbles, particles, pressure disturbances), which are indicative of the velocity of the process flow 12 .
- the ultrasonic sensors may operate at practically any frequency. It has been found, however, that higher frequency sensors are more suitable for single phase fluids and lower frequency sensors are more suitable for multiphase fluids.
- the optimum frequency of the ultrasonic sensor is therefore related to the size or type of particle or substance propagating with the flow 12 , and is also related to resonant frequencies of the pipe as will be discussed below.
- Examples of frequency used for a flow meter embodying the present invention are 1 MHz and 5 MHz.
- the ultrasonic sensors may provide a pulsed, chirped or continuous signal through the process flow 12 .
- An example of a sensor 40 , 42 that may be used is Model no. 113-241-591, manufactured by Krautkramer.
- the ultrasonic signals injected into the pipe 14 can, if tuned properly, create a resonant response within one or both walls 23 , 25 of the pipe 14 .
- the resonant response amplifies the ultrasonic signal as it passes through the first wall 23 , thereby increasing the ultrasonic signal entering the flow within the pipe 14 .
- the ultrasonic signal entering the second wall 25 of the pipe 14 from the flow 12 may also be amplified by the resonant response within the second wall 25 , thereby increasing the ultrasonic signal to be sensed by the receiver. As a result, the signal-to-noise ratio of the sensor unit is improved.
- the tuning of the sensor units 18 - 21 to produce an ultrasonic frequency operable to create a resonant response within a pipe system can be done in a variety of different ways; e.g., by initially collecting empirical data from a similar type pipe system or the actual pipe system itself, or the tuning can be done in real-time during use of the flow meter. For example, the drive frequency of the transmitter can be slowly adjusted to maximize the through signal, and the relevant frequency(ies) identified.
- the sensor units may be fine tuned by using a dithering technique as is described below.
- FIG. 4 shows an amplitude-frequency plot of a pipe system subjected excitation frequencies, where the high peaks indicate resonant conditions.
- the signal received by the receiver 42 of each sensor unit 18 - 21 can be periodically or continuously monitored to evaluate whether the received signal intensity is optimal. Changes in signal intensity can occur due to factors such as temperature induced frequency shifts in the pipe system, frequency changes within the driving electronics, etc.
- One method for monitoring the resonant condition i.e., tuning the injected frequency to the resonance condition
- a dither with a frequency of w will induce an amplitude modulation of 2w at the received signal as the dither traverses the peak of the resonance waveform.
- the receiving electronics can then bandpass filter on the 2w signal and feed a correction signal to the transmitting electronics to optimize the 2w component.
- Dithering represents an exemplary technique for monitoring and optimizing the signal received by the receiver, but is not the only such technique that can be used with the present invention.
- other techniques include introducing an oscillation to help optimize the injected frequency for maximum signal, which maximum signal helps correlate the received signal from noise within the system.
- monitoring of the resonant condition can be accomplished by sensing signal spectra reflected within the first wall of the pipe.
- the monitoring can be performed by the transmitter acting as a receiver, or it can be performed using an independent feedback receiver 41 (see FIG. 1A ) located proximate the transmitter 40 in each sensor unit 18 - 21 .
- the feedback receiver monitors signal spectra reflected within the first wall of the pipe.
- a processor 37 (see below) is adapted to receive signals from the feedback ultrasonic receiver representative of the ultrasonic signals reflected within the first wall, and identify a minimum reflected signal indicative of the resonant condition.
- FIG. 5 shows a diagrammatic plot of spectra reflected within the first wall.
- the deep valleys represent minimum reflected signals indicative of resonant conditions within the pipe, where the majority of the energy is transmitted through rather than reflected back.
- the preferred operation point of the sensor unit 18 - 21 would be the frequency associated with the minimum (i.e., deep valley).
- the performance of the sensor unit can be monitored using techniques such as dithering.
- the present invention also includes improving the performance of the sensor unit by determining a preferred transmitter pulse duration for a sensor unit 18 - 21 .
- the above-described resonant response builds in intensity within the wall 23 , 25 for a period of time, beginning when the fundamental response frequency is first introduced into the pipe wall 23 , 25 .
- the resonant response will reach a maximum intensity (i.e., the transmitted signal reaching a maximum amplitude) after a period of time, at which point dampening within the pipe system prevents any further increase in intensity.
- the period of time from start to maximum intensity represents a preferred pulse duration for the injected signal.
- the preferred pulse duration will likely vary from system to system due to factors such as pipe wall thickness, material, operating temperature, etc., and can be determined by tuning the system prior to using it, or the tuning can be done in real time while the system is in use, or a combination of both.
- An ultrasonic signal processor 37 fires the transmitter sensors 40 in response to a firing signal 39 from a processor 24 and receives the ultrasonic output signals S 1 (t)-S N (t) from the receiver sensors 42 .
- the signal processor 37 processes the data from each of the sensor units 18 - 21 to provide an analog or digital output signal T 1 (t)-T N (t) indicative of the time of flight or transit time of the ultrasonic signal through the process flow 12 .
- the signal processor 37 may also provide an output signal indicative of the amplitude (or attenuation) of the ultrasonic signals.
- One such signal processor is model number USPC 2100 manufactured by Krautkramer Ultrasonic Systems. Measuring the amplitude of ultrasonic signal is particularly useful and works well for measuring the velocity of a fluid that includes a substance in the flow (e.g., multiphase fluid or slurry).
- the output signals (T 1 (t)-T N (t)) of the ultrasonic signal processor 37 are provided to the processor 24 , which processes the transit time measurement data to determine a parameter such as the volumetric flow rate of the process flow.
- the transit time or time of flight measurement is defined by the time it takes for an ultrasonic signal to propagate from the transmitting sensor 40 to the respective receiving sensor 42 through the pipe wall and the process flow 12 .
- the effect of the vortical disturbances (and/or other inhomogeneities within the fluid) on the transit time of the ultrasonic signal is to delay or speed up the transit time.
- each sensing unit 18 - 21 provides a respective output signal T 1 (t)-T N (t) indicative of the variations in the transit time of the ultrasonic signals propagating orthogonal to the direction of the process flow 12 .
- the transit time measurement is derived by interpreting the convecting coherent property and/or characteristic within the process piping using at least two sensor units 18 , 19 .
- the flow meter 10 measures the volumetric flow rate by determining the velocity of vortical disturbances 45 (e.g., coherent structures such as “turbulent eddies”; see FIG. 2 ) propagating with the flow 12 using the array of ultrasonic sensors 18 - 21 .
- Coherent structures 45 are an inherent feature of turbulent boundary layers present in all turbulent flows.
- the ultrasonic sensor units 18 - 21 measure the transmit time T 1 (t)-T N (t) of the respective ultrasonic signals between each respective pair of sensors 40 , 42 , which varies due to the vortical disturbances as these disturbances convect within the flow 12 through the pipe 14 in a known manner. Therefore, the velocity of these vortical disturbances is related to the velocity of the process flow 12 and hence the volumetric flow rate may be determined.
- the volumetric flow rate may be determined by multiplying the velocity of the process flow 12 by the cross-sectional area of the pipe.
- Turbulent pipe flows 12 are highly complex flows. Predicting the details of any turbulent flow is problematic, although much is known regarding the statistical properties of the flow. For instance, as indicated above, turbulent flows contain self-generating, coherent vortical structures such as “turbulent eddies” 45 . The maximum length scale of coherent structures 45 is set by the diameter of the pipe 14 . These structures 45 remain coherent for several pipe diameters downstream, eventually breaking down into progressively smaller structures until the energy is dissipated by viscous effects.
- FIG. 3 diagrammatically illustrates the relevant flow features of turbulent pipe flow 12 along with an axial array of ultrasonic sensor units 18 - 21 , each sensor unit having a transmitter unit 40 and a receiver unit 42 .
- the time-averaged axial velocity is a function of radial position, from zero at the wall to a maximum at the centerline of the pipe.
- the flow 12 near the wall is characterized by steep velocity gradients and transitions to relatively uniform core flow near the center of the pipe 14 .
- Vortical structures e.g., “turbulent eddies”
- These coherent structures contain temporally and spatially random fluctuations with magnitudes typically less than ten percent (10%) of the mean flow velocity and are carried along with the mean flow.
- Experimental investigations have established that turbulent eddies 45 generated within turbulent boundary layers remain coherent for several pipe diameters and convect at roughly eighty percent (80%) of maximum flow velocity (Schlichting, 1979).
- the ultrasonic sensors provide transit time-varying signals T 1 (t), T 2 (t), T 3 (t), T N (t) to the signal processor 24 to known Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) logics 30 - 33 , respectively.
- the FFT logics 30 - 33 calculate the Fourier transform of the time-based input signals T 1 (t)-T N (t) and provide complex frequency domain (or frequency based) signals T 1 ⁇ , T 2 ⁇ , T 3 ⁇ , T N ⁇ indicative of the frequency content of the input signals.
- Techniques other than FFTs can be used to obtain the frequency domain characteristics of the signals T 1 (t)-T N (t).
- the frequency signals T 1 ⁇ -T N ⁇ are fed to an array processor 36 , which provides a flow signal 40 indicative of the volumetric flow rate of the process flow 12 and a velocity signal 42 indicative of the velocity of the process flow.
- One technique of determining the convection velocity of the vortical disturbances within the process flow 12 involves characterizing the convective ridge of the vortical disturbances using an array of unsteady ultrasonic sensors or other beam forming techniques, similar to that shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/729,994, filed Dec. 4, 2000, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Determining the Flow Velocity Within a Pipe”, which is incorporated herein by reference.
- the flow metering methodology uses the convection velocity of coherent structure with turbulent pipe flows 12 to determine the volumetric flow rate.
- the convection velocity of these turbulent eddies 45 is determined by applying array processing techniques to determine the speed at which the eddies convect past the axial ultrasonic sensor array distributed along the pipe 14 , similar to that used in the radar and sonar fields.
- the prior art teaches many sensor array processing techniques, however, and the present invention is not restricted to any particular technique.
- the present invention describes a flow meter having an array of ultrasonic meters to measure the velocity of the vortical disturbances within the flow 12
- the ultrasonic sensors 18 - 21 measures any property and/or characteristic of the flow 12 that convects with the flow (e.g., vortical disturbances, inhomogenieties within the flow, temperature variations, acoustic wave variations propagating within the pipe, bubbles, particles, pressure disturbances).
Landscapes
- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Fluid Mechanics (AREA)
- General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Electromagnetism (AREA)
- Acoustics & Sound (AREA)
- Measuring Volume Flow (AREA)
Abstract
Description
- This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/937,003 filed Nov. 8, 2007, which claims priority benefits under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/858,323 filed Nov. 9, 2006, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.
- The present invention pertains to the field of processing ultrasonic signals, and more particularly to apparatus and methods for using ultrasonic signals to measure one or more parameters of a fluid flowing within an internal passage of an elongated body.
- Flow meters utilizing ultrasonic transducers can be used to sense fluid flow properties such as velocity, volumetric flow rate, etc. Cross correlation ultrasonic flow meters (CCUF), for example, can measure the time required for ultrasonic beams to transit across a flow path at two, axially displaced locations along a pipe. Within this measurement principle, variations in transit time are assumed to correlate with properties that convect with the flow, such as vortical structure, inhomogeneities in flow composition, and temperature variations to name a few.
- CCUFs utilize high frequency acoustic signals, i.e. ultrasonics, to measure much lower frequency, time varying properties of structures in the flow. Like all other cross correlation based flow meters, the physical disturbances which cause the transit time variations should retain some level of coherence over the distance between the two sensors. CCUFs are typically much more robust to variations in fluid composition than the other ultrasonic-based flow measurement approaches such as transit time and Doppler based methods.
- Transit time, defined as the time required for an ultrasonic beam to propagate a given distance, can be measured using a radially aligned ultrasonic transmitter and receiver. For a homogenous fluid with a no transverse velocity components flowing in an infinitely rigid tube, the transit time is given by the following relation:
-
t=D/A mix - where “t” is the transit time, D is the diameter of the pipe, and Amix is the speed of sound propagating through the fluid.
- In such a flow, a variation in transit time is analogous to a variation in sound speed of the fluid. In real fluids however, there are many mechanisms, which could cause small variations in transit time which remain spatially coherent for several pipe diameters. For single phase flows, variations in the transverse velocity component will cause variations in transit time. Variations in the thermophysical properties of a fluid such as temperature or composition will also cause variations. Many of these effects convect with the flow. Thus, influence of transverse velocity of the fluid associated with coherent vortical structures on the transit time enables transit time based measurements to be suitable for cross correlation flow measurement for flows with uniform composition properties. The combination of sensitivity to velocity field perturbation and to composition changes make transit time measurement well suited for both single and multiphase applications.
- Despite CCUFs functioning over a wide range of flow composition, standard transit time ultrasonic flow meters (TTUF) are more widely used. TTUFs tend to require relatively well behaved fluids (i.e. single phase fluids) and well-defined coupling between the transducer and the fluid itself TTUFs rely on transmitting and receiving ultrasonic signals that have some component of their propagation in line with the flow. While this requirement does not pose a significant issue for in-line, wetted transducer TTUFs, it does pose a challenge for clamp-on devices by introducing the ratio of sound speed in the pipe to the fluid as an important operating parameter. The influence of this parameter leads to reliability and accuracy problems with clamp-on TTUFs.
- Signal-to-noise ratio (i.e., the ratio of a desired signal to a noise signal containing no useful information) is very often an issue with flow meters that utilize non-wetted ultrasonic sensors that send and receive signals through the walls of the vessel (e.g., pipe) in which the fluid flow is passing. In addition, differences in material properties between the pipe walls and the fluid flow traveling therein can create impedance mismatches that inhibit signal propagation. Attenuated signals undesirably decrease the signal-to-noise ratio, and likely also decrease the accuracy of information available from the signal. Consequently, it would be desirable to provide a method for improving the strength and quality of a signal produced and received by an ultrasonic sensor unit utilized within a flow meter, and an apparatus operable to do the same.
- It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a method for improving the strength and quality of a signal produced and received by an ultrasonic sensor unit utilized within a flow meter, and an apparatus operable to do the same.
- According to the present invention, a method for measuring at least one parameter of a fluid flowing through an internal passage of an elongated body is provided. The internal passage is disposed between a first wall and a second wall, and the first wall and the second wall each include an interior surface and an exterior surface. The method includes the steps of providing an array of at least two ultrasonic sensor units, operating the sensor units to transmit ultrasonic signals at one or more frequencies substantially coincident with at least one frequency at which the transmitted ultrasonic signals resonate within the first wall, receiving the ultrasonic signals with the sensor units, and processing the received ultrasonic signals to measure the at least one parameter of fluid flow within the internal passage.
- According to present invention, a method for sensing flow within an internal passage of a pipe is provided. The internal passage is disposed between a first wall of the pipe and a second wall of the pipe. The method includes the steps of providing a flow meter having an array of at least two ultrasonic sensor units, operating the sensor units to transmit ultrasonic signals at one or more frequencies substantially coincident with at least one frequency at which the transmitted ultrasonic signals resonate within the first wall, and receiving the ultrasonic signals with the sensor units.
- In some embodiments of the present method, ultrasonic transmitters within the sensor units are pulsed between an active period when ultrasonic signals are transmitted and an inactive period when ultrasonic signals are not transmitted. The active periods each have a duration sufficient to enable the transmitted ultrasonic signals resonating within the first wall to increase in amplitude an amount that readily distinguishes the transmitted ultrasonic signals from signal noise.
- In some embodiments, one or more of the sensor units further includes the ability to receive ultrasonic signals transmitted from the transmitter and reflected within the first wall. This can be accomplished by using a transmitter capable of acting as a receiver, or by using an independent feedback ultrasonic receiver located on the exterior surface of the first wall proximate the transmitter.
- According to the present invention, an apparatus for sensing flow within an internal passage of a pipe is provided. The internal passage of the pipe is disposed between a first wall of the pipe and a second wall. The apparatus includes an array of at least two ultrasonic sensor units. Each sensor unit includes an ultrasonic transmitter mountable on an exterior surface of the first wall and an ultrasonic receiver mountable on an exterior surface of the second wall and substantially aligned with the transmitter to receive ultrasonic signals transmitted therefrom. The apparatus further includes a processor adapted to operate the ultrasonic transmitters to transmit ultrasonic signals at one or more frequencies substantially coincident with at least one frequency at which the transmitted ultrasonic signals resonate within the first wall of the pipe, and adapted to receive signals from the ultrasonic receivers.
- The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent in light of the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments thereof.
- The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from a consideration of the subsequent detailed description presented in connection with accompanying drawings, in which:
-
FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a flow meter having an array of ultrasonic sensor units disposed axially along a pipe for measuring the volumetric flow of the fluid flowing in the pipe, in accordance with the present invention.FIG. 1A is the same block diagram as that shown inFIG. 1 , with the exception that independent feedback receivers are included. -
FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an alternative embodiment of a sensing device of a flow meter embodying the present invention similar to that shown inFIG. 1 . -
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a pipe having a turbulent pipe flowing having coherent structures therein, in accordance with the present invention. -
FIG. 4 is a frequency-amplitude graph showing transmitted spectra, with high peaks in amplitude representing resonant conditions. -
FIG. 5 is a frequency-amplitude graph showing reflected spectra, with sharp valleys in amplitude representing resonant conditions. -
FIG. 6 is diagrammatic representation illustrating the application of a signal monitoring technique wherein a dither at a frequency of w is applied to a fundamental resonance frequency Fr. - Referring to
FIG. 1 , a flow meter, generally shown as 10, is provided to measure the velocity and/or volumetric flow rate of a single phase fluid 12 (e.g., gas, liquid or liquid/liquid mixture) and/or a multi-phase mixture 12 (e.g., process flow) flowing through an elongated body having an internal passage such as apipe 14. For ease of description, the term “pipe” will be used hereinafter in place of the aforesaid “elongated body”. The present invention is not, however, limited to use with circular cross-section pipes, however. The multi-phase mixture may be a two-phase liquid/gas mixture, a solid/gas mixture or a solid/liquid mixture, gas entrained liquid or a three-phase mixture. - The
flow meter 10 embodiment shown inFIG. 1 includes asensing device 16 comprising an array of ultrasonic sensor units 18-21. The array includes at least two ultrasonic sensor units and may have as many as “N” number of ultrasonic sensor units, where “N” is an integer. Each sensor unit comprises a pair ofultrasonic sensors outer surface 22 of apipe 14 having aprocess flow 12 propagating therein, at locations x1, x2, x3, . . . xN, respectively. The distances between sensor units should be known or determinable; but do not necessarily have to be uniform. In the embodiment shown inFIG. 1 , the pair ofsensors outer surface 22 of thepipe 14. The embodiment shown inFIG. 1 diagrammatically showstransmitters 40 attached to afirst wall portion 23 of thepipe 14 and thereceivers 42 diametrically disposed and attached to asecond wall portion 25 of thepipe 14. Externally attached sensor units 18-21 may be referred to as “non-wetted”, as opposed to “wetted” sensor units which are in direct contact with the process flow. -
FIG. 2 illustrates an alternative sensor arrangement wherein the transmitter (Tx) 40 and receiver (Rx) 42 of each sensor unit 18-21 may be offset axially such that the ultrasonic signal from the transmitter sensor has an axial component in its propagation direction, as shown inFIG. 2 . Although diametrically disposedsensors sensors - Referring back to
FIG. 1 , each pair ofultrasonic sensors sensor 40 to the receivingsensor 42. The transit time measurement or variation is indicative of a coherent property that convects with theflow 12 within the pipe (e.g., vortical disturbances, inhomogeneities within the flow, temperature variations, bubbles, particles, pressure disturbances), which are indicative of the velocity of theprocess flow 12. The ultrasonic sensors may operate at practically any frequency. It has been found, however, that higher frequency sensors are more suitable for single phase fluids and lower frequency sensors are more suitable for multiphase fluids. The optimum frequency of the ultrasonic sensor is therefore related to the size or type of particle or substance propagating with theflow 12, and is also related to resonant frequencies of the pipe as will be discussed below. Examples of frequency used for a flow meter embodying the present invention are 1 MHz and 5 MHz. The ultrasonic sensors may provide a pulsed, chirped or continuous signal through theprocess flow 12. An example of asensor - The ultrasonic signals injected into the
pipe 14 can, if tuned properly, create a resonant response within one or bothwalls pipe 14. The resonant response amplifies the ultrasonic signal as it passes through thefirst wall 23, thereby increasing the ultrasonic signal entering the flow within thepipe 14. Likewise, the ultrasonic signal entering thesecond wall 25 of thepipe 14 from theflow 12 may also be amplified by the resonant response within thesecond wall 25, thereby increasing the ultrasonic signal to be sensed by the receiver. As a result, the signal-to-noise ratio of the sensor unit is improved. - The tuning of the sensor units 18-21 to produce an ultrasonic frequency operable to create a resonant response within a pipe system can be done in a variety of different ways; e.g., by initially collecting empirical data from a similar type pipe system or the actual pipe system itself, or the tuning can be done in real-time during use of the flow meter. For example, the drive frequency of the transmitter can be slowly adjusted to maximize the through signal, and the relevant frequency(ies) identified. The sensor units may be fine tuned by using a dithering technique as is described below.
FIG. 4 shows an amplitude-frequency plot of a pipe system subjected excitation frequencies, where the high peaks indicate resonant conditions. - Once an ultrasonic frequency operable to create a resonant response within the pipe (i.e., a fundamental resonance frequency) is selected, the signal received by the
receiver 42 of each sensor unit 18-21 can be periodically or continuously monitored to evaluate whether the received signal intensity is optimal. Changes in signal intensity can occur due to factors such as temperature induced frequency shifts in the pipe system, frequency changes within the driving electronics, etc. One method for monitoring the resonant condition (i.e., tuning the injected frequency to the resonance condition), is to put a slight dither on the fundamental resonance frequency (Fr) as is illustrated inFIG. 6 . A dither with a frequency of w will induce an amplitude modulation of 2w at the received signal as the dither traverses the peak of the resonance waveform. The receiving electronics can then bandpass filter on the 2w signal and feed a correction signal to the transmitting electronics to optimize the 2w component. Dithering represents an exemplary technique for monitoring and optimizing the signal received by the receiver, but is not the only such technique that can be used with the present invention. For example, other techniques include introducing an oscillation to help optimize the injected frequency for maximum signal, which maximum signal helps correlate the received signal from noise within the system. - In an alternative embodiment, monitoring of the resonant condition can be accomplished by sensing signal spectra reflected within the first wall of the pipe. The monitoring can be performed by the transmitter acting as a receiver, or it can be performed using an independent feedback receiver 41 (see
FIG. 1A ) located proximate thetransmitter 40 in each sensor unit 18-21. In this embodiment, the feedback receiver monitors signal spectra reflected within the first wall of the pipe. A processor 37 (see below) is adapted to receive signals from the feedback ultrasonic receiver representative of the ultrasonic signals reflected within the first wall, and identify a minimum reflected signal indicative of the resonant condition.FIG. 5 shows a diagrammatic plot of spectra reflected within the first wall. The deep valleys represent minimum reflected signals indicative of resonant conditions within the pipe, where the majority of the energy is transmitted through rather than reflected back. In this case, the preferred operation point of the sensor unit 18-21 would be the frequency associated with the minimum (i.e., deep valley). As indicated above, the performance of the sensor unit can be monitored using techniques such as dithering. - In addition to improving the performance of the sensor unit 18-21 by finding and using a resonant condition, the present invention also includes improving the performance of the sensor unit by determining a preferred transmitter pulse duration for a sensor unit 18-21. The above-described resonant response builds in intensity within the
wall pipe wall - An
ultrasonic signal processor 37 fires thetransmitter sensors 40 in response to a firing signal 39 from aprocessor 24 and receives the ultrasonic output signals S1(t)-SN(t) from thereceiver sensors 42. Thesignal processor 37 processes the data from each of the sensor units 18-21 to provide an analog or digital output signal T1(t)-TN(t) indicative of the time of flight or transit time of the ultrasonic signal through theprocess flow 12. Thesignal processor 37 may also provide an output signal indicative of the amplitude (or attenuation) of the ultrasonic signals. One such signal processor is model number USPC 2100 manufactured by Krautkramer Ultrasonic Systems. Measuring the amplitude of ultrasonic signal is particularly useful and works well for measuring the velocity of a fluid that includes a substance in the flow (e.g., multiphase fluid or slurry). - The output signals (T1(t)-TN(t)) of the
ultrasonic signal processor 37 are provided to theprocessor 24, which processes the transit time measurement data to determine a parameter such as the volumetric flow rate of the process flow. The transit time or time of flight measurement is defined by the time it takes for an ultrasonic signal to propagate from the transmittingsensor 40 to the respective receivingsensor 42 through the pipe wall and theprocess flow 12. The effect of the vortical disturbances (and/or other inhomogeneities within the fluid) on the transit time of the ultrasonic signal is to delay or speed up the transit time. Therefore, each sensing unit 18-21 provides a respective output signal T1(t)-TN(t) indicative of the variations in the transit time of the ultrasonic signals propagating orthogonal to the direction of theprocess flow 12. The transit time measurement is derived by interpreting the convecting coherent property and/or characteristic within the process piping using at least twosensor units - In one example, the
flow meter 10 measures the volumetric flow rate by determining the velocity of vortical disturbances 45 (e.g., coherent structures such as “turbulent eddies”; seeFIG. 2 ) propagating with theflow 12 using the array of ultrasonic sensors 18-21.Coherent structures 45 are an inherent feature of turbulent boundary layers present in all turbulent flows. The ultrasonic sensor units 18-21 measure the transmit time T1(t)-TN(t) of the respective ultrasonic signals between each respective pair ofsensors flow 12 through thepipe 14 in a known manner. Therefore, the velocity of these vortical disturbances is related to the velocity of theprocess flow 12 and hence the volumetric flow rate may be determined. The volumetric flow rate may be determined by multiplying the velocity of theprocess flow 12 by the cross-sectional area of the pipe. - The overwhelming majority of industrial process flows 12 involve turbulent flow. Turbulent fluctuations within the
process flow 12 govern many of the flow properties of practical interest including the pressure drop, heat transfer, and mixing. For engineering applications, considering only the time-averaged properties of turbulent flows is often sufficient for design purposes. For sonar based array processing flow metering technology, understanding the time-averaged velocity profile inturbulent flow 12 provides a means to interpret the relationship between speed at whichcoherent structures 45 convect and the volumetrically averaged flow rate. - Turbulent pipe flows 12 are highly complex flows. Predicting the details of any turbulent flow is problematic, although much is known regarding the statistical properties of the flow. For instance, as indicated above, turbulent flows contain self-generating, coherent vortical structures such as “turbulent eddies” 45. The maximum length scale of
coherent structures 45 is set by the diameter of thepipe 14. Thesestructures 45 remain coherent for several pipe diameters downstream, eventually breaking down into progressively smaller structures until the energy is dissipated by viscous effects. -
FIG. 3 diagrammatically illustrates the relevant flow features ofturbulent pipe flow 12 along with an axial array of ultrasonic sensor units 18-21, each sensor unit having atransmitter unit 40 and areceiver unit 42. As shown, the time-averaged axial velocity is a function of radial position, from zero at the wall to a maximum at the centerline of the pipe. Theflow 12 near the wall is characterized by steep velocity gradients and transitions to relatively uniform core flow near the center of thepipe 14. Vortical structures (e.g., “turbulent eddies”) are superimposed over the time averaged velocity profile. These coherent structures contain temporally and spatially random fluctuations with magnitudes typically less than ten percent (10%) of the mean flow velocity and are carried along with the mean flow. Experimental investigations have established thatturbulent eddies 45 generated within turbulent boundary layers remain coherent for several pipe diameters and convect at roughly eighty percent (80%) of maximum flow velocity (Schlichting, 1979). - The ultrasonic sensors provide transit time-varying signals T1(t), T2(t), T3(t), TN(t) to the
signal processor 24 to known Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) logics 30-33, respectively. The FFT logics 30-33 calculate the Fourier transform of the time-based input signals T1(t)-TN(t) and provide complex frequency domain (or frequency based) signals T1ω, T2ω, T3ω, TNω indicative of the frequency content of the input signals. Techniques other than FFTs can be used to obtain the frequency domain characteristics of the signals T1(t)-TN(t). The frequency signals T1ω-TNω are fed to anarray processor 36, which provides aflow signal 40 indicative of the volumetric flow rate of theprocess flow 12 and avelocity signal 42 indicative of the velocity of the process flow. - One technique of determining the convection velocity of the vortical disturbances within the
process flow 12 involves characterizing the convective ridge of the vortical disturbances using an array of unsteady ultrasonic sensors or other beam forming techniques, similar to that shown in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/729,994, filed Dec. 4, 2000, entitled “Method and Apparatus for Determining the Flow Velocity Within a Pipe”, which is incorporated herein by reference. - The flow metering methodology uses the convection velocity of coherent structure with turbulent pipe flows 12 to determine the volumetric flow rate. The convection velocity of these
turbulent eddies 45 is determined by applying array processing techniques to determine the speed at which the eddies convect past the axial ultrasonic sensor array distributed along thepipe 14, similar to that used in the radar and sonar fields. U. S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2004/0199340, published Oct. 7, 2004, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety, discloses an example of an acceptable array processing technique. The prior art teaches many sensor array processing techniques, however, and the present invention is not restricted to any particular technique. - While the present invention describes a flow meter having an array of ultrasonic meters to measure the velocity of the vortical disturbances within the
flow 12, the present invention contemplates that the ultrasonic sensors 18-21 measures any property and/or characteristic of theflow 12 that convects with the flow (e.g., vortical disturbances, inhomogenieties within the flow, temperature variations, acoustic wave variations propagating within the pipe, bubbles, particles, pressure disturbances). - It should be understood that any of the features, characteristics, alternatives or modifications described regarding a particular embodiment herein may also be applied, used, or incorporated with any other embodiment described herein.
- Although the invention has been described and illustrated with respect to exemplary embodiments thereof, the foregoing and various other additions and omissions may be made therein and thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. It is to be understood that the above-described arrangements are only illustrative of the application of the principles of the present invention. Numerous other modifications and alternative arrangements may be devised by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention, and the appended claims are intended to cover such modifications and arrangements.
Claims (15)
Priority Applications (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US12/817,842 US20100251829A1 (en) | 2006-11-09 | 2010-06-17 | Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body |
Applications Claiming Priority (3)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US85832306P | 2006-11-09 | 2006-11-09 | |
US11/937,003 US7752918B2 (en) | 2006-11-09 | 2007-11-08 | Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body |
US12/817,842 US20100251829A1 (en) | 2006-11-09 | 2010-06-17 | Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body |
Related Parent Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US11/937,003 Continuation US7752918B2 (en) | 2006-11-09 | 2007-11-08 | Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US20100251829A1 true US20100251829A1 (en) | 2010-10-07 |
Family
ID=39232786
Family Applications (2)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US11/937,003 Active 2028-02-20 US7752918B2 (en) | 2006-11-09 | 2007-11-08 | Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body |
US12/817,842 Abandoned US20100251829A1 (en) | 2006-11-09 | 2010-06-17 | Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body |
Family Applications Before (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US11/937,003 Active 2028-02-20 US7752918B2 (en) | 2006-11-09 | 2007-11-08 | Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body |
Country Status (5)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (2) | US7752918B2 (en) |
EP (1) | EP2092278A2 (en) |
CA (1) | CA2669292C (en) |
NO (1) | NO345532B1 (en) |
WO (1) | WO2008060942A2 (en) |
Cited By (4)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20120210768A1 (en) * | 2011-02-22 | 2012-08-23 | Southern Methodist University | Calibration Tube for Multiphase Flowmeters |
US20140219058A1 (en) * | 2013-02-04 | 2014-08-07 | King Abdulaziz City For Science And Technology | Ultrasound imaging tool for rock cores |
WO2018009793A1 (en) * | 2016-07-07 | 2018-01-11 | Joseph Baumoel | Multiphase ultrasonic flow meter |
US10473502B2 (en) | 2018-03-01 | 2019-11-12 | Joseph Baumoel | Dielectric multiphase flow meter |
Families Citing this family (26)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
EP1735597B1 (en) * | 2004-03-10 | 2010-10-13 | Cidra Corporate Services, Inc. | Method and apparatus for measuring parameters of a stratified flow |
US7831398B2 (en) * | 2007-12-20 | 2010-11-09 | Expro Meters, Inc. | Method for quantifying varying propagation characteristics of normal incident ultrasonic signals as used in correlation based flow measurement |
US8061186B2 (en) | 2008-03-26 | 2011-11-22 | Expro Meters, Inc. | System and method for providing a compositional measurement of a mixture having entrained gas |
US7963177B2 (en) * | 2008-04-10 | 2011-06-21 | Expro Meters, Inc. | Apparatus for attenuating ultrasonic waves propagating within a pipe wall |
EP2310810B1 (en) | 2008-07-03 | 2020-04-29 | Expro Meters, Inc. | Fluid flow meter apparatus for attenuating ultrasonic waves propagating within a pipe wall |
EP2612143A4 (en) * | 2010-09-03 | 2017-01-18 | Los Alamos National Security LLC | Apparatus and method for noninvasive particle detection using doppler spectroscopy |
CN103189719B (en) * | 2010-09-03 | 2016-03-16 | 洛斯阿拉莫斯国家安全股份有限公司 | For the method for the acoustic characteristic of the fluid of non-intrusion type determination pipe interior |
US8820147B2 (en) * | 2010-09-03 | 2014-09-02 | Los Alamos National Security, Llc | Multiphase fluid characterization system |
EP2725353B1 (en) * | 2012-10-24 | 2017-07-19 | Elmos Semiconductor Aktiengesellschaft | Method for automatic operating frequency work point adjustment of an ultrasound detection device |
US10352908B2 (en) * | 2012-12-28 | 2019-07-16 | Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. | Method and apparatus for the downhole in-situ determination of the speed of sound in a formation fluid |
WO2014105069A1 (en) * | 2012-12-28 | 2014-07-03 | Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. | Method and apparatus for the downhole in-situ determination of the speed of sound in a formation fluid |
US9410422B2 (en) | 2013-09-13 | 2016-08-09 | Chevron U.S.A. Inc. | Alternative gauging system for production well testing and related methods |
US9752959B2 (en) * | 2014-03-13 | 2017-09-05 | Siemens Energy, Inc. | Nonintrusive transceiver and method for characterizing temperature and velocity fields in a gas turbine combustor |
US9746360B2 (en) | 2014-03-13 | 2017-08-29 | Siemens Energy, Inc. | Nonintrusive performance measurement of a gas turbine engine in real time |
US9853394B2 (en) * | 2014-05-02 | 2017-12-26 | Itt Manufacturing Enterprises, Llc | Pressure-blocking feedthru with pressure-balanced cable terminations |
US9793029B2 (en) | 2015-01-21 | 2017-10-17 | Itt Manufacturing Enterprises Llc | Flexible, pressure-balanced cable assembly |
WO2016127033A2 (en) * | 2015-02-05 | 2016-08-11 | Cidra Corporate Services Inc. | Techniques to determine a fluid flow characteristic in a channelizing process flowstream, by bifurcating the flowstream or inducing a standing wave therein |
GB2543060A (en) * | 2015-10-06 | 2017-04-12 | Atmos Wave Ltd | Sensing pressure variations in pipelines |
CA3031373A1 (en) * | 2016-07-20 | 2018-01-25 | Triad National Security, Llc | Noninvasive acoustical property measurement of fluids |
US9843113B1 (en) | 2017-04-06 | 2017-12-12 | Itt Manufacturing Enterprises Llc | Crimpless electrical connectors |
US10276969B2 (en) | 2017-04-20 | 2019-04-30 | Itt Manufacturing Enterprises Llc | Connector with sealing boot and moveable shuttle |
US9941622B1 (en) | 2017-04-20 | 2018-04-10 | Itt Manufacturing Enterprises Llc | Connector with sealing boot and moveable shuttle |
US10768146B1 (en) * | 2019-10-21 | 2020-09-08 | Mueller International, Llc | Predicting severity of buildup within pipes using evaluation of residual attenuation |
US11726064B2 (en) | 2020-07-22 | 2023-08-15 | Mueller International Llc | Acoustic pipe condition assessment using coherent averaging |
US11609348B2 (en) | 2020-12-29 | 2023-03-21 | Mueller International, Llc | High-resolution acoustic pipe condition assessment using in-bracket pipe excitation |
US11460443B2 (en) * | 2021-02-18 | 2022-10-04 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Fluid analysis systems and methods in oil and gas applications |
Citations (10)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
USRE28686E (en) * | 1970-07-06 | 1976-01-20 | Measurement of fluid flow rates | |
US3987674A (en) * | 1975-01-03 | 1976-10-26 | Joseph Baumoel | Transducer structure and support for fluid measuring device |
US6062091A (en) * | 1997-04-22 | 2000-05-16 | Baumoel; Joseph | Method and apparatus for determining ultrasonic pulse arrival in fluid using phase correlation |
US6293156B1 (en) * | 1999-01-22 | 2001-09-25 | Panametrics, Inc. | Coherent multi-path flow measurement system |
US20030047007A1 (en) * | 2001-09-10 | 2003-03-13 | Joseph Baumoel | Clamp-on gas flowmeter |
US20030172743A1 (en) * | 1999-04-01 | 2003-09-18 | Xiaolei Ao | Clamp-on flow meter system |
US20050011279A1 (en) * | 2001-10-26 | 2005-01-20 | Yasushi Takeda | Doppler ultrasonic flowmeter |
US20080060448A1 (en) * | 2004-11-03 | 2008-03-13 | Endress + Flowtec Ag | Device For Determining And/Or Monitoring Volume And/Or Mass Flow Of A Medium |
US20080098824A1 (en) * | 2006-11-01 | 2008-05-01 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus And Method of Lensing An Ultrasonic Beam For An Ultrasonic Flow Meter |
US7509878B2 (en) * | 2004-06-10 | 2009-03-31 | Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba | Ultrasonic cavitating apparatus and ultrasonic doppler flow measurement system |
Family Cites Families (124)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US2874568A (en) | 1955-12-07 | 1959-02-24 | Gulton Ind Inc | Ultrasonic flowmeter |
US3715709A (en) | 1970-01-14 | 1973-02-06 | Nusonics | Sing-around velocimeter |
GB1359151A (en) * | 1970-07-06 | 1974-07-10 | Coulthard J | Measurement of fluid flow rates |
US3751979A (en) | 1971-11-17 | 1973-08-14 | Raytheon Co | Speed measurement system |
US3885432A (en) | 1972-03-06 | 1975-05-27 | Fischer & Porter Co | Vortex-type mass flowmeters |
US3781895A (en) | 1972-11-22 | 1973-12-25 | Raytheon Co | Combined pitot tube and antenna |
US3851521A (en) | 1973-01-19 | 1974-12-03 | M & J Valve Co | System and method for locating breaks in liquid pipelines |
US3952578A (en) | 1974-10-07 | 1976-04-27 | The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Department Of Health, Education And Welfare | Scanning ultrasonic spectrograph for fluid analysis |
GB1528917A (en) | 1974-12-11 | 1978-10-18 | Detectronic Ltd | Method and apparatus for monitoring the flow of liquid and the like |
US4004461A (en) | 1975-11-07 | 1977-01-25 | Panametrics, Inc. | Ultrasonic measuring system with isolation means |
US4032259A (en) | 1976-01-08 | 1977-06-28 | E. I. Du Pont De Nemours And Company | Method and apparatus for measuring fluid flow in small bore conduits |
US4080837A (en) | 1976-12-03 | 1978-03-28 | Continental Oil Company | Sonic measurement of flow rate and water content of oil-water streams |
DE2856032A1 (en) | 1978-01-03 | 1979-07-12 | Coulthard John | DEVICE AND METHOD FOR MEASURING THE SPEED OF A RELATIVE MOVEMENT BETWEEN A FIRST BODY AND A SECOND BODY, respectively. A MEANS OF FLOW |
US4320659A (en) | 1978-02-27 | 1982-03-23 | Panametrics, Inc. | Ultrasonic system for measuring fluid impedance or liquid level |
US4195517A (en) | 1978-12-18 | 1980-04-01 | The Foxboro Company | Ultrasonic flowmeter |
US4333353A (en) * | 1980-07-28 | 1982-06-08 | Joseph Baumoel | Two-transducer Doppler flowmeter with swept oscillator |
US4445389A (en) | 1981-09-10 | 1984-05-01 | The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of Commerce | Long wavelength acoustic flowmeter |
US4520320A (en) | 1981-09-10 | 1985-05-28 | The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of Commerce | Synchronous phase marker and amplitude detector |
JPS5848817A (en) * | 1981-09-18 | 1983-03-22 | Yokogawa Hokushin Electric Corp | Ultrasonic flow meter |
GB2135446B (en) | 1983-02-11 | 1986-05-08 | Itt Ind Ltd | Fluid flow measurement |
US4677305A (en) | 1985-06-28 | 1987-06-30 | Simmonds Precision Products, Inc. | Opto-acoustic fuel quantity gauging system |
US5349852A (en) | 1986-03-04 | 1994-09-27 | Deka Products Limited Partnership | Pump controller using acoustic spectral analysis |
US4717159A (en) | 1986-06-06 | 1988-01-05 | Dieterich Standard Corp. | Method and apparatus for seating and sealing a pitot tube type flow meter in a pipe |
FR2614995B1 (en) | 1987-05-06 | 1989-07-28 | Schlumberger Prospection | METHOD FOR FILTERING VELOCITY OF SEISMIC SIGNALS AND INSTALLATION FOR IMPLEMENTING SAME |
DE3719806A1 (en) * | 1987-06-13 | 1988-12-22 | Basf Ag | FIBER OPTICAL SENSOR |
GB2210169A (en) | 1987-09-21 | 1989-06-01 | British Gas Plc | Apparatus for monitoring or measuring differential fluid presure |
NO166379C (en) | 1987-12-18 | 1991-07-10 | Sensorteknikk As | PROCEDURE FOR REGISTERING MULTIPHASE FLOWS THROUGH A TRANSPORT SYSTEM. |
US4896540A (en) | 1988-04-08 | 1990-01-30 | Parthasarathy Shakkottai | Aeroacoustic flowmeter |
US5363342A (en) | 1988-04-28 | 1994-11-08 | Litton Systems, Inc. | High performance extended fiber optic hydrophone |
US4932262A (en) | 1989-06-26 | 1990-06-12 | General Motors Corporation | Miniature fiber optic pressure sensor |
GB8918068D0 (en) | 1989-08-08 | 1989-09-20 | Front Engineering Ltd | An apparatus for determining the time taken for sound to cross a body of fluid in an enclosure |
US5060506A (en) | 1989-10-23 | 1991-10-29 | Douglas David W | Method and apparatus for monitoring the content of binary gas mixtures |
US5040415A (en) | 1990-06-15 | 1991-08-20 | Rockwell International Corporation | Nonintrusive flow sensing system |
GB2280267B (en) | 1991-03-21 | 1995-05-24 | Halliburton Co | Device for sensing fluid behaviour |
US5218197A (en) | 1991-05-20 | 1993-06-08 | The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy | Method and apparatus for the non-invasive measurement of pressure inside pipes using a fiber optic interferometer sensor |
US5285675A (en) | 1992-06-05 | 1994-02-15 | University Of Florida Research Foundation, Inc. | Acoustic fluid flow monitoring |
US5289726A (en) | 1992-09-22 | 1994-03-01 | National Science Council | Ring type vortex flowmeter and method for measuring flow speed and flow rate using said ring type vortex flowmeter |
US5398542A (en) | 1992-10-16 | 1995-03-21 | Nkk Corporation | Method for determining direction of travel of a wave front and apparatus therefor |
DE4306119A1 (en) | 1993-03-01 | 1994-09-08 | Pechhold Wolfgang Prof Dr | Mechanical broadband spectrometer |
DK0686255T3 (en) * | 1993-12-23 | 2000-06-13 | Flowtec Ag | Clamp-on ultrasonic volumetric flowmeter |
FI94909C (en) | 1994-04-19 | 1995-11-10 | Valtion Teknillinen | Acoustic flow measurement method and applicable device |
FR2720498B1 (en) | 1994-05-27 | 1996-08-09 | Schlumberger Services Petrol | Multiphase flowmeter. |
US5741980A (en) | 1994-11-02 | 1998-04-21 | Foster-Miller, Inc. | Flow analysis system and method |
US5524475A (en) | 1994-11-10 | 1996-06-11 | Atlantic Richfield Company | Measuring vibration of a fluid stream to determine gas fraction |
JP3216769B2 (en) | 1995-03-20 | 2001-10-09 | 富士電機株式会社 | Temperature and pressure compensation method for clamp-on type ultrasonic flowmeter |
FR2740215B1 (en) | 1995-10-19 | 1997-11-21 | Inst Francais Du Petrole | METHOD AND DEVICE FOR MEASURING A PARAMETER OF A VARIABLE DENSITY FLUID |
US5625140A (en) | 1995-12-12 | 1997-04-29 | Lucent Technologies Inc. | Acoustic analysis of gas mixtures |
US6151958A (en) | 1996-03-11 | 2000-11-28 | Daniel Industries, Inc. | Ultrasonic fraction and flow rate apparatus and method |
US5708211A (en) | 1996-05-28 | 1998-01-13 | Ohio University | Flow regime determination and flow measurement in multiphase flow pipelines |
US5835884A (en) | 1996-10-04 | 1998-11-10 | Brown; Alvin E. | Method of determining a characteristic of a fluid |
GB2318414B (en) | 1996-10-19 | 2001-02-14 | Univ Cranfield | Improvements relating to flow measurement |
US6601005B1 (en) | 1996-11-07 | 2003-07-29 | Rosemount Inc. | Process device diagnostics using process variable sensor signal |
US5845033A (en) | 1996-11-07 | 1998-12-01 | The Babcock & Wilcox Company | Fiber optic sensing system for monitoring restrictions in hydrocarbon production systems |
US6170338B1 (en) | 1997-03-27 | 2001-01-09 | Rosemont Inc. | Vortex flowmeter with signal processing |
DE19722274A1 (en) | 1997-05-28 | 1998-12-03 | Degussa | Method for measuring density and mass flow |
US5948959A (en) | 1997-05-29 | 1999-09-07 | The United States Of America As Represented By The Secretary Of The Navy | Calibration of the normal pressure transfer function of a compliant fluid-filled cylinder |
WO1998057581A1 (en) | 1997-06-18 | 1998-12-23 | Hitachi Medical Corporation | Continuous wave transmitting-receiving ultrasonic imaging device and ultrasonic probe |
US6016702A (en) | 1997-09-08 | 2000-01-25 | Cidra Corporation | High sensitivity fiber optic pressure sensor for use in harsh environments |
DE69924828T2 (en) | 1998-01-16 | 2006-07-13 | Lattice Intellectual Property Ltd. | METHOD AND DEVICE FOR MEASURING THE COMBUSTION VALUE OF A GAS |
GB9813509D0 (en) | 1998-06-24 | 1998-08-19 | British Gas Plc | Measuring the speed of sound of a gas |
US6450037B1 (en) | 1998-06-26 | 2002-09-17 | Cidra Corporation | Non-intrusive fiber optic pressure sensor for measuring unsteady pressures within a pipe |
US6354147B1 (en) | 1998-06-26 | 2002-03-12 | Cidra Corporation | Fluid parameter measurement in pipes using acoustic pressures |
CA2335469C (en) | 1998-06-26 | 2009-06-09 | Cidra Corporation | Non-intrusive fiber optic pressure sensor for measuring unsteady pressures within a pipe |
CN1192213C (en) | 1998-06-26 | 2005-03-09 | 塞德拉公司 | Fluid parameter measurement in pipes using acoustic pressures |
US6397683B1 (en) | 1998-07-22 | 2002-06-04 | Flowtec Ag | Clamp-on ultrasonic flowmeter |
US6837332B1 (en) | 1999-03-22 | 2005-01-04 | Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. | Method and apparatus for cancellation of unwanted signals in MWD acoustic tools |
US6233374B1 (en) | 1999-06-04 | 2001-05-15 | Cidra Corporation | Mandrel-wound fiber optic pressure sensor |
US6435030B1 (en) | 1999-06-25 | 2002-08-20 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Measurement of propagating acoustic waves in compliant pipes |
US6463813B1 (en) | 1999-06-25 | 2002-10-15 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Displacement based pressure sensor measuring unsteady pressure in a pipe |
US6691584B2 (en) | 1999-07-02 | 2004-02-17 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Flow rate measurement using unsteady pressures |
AU776582B2 (en) | 1999-07-02 | 2004-09-16 | Weatherford Technology Holdings, Llc | Flow rate measurement using unsteady pressures |
US6536291B1 (en) | 1999-07-02 | 2003-03-25 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Optical flow rate measurement using unsteady pressures |
US6813962B2 (en) | 2000-03-07 | 2004-11-09 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Distributed sound speed measurements for multiphase flow measurement |
US6601458B1 (en) | 2000-03-07 | 2003-08-05 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Distributed sound speed measurements for multiphase flow measurement |
US6773603B2 (en) | 2000-03-13 | 2004-08-10 | Intellectual Capital Enterprises, Inc. | Chemical removal and suspended solids separation pre-treatment system |
US6672163B2 (en) | 2000-03-14 | 2004-01-06 | Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. | Acoustic sensor for fluid characterization |
US6378357B1 (en) | 2000-03-14 | 2002-04-30 | Halliburton Energy Services, Inc. | Method of fluid rheology characterization and apparatus therefor |
US6349599B1 (en) | 2000-05-02 | 2002-02-26 | Panametrics, Inc. | Layered ultrasonic coupler |
SE516979C2 (en) | 2000-07-14 | 2002-03-26 | Abb Ab | Active acoustic spectroscopy |
US6550345B1 (en) | 2000-09-11 | 2003-04-22 | Daniel Industries, Inc. | Technique for measurement of gas and liquid flow velocities, and liquid holdup in a pipe with stratified flow |
US6782150B2 (en) | 2000-11-29 | 2004-08-24 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Apparatus for sensing fluid in a pipe |
US6443226B1 (en) | 2000-11-29 | 2002-09-03 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Apparatus for protecting sensors within a well environment |
US6558036B2 (en) | 2000-11-29 | 2003-05-06 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Non-intrusive temperature sensor for measuring internal temperature of fluids within pipes |
US6550342B2 (en) | 2000-11-29 | 2003-04-22 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Circumferential strain attenuator |
US6609069B2 (en) | 2000-12-04 | 2003-08-19 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Method and apparatus for determining the flow velocity of a fluid within a pipe |
US6898541B2 (en) | 2000-12-04 | 2005-05-24 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Method and apparatus for determining component flow rates for a multiphase flow |
US6587798B2 (en) | 2000-12-04 | 2003-07-01 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Method and system for determining the speed of sound in a fluid within a conduit |
JP2003075219A (en) | 2001-09-06 | 2003-03-12 | Kazumasa Onishi | Clamp-on ultrasonic flowmeter |
DE10147189A1 (en) | 2001-09-25 | 2003-04-24 | Bosch Gmbh Robert | Method for operating a fuel supply system for an internal combustion engine of a motor vehicle |
US6698297B2 (en) | 2002-06-28 | 2004-03-02 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Venturi augmented flow meter |
US6971259B2 (en) | 2001-11-07 | 2005-12-06 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Fluid density measurement in pipes using acoustic pressures |
US7059172B2 (en) | 2001-11-07 | 2006-06-13 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Phase flow measurement in pipes using a density meter |
US7275421B2 (en) | 2002-01-23 | 2007-10-02 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus and method for measuring parameters of a mixture having solid particles suspended in a fluid flowing in a pipe |
US7032432B2 (en) | 2002-01-23 | 2006-04-25 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus and method for measuring parameters of a mixture having liquid droplets suspended in a vapor flowing in a pipe |
US7359803B2 (en) | 2002-01-23 | 2008-04-15 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus and method for measuring parameters of a mixture having solid particles suspended in a fluid flowing in a pipe |
US7328624B2 (en) | 2002-01-23 | 2008-02-12 | Cidra Corporation | Probe for measuring parameters of a flowing fluid and/or multiphase mixture |
US6732595B2 (en) | 2002-07-18 | 2004-05-11 | Panametrics, Inc. | Method of and system for determining the mass flow rate of a fluid flowing in a conduit |
US7181955B2 (en) | 2002-08-08 | 2007-02-27 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Apparatus and method for measuring multi-Phase flows in pulp and paper industry applications |
EP1576342A2 (en) | 2002-11-12 | 2005-09-21 | CiDra Corporation | An apparatus having an array of clamp on piezoelectric film sensors for measuring parameters of a process flow within a pipe |
US20040144182A1 (en) | 2002-11-15 | 2004-07-29 | Gysling Daniel L | Apparatus and method for providing a flow measurement compensated for entrained gas |
US7165464B2 (en) | 2002-11-15 | 2007-01-23 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus and method for providing a flow measurement compensated for entrained gas |
US7139667B2 (en) | 2002-11-22 | 2006-11-21 | Cidra Corporation | Method for calibrating a volumetric flow meter having an array of sensors |
US7389187B2 (en) | 2003-01-13 | 2008-06-17 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus and method using an array of ultrasonic sensors for determining the velocity of a fluid within a pipe |
WO2004063741A2 (en) | 2003-01-13 | 2004-07-29 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus for measuring parameters of a flowing multiphase fluid mixture |
WO2004065912A2 (en) | 2003-01-21 | 2004-08-05 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus and method for measuring unsteady pressures within a large diameter pipe |
DE602004017571D1 (en) | 2003-01-21 | 2008-12-18 | Expro Meters Inc | DEVICE AND METHOD FOR MEASURING THE GAS VOLUME FRACTION OF A FLOW FLOWING IN A TUBE |
WO2004065914A2 (en) | 2003-01-21 | 2004-08-05 | Cidra Corporation | Measurement of entrained and dissolved gases in process flow lines |
EP1599705B1 (en) | 2003-03-04 | 2019-01-02 | CiDra Corporation | An apparatus having a multi-band sensor assembly for measuring a parameter of a fluid flow flowing within a pipe |
US6837098B2 (en) | 2003-03-19 | 2005-01-04 | Weatherford/Lamb, Inc. | Sand monitoring within wells using acoustic arrays |
US7197942B2 (en) | 2003-06-05 | 2007-04-03 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus for measuring velocity and flow rate of a fluid having a non-negligible axial mach number using an array of sensors |
WO2005001394A2 (en) | 2003-06-06 | 2005-01-06 | Cidra Corporation | A portable flow measurement apparatus having an array of sensors |
WO2005003695A1 (en) | 2003-06-24 | 2005-01-13 | Cidra Corporation | Characterizing unsteady pressures in pipes using optical measurement devices |
WO2005003713A2 (en) | 2003-06-24 | 2005-01-13 | Cidra Corporation | Contact-based transducers for characterizing unsteady pressures in pipes |
US7672794B2 (en) | 2003-06-24 | 2010-03-02 | Expro Meters, Inc. | System and method for operating a flow process |
US7150202B2 (en) | 2003-07-08 | 2006-12-19 | Cidra Corporation | Method and apparatus for measuring characteristics of core-annular flow |
US7152460B2 (en) | 2003-07-15 | 2006-12-26 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus and method for compensating a coriolis meter |
CA2532468C (en) | 2003-07-15 | 2013-04-23 | Cidra Corporation | A dual function flow measurement apparatus having an array of sensors |
US7134320B2 (en) | 2003-07-15 | 2006-11-14 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus and method for providing a density measurement augmented for entrained gas |
WO2005010468A2 (en) | 2003-07-15 | 2005-02-03 | Cidra Corporation | A configurable multi-function flow measurement apparatus having an array of sensors |
US7322251B2 (en) | 2003-08-01 | 2008-01-29 | Cidra Corporation | Method and apparatus for measuring a parameter of a high temperature fluid flowing within a pipe using an array of piezoelectric based flow sensors |
US7253742B2 (en) | 2003-08-01 | 2007-08-07 | Cidra Corporation | Method and apparatus for measuring parameters of a fluid flowing within a pipe using a configurable array of sensors |
US7308820B2 (en) | 2003-08-08 | 2007-12-18 | Cidra Corporation | Piezocable based sensor for measuring unsteady pressures inside a pipe |
US7110893B2 (en) | 2003-10-09 | 2006-09-19 | Cidra Corporation | Method and apparatus for measuring a parameter of a fluid flowing within a pipe using an array of sensors |
US7237440B2 (en) | 2003-10-10 | 2007-07-03 | Cidra Corporation | Flow measurement apparatus having strain-based sensors and ultrasonic sensors |
-
2007
- 2007-11-08 CA CA2669292A patent/CA2669292C/en active Active
- 2007-11-08 WO PCT/US2007/084077 patent/WO2008060942A2/en active Application Filing
- 2007-11-08 NO NO20092191A patent/NO345532B1/en unknown
- 2007-11-08 EP EP07864105A patent/EP2092278A2/en not_active Ceased
- 2007-11-08 US US11/937,003 patent/US7752918B2/en active Active
-
2010
- 2010-06-17 US US12/817,842 patent/US20100251829A1/en not_active Abandoned
Patent Citations (13)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
USRE28686E (en) * | 1970-07-06 | 1976-01-20 | Measurement of fluid flow rates | |
US3987674A (en) * | 1975-01-03 | 1976-10-26 | Joseph Baumoel | Transducer structure and support for fluid measuring device |
US6062091A (en) * | 1997-04-22 | 2000-05-16 | Baumoel; Joseph | Method and apparatus for determining ultrasonic pulse arrival in fluid using phase correlation |
US6293156B1 (en) * | 1999-01-22 | 2001-09-25 | Panametrics, Inc. | Coherent multi-path flow measurement system |
US6626049B1 (en) * | 1999-04-01 | 2003-09-30 | Panametrics, Inc. | Clamp-on steam/gas flow meter |
US20030172743A1 (en) * | 1999-04-01 | 2003-09-18 | Xiaolei Ao | Clamp-on flow meter system |
US20030047007A1 (en) * | 2001-09-10 | 2003-03-13 | Joseph Baumoel | Clamp-on gas flowmeter |
US6681641B2 (en) * | 2001-09-10 | 2004-01-27 | Joseph Baumoel | Clamp-on gas flowmeter |
US20050011279A1 (en) * | 2001-10-26 | 2005-01-20 | Yasushi Takeda | Doppler ultrasonic flowmeter |
US6931945B2 (en) * | 2001-10-26 | 2005-08-23 | The Tokyo Electric Power Company, Incorporated | Doppler ultrasonic flowmeter |
US7509878B2 (en) * | 2004-06-10 | 2009-03-31 | Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba | Ultrasonic cavitating apparatus and ultrasonic doppler flow measurement system |
US20080060448A1 (en) * | 2004-11-03 | 2008-03-13 | Endress + Flowtec Ag | Device For Determining And/Or Monitoring Volume And/Or Mass Flow Of A Medium |
US20080098824A1 (en) * | 2006-11-01 | 2008-05-01 | Cidra Corporation | Apparatus And Method of Lensing An Ultrasonic Beam For An Ultrasonic Flow Meter |
Cited By (7)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20120210768A1 (en) * | 2011-02-22 | 2012-08-23 | Southern Methodist University | Calibration Tube for Multiphase Flowmeters |
US8701461B2 (en) * | 2011-02-22 | 2014-04-22 | Southern Methodist University | Calibration tube for multiphase flowmeters |
US9476755B2 (en) * | 2011-02-22 | 2016-10-25 | Southern Methodist University | Calibration tube for multiphase flowmeters |
US20140219058A1 (en) * | 2013-02-04 | 2014-08-07 | King Abdulaziz City For Science And Technology | Ultrasound imaging tool for rock cores |
WO2018009793A1 (en) * | 2016-07-07 | 2018-01-11 | Joseph Baumoel | Multiphase ultrasonic flow meter |
US10222247B2 (en) | 2016-07-07 | 2019-03-05 | Joseph Baumoel | Multiphase ultrasonic flow meter |
US10473502B2 (en) | 2018-03-01 | 2019-11-12 | Joseph Baumoel | Dielectric multiphase flow meter |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
WO2008060942A2 (en) | 2008-05-22 |
US7752918B2 (en) | 2010-07-13 |
CA2669292A1 (en) | 2008-05-22 |
NO345532B1 (en) | 2021-03-29 |
US20080173100A1 (en) | 2008-07-24 |
CA2669292C (en) | 2016-02-09 |
NO20092191L (en) | 2009-08-05 |
WO2008060942A3 (en) | 2008-07-10 |
EP2092278A2 (en) | 2009-08-26 |
Similar Documents
Publication | Publication Date | Title |
---|---|---|
US7752918B2 (en) | Apparatus and method for measuring a fluid flow parameter within an internal passage of an elongated body | |
US7389187B2 (en) | Apparatus and method using an array of ultrasonic sensors for determining the velocity of a fluid within a pipe | |
US8346491B2 (en) | Sonar-based flow meter operable to provide product identification | |
US9354094B2 (en) | Apparatus and method for noninvasive particle detection using doppler spectroscopy | |
KR101810724B1 (en) | Multiphase fluid characterization system | |
EP1886098B1 (en) | An apparatus and method for measuring a parameter of a multiphase flow | |
RU2514071C2 (en) | System and method to detect outgrowth of deposits in ultrasonic flow meter and machine-readable information medium | |
EP1899687B1 (en) | Multi-phase flow measurement system having a fluid separator | |
US6470749B1 (en) | Method and apparatus for pulsed ultrasonic doppler measurement of wall deposition | |
US7624650B2 (en) | Apparatus and method for attenuating acoustic waves propagating within a pipe wall | |
US7503227B2 (en) | Method and apparatus for measuring parameters of a fluid flow using an array of sensors | |
US7624651B2 (en) | Apparatus and method for attenuating acoustic waves in pipe walls for clamp-on ultrasonic flow meter | |
US7831398B2 (en) | Method for quantifying varying propagation characteristics of normal incident ultrasonic signals as used in correlation based flow measurement | |
JP2001526787A (en) | How to measure density and mass flow | |
Takamoto et al. | New measurement method for very low liquid flow rates using ultrasound | |
WO2011078691A2 (en) | Measuring apparatus | |
Ren et al. | Modelling of ultrasonic method for measuring gas holdup of Oil-Gas-Water three phase flows | |
US8862411B2 (en) | Velocity and impingement method for determining parameters of a particle/fluid flow | |
EP2069723B1 (en) | Apparatus for attenuating acoustic waves propagating within a pipe wall | |
Mansfeld et al. | Improving interference immunity of ultrasonic gas flowmeters with clamp-on probes | |
RU2169350C2 (en) | Process measuring and controlling parameters of flow of liquid or gas in vessel with elastic walls |
Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: CIDRA CORPORATION, CONNECTICUT Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:DAVIS, MICHAEL A.;REEL/FRAME:024560/0217 Effective date: 20071030 Owner name: EXPRO METERS, INC., CONNECTICUT Free format text: MERGER;ASSIGNOR:CIDRA CORPORATION;REEL/FRAME:024560/0262 Effective date: 20080623 |
|
STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
Free format text: ABANDONED -- AFTER EXAMINER'S ANSWER OR BOARD OF APPEALS DECISION |
|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: HSBC CORPORATE TRUSTEE COMPANY (UK) LIMITED, AS CO Free format text: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY SECURITY AGREEMENT;ASSIGNOR:EXPRO METERS, INC.;REEL/FRAME:033687/0078 Effective date: 20140902 |
|
AS | Assignment |
Owner name: EXPRO METERS, INC., TEXAS Free format text: RELEASE BY SECURED PARTY;ASSIGNOR:HSBC CORPORATE TRUSTEE COMPANY (UK) LIMITED, AS COLLATERAL AGENT;REEL/FRAME:045271/0842 Effective date: 20180205 |