Study on the Optimal Number of Transducers for Pipe Flow Rate Measurement Downstream of a Single Elbow Using the Ultrasonic Velocity Profile Method

This paper presents a new estimation method to determine the optimal number of transducers using an Ultrasonic Velocity Profile (UVP) for accurate flow rate measurement downstream of a single elbow. Since UVP can measure velocity profiles over a pipe diameter and calculate the flow rate by integrati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science and technology of nuclear installations 2012-01, Vol.2012 (2012), p.1-12
Main Authors: Wada, Sanehiro, Tezuka, Kenichi, Treenuson, Weerachon, Tsuzuki, Nobuyushi, Kikura, Hiroshige
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Accuracy
Computational fluid dynamics
Computer simulation
Elbow
Elbows
Electricity distribution
Flow rate
Mathematical models
Nuclear power plants
Nuclear reactors
Optimization
Pipe
Reynolds number
Studies
Transducers
Ultrasonic imaging
Velocity
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Summary:This paper presents a new estimation method to determine the optimal number of transducers using an Ultrasonic Velocity Profile (UVP) for accurate flow rate measurement downstream of a single elbow. Since UVP can measure velocity profiles over a pipe diameter and calculate the flow rate by integrating these velocity profiles, it is also expected to obtain an accurate flow rate using multiple transducers under nondeveloped flow conditions formed downstream of an elbow. The new estimation method employs a wave number of velocity profile fluctuations along a circle on a pipe cross-section using Fast Fourier Transform (FFT). The optimal number of transducers is estimated based on the sampling theorem. To evaluate this method, a preliminary experiment and numerical simulations using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) are conducted. The evaluating regions of velocity profiles are located at 3 times of a pipe diameter (3D) for the experiment, and 1 and 5D for the simulations downstream of an elbow, respectively. Reynolds numbers for the experiment and simulations are set at 4×104 and 5×106, respectively. These results indicate the efficiency of this new method.
ISSN:1687-6075
1687-6083
DOI:10.1155/2012/464313