This paper presents the setup, operation principle, and fabrication process of a novel type of flow velocity sensor. Like the well known classical Prandtl tube, it realizes flow velocity detection by measurement of the pressure difference between stagnant fluid pressure in front of the sensor and static pressure in thle flow around the sensor. This difference results in a deflection of a silicon diaphragm suspended boss, that serves as the counter electrode of an integrated capacitor which is direcfly exposed to the fluid to be measured. The main parameters influencing the sensor operation are discussed. Results of wind tunnel experiments confirm the sensor's operation principle. Finally, the sensor's merits and drawbacks are summarized.
An ultrasonic flowmeter used in custody-transfer heat metering applications is subject to several test applications for approval. A flow disturbance test with an asymmetric swirl generator upstream of the device is performed to evaluate its accuracy with and without the swirl generator. This standard asymmetric swirl generator is designed to reproduce the behaviour of applications in the field, such as an out of plane 90° double bend. To assess the compliance of the already approved device (Endress+Hauser Prosonic Flow E Heat) for heat metering applications with the standard asymmetric swirl generator, extensive Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations are performed. The steady and transient CFD simulations are carried out on a High-Performance Computer (HPC) for several volume flows. With the developed automated simulation method, a virtual calibration of the device takes place. The calibration curves for the cases of a straight pipe, and an asymmetric flow disturber mounted upstream of the flowmeter are attained from experiments and simulations. The agreement of experiments and simulations is discussed and physical insight for the behaviour of the flow disturber and the flowmeter is gained.
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