A Better Alternative to Magmeter for Unpolished Condensate Flow Measurement

Veris Accelabar 

A large University was using magnetic flowmeters (Magmeters) to measure the flow of boiler feed water downstream of a condensate polisher. There were occasional system upsets that required the condensate polisher to be bypassed. When this happened, large amounts of debris would be released downstream and pass directly through the Magmeter, causing a build-up of foreign material on the internal sensing surfaces.

A magnetic flowmeter uses an electric current applied to a coil which produces a magnetic field. When conductive liquid flows through the magnetic field, a small voltage, proportional to the liquid velocity, is induced. As long as the interior surfaces of the Magmeter are clean and unobstructed, the meter accurately measures flow. If they get dirty or coated, all bets are off.

It was in the above mentioned upset situations where the University maintenance people were having problems. When upsets occurred, and the condensate polisher had to be by-passed, it meant the Magmeter would also have to be serviced because accuracy could no longer be guaranteed. Servicing the Magmeter was slow and costly. It meant shutting down the line, draining the pipe, removing the flowmeter, cleaning, and then putting it all back together.

Armstrong International’s Veris Group was called in for a consult. After review,  the Veris Group recommended installing an Accelabar® flow meter to offer an alternative solution that could provide reliable flow measurement regardless of an upset condition like unpolished condensate. The Accelabar provided a flow range of 22.5:1 turndown in flow, in a limited straight run scenario. In the past, two transmitters were required to provide the best accuracy across the entire range of the Accelabar. Veris was able to use the Foxboro IDP 10S with its FoxCal™ technology in order to have a combined percent of rate accuracy solution.

The new transmitter installation has 11 separate calibrations loaded into the device. As the differential pressure from the primary element is measured, the transmitter chooses the correct calibration curve. Veris’ solution delivered performance that was previously unattainable with a single differential pressure transmitter.

The Accelabar and Foxboro combined to be best solution, and the Accelabar flow meter is now the University's standard for the boiler feed water measurements.

For more information, contact:

Mead O'Brien, Inc.
10800 Midwest Industrial Blvd
St Louis,  MO 63132
314-423-5161
314-423-5707
www.meadobrien.com

Choose Guided Wave Radar for Your Challenging Process Level Application

Guided Wave
Radar Transmitter
Courtesy of
Foxboro/Schneider
Electric

Designed to perform continuous level measurement in a wide range of industries and applications, Guided Wave Radar transmitters (GWR) are unaffected by changes in temperature, specific gravity, pressure and with no need to recalibrate, offering a highly available measurement at low maintenance cost. GWR transmitters provide level measurement solutions in a variety of process applications, providing a universal radar measurement solution for all liquids including corrosive, viscous, sticky and other difficult media such as foam and turbulent surfaces, and solids.

Electromagnetic pulses are emitted and guided along a probe.  These pulses are reflected back at the product surface.  The distance is calculated by measuring this transit time. This device is perfect for high-end applications.  It is suitable for applications with foam, dust, vapor, agitated, turbulent or boiling surfaces with rapid level changes.

Common features include:
Easy configuration via digital communication; Wide selection of materials facilitates service under harsh/corrosive conditions; Solutions for density/pressure variations and rapid level changes; Empty Tank Spectrum filtering; Quick Noise scanning reduces false radar reflections.

Applications: Steam Generation /Boiler Drum; Oil/Water Separator; BioDiesel Production; Overflow Protection; Interface and Density; Process tanks; Storage tanks; Polyester/Nylon fiber production; Claus Process


For more information on Guided Wave Radar level instruments, contact:

Mead O'Brien
(800) 892-2769
www.meadobrien.com

Part 3: What Steam Is, How Steam is Used, and the Properties of Steam

Mead O'Brien Steam Experts

Steam is the gaseous phase (state) of water and has many domestic, commercial, and industrial uses. There are two categories of steam - wet steam and dry steam. In dry steam, all the water molecules stay in the gaseous state. In wet steam, some of the water molecules have released their energy (latent heat) and begin condensing into water droplets.

Steam, usually created by a boiler burning coal or other fuels, became the primary source of energy for mechanical movement during the industrial revolution, ultimately being replaced by fossil fuels and electricity.

Steam has many commercial and industrial uses. In agricultural, steam is used to remediate and sterilize soil. In power generation, approximately 90% of our electricity is created using steam as the working fluid to spin turbines. Autoclaves use steam for sterilization in microbiology labs, research, and healthcare facilities. Many commercial and industrial pieces of equipment are cleaned with steam. Finally, commercial complexes, campuses and military buildings use steam for heat and humidification.

The following video, the FINAL part of a three part series titled “What Steam Is, How Steam is Used, and the Properties of Steam” provides the viewer with an exceptional basis to build from. Special thanks to Armstrong International who created the original work.

For more information on any industrial or commercial steam application, contact:

Mead O'Brien, Inc.

www.meadobrien.com

(800) 892-2769

Part 2: What Steam Is, How Steam is Used, and the Properties of Steam

Steam is the gaseous phase (state) of water and has many domestic, commercial, and industrial uses. There are two categories of steam - wet steam and dry steam. In dry steam, all the water molecules stay in the gaseous state. In wet steam, some of the water molecules have released their energy (latent heat) and begin condensing into water droplets.

Steam, usually created by a boiler burning coal or other fuels, became the primary source of energy for mechanical movement during the industrial revolution, ultimately being replaced by fossil fuels and electricity.

Steam has many commercial and industrial uses. In agricultural, steam is used to remediate and sterilize soil. In power generation, approximately 90% of our electricity is created using steam as the working fluid to spin turbines. Autoclaves use steam for sterilization in microbiology labs, research, and healthcare facilities. Many commercial and industrial pieces of equipment are cleaned with steam. Finally, commercial complexes, campuses and military buildings use steam for heat and humidification.

The following video, the second part of a three part series titled “What Steam Is, How Steam is Used, and the Properties of Steam” provides the viewer with an exceptional basis to build from. Special thanks to Armstrong International who created the original work.

For more information on any industrial or commercial steam application, contact:

Mead O'Brien, Inc.

www.meadobrien.com

(800) 892-2769

Part 1: What Steam Is, How Steam is Used, and the Properties of Steam

Steam is the gaseous phase (state) of water and has many domestic, commercial, and industrial uses. There are two categories of steam - wet steam and dry steam. In dry steam, all the water molecules stay in the gaseous state. In wet steam, some of the water molecules have released their energy (latent heat) and begin condensing into water droplets.

Steam, usually created by a boiler burning coal or other fuels, became the primary source of energy for mechanical movement during the industrial revolution, ultimately being replaced by fossil fuels and electricity.

Steam has many commercial and industrial uses. In agricultural, steam is used to remediate and sterilize soil. In power generation, approximately 90% of our electricity is created using steam as the working fluid to spin turbines. Autoclaves use steam for sterilization in microbiology labs, research, and healthcare facilities. Many commercial and industrial pieces of equipment are cleaned with steam. Finally, commercial complexes, campuses and military buildings use steam for heat and humidification.

The following video, the first part of a three part series titled “What Steam Is, How Steam is Used, and the Properties of Steam” provides the viewer with an exceptional basis to build from. Special thanks to Armstrong International who created the original work.

For more information on any industrial or commercial steam application, contact:

Mead O'Brien, Inc.
www.meadobrien.com
(800) 892-2769

Coriolis Flowmeter Reduces Sucrose Losses with Better Molasses Production at Sugar Mill

Molasses Production at Sugar Mill

A sugar mill typically loses between one and two percent of its incoming sucrose to factors such as poor clarification, sugar crystal elongation, reduced crystal growth rates, filter cake loss, and loss to molasses. Of these, loss to molasses is most significant — and one of the most difficult to prevent. Loss to molasses results from inaccurate flow measurement that causes more than the required amount of sucrose to pass into the molasses recipe. Wasting valuable sucrose can directly affect profitability of molasses batch yields, so new strategies to control this loss are constantly being investigated.

Improved control begins with a reliable measurement of molasses production, but getting that is indeed a challenge. Estimating undetermined sugar loss to within 0.1 percent, for example, requires molasses loss measurement that is accurate to at least one percent.

There are a number of methods that have been employed to measure molasses quantities in sugar mills around the world, each with distinct advantages and limitations. Measuring storage tank levels on a regular basis is probably the simplest method, but readings are inconsistent and unreliable. The error in the mass estimate affects the undetermined loss directly. Further complicating accuracy are chemical reactions that produce carbon dioxide, which affects both density and tank levels.

Another method is production tank dipping, which involves detecting changes in ow based on changes in torque at various measurement points. While this may be adequate for reporting on a volume basis, most molasses production balance is based on mass. Also, molasses is usually aerated, which creates two-phase flow conditions, further compromising density and accuracy.

Foxboro Coriolis Flowmeter

Engineers at this sugar mill compared measurements made by tank dipping and batch weighing to conventional and digital Coriolis measurements at various points over a three-year period. Years earlier, they installed a competitor’s conventional Coriolis meter. Shortly after, they installed a Foxboro CFT50 digital Coriolis transmitter from Foxboro in series with the existing unit. The Foxboro meter uses digital flowtube control that overcomes flow interruption or stalling caused by two-phase flow. And finally, a short time later, as a benchmark for accuracy, they installed a set of molasses batch scales. Valve leaks notwithstanding, they assumed that the scales would provide the most faithful measure of flow.

The measurements from tank dipping were ten to fifteen percent lower than estimates obtained from either of the Coriolis meters tested.

Later, with the batch scales installed, both Coriolis meters recorded consistently higher estimates than the scales readings. On average, the Foxboro meter gave readings that were three percent higher, and the conventional meter read nine percent higher.

It was clear that the Coriolis meters followed the batch scales much more closely. This strongly indicates the unreliability of tank dipping measurements and suggests that the Coriolis meters are also more responsive to real changes in flow rate. An unanticipated result also indicated that the digital Coriolis meter might be the most responsive to sudden changes in flow rate.

While acknowledging the need for additional study, the researchers concluded that Coriolis measurement is the only suitable alternative to batch scales for measuring sucrose loss to molasses. They found that the conventional Coriolis meter tended to estimate higher than the Foxboro Coriolis meter and that the Foxboro meter had a significantly faster response time in on/off applications.

Conductivity Sensors Improve Biodiesel Production Quality and Production

Biodiesel production improvement
with conductivity sensors.

Biofuel products are made from a variety of feedstocks, primarily soybean oil, vegetable oil and animal fat derivatives. Biodiesel is a safe alternative fuel replacement for traditional petroleum diesel.

The biodiesel production process is done through a chemical reaction that combines vegetable oil or animal fat as a raw stock, methanol, and a catalyst of sodium methylate in proper proportions. The process, called transesterification, involves chemically converting triglycerides to smaller methyl esters that resemble diesel fuel with extra oxygen atoms that make it oxygenated diesel fuel enabling it to burn cleaner.

Producing biodiesel fuel is a difficult task that requires precise separation at various stages. Effective separation is critical to the success of the process and the quality of the product.

The plant has four 20,000-gallon reactors and approximately 15 process vessels of various sizes, as well as large field storage tanks used in the delicate separation process.

When emptying the reactors its very important to know exactly where the interface is between the biodiesel and byproducts. If byproducts are left in the fuel, product quality standards are not met and material have to be reprocessed. If your pour out biodiesel, you’re throwing money down the drain.

Conductivity sensors (courtesy of Foxboro)

There are a number of ways to detect phase changes, but conductivity sensing seemed ideal for this application. A conductivity measurement system is relatively inexpensive, very clean and maintenance free, since there are no moving parts.

Foxboro, a world-class manufacturer of process control equipment was called in for a consultation. The initial application is in a batch mode where the company has a pump on the bottom of the reactor. Directly downstream of that pump is a “T” configuration that houses the Foxboro conductivity sensor. At this stage, the biodiesel company needs to separate glycerin, which has a relatively high conductivity, approximately 4,000 to 5,000 microsiemen/cm.  The Foxboro probe monitors the conductivity of the fluid passing by and, as the interface occurs, it immediately detects a dramatic drop in conductivity because the methyl ester phase has a conductivity of less than 20 microsiemen/cm. The conductivity sensor then triggers a signal to stop the pump and close the valve. The remainder of what is in the reactor is methyl ester that contains contaminants including excess methanol, glycerin, soaps, catalyst and other impurities.

The second application involves removing these components from the biodiesel fuel before it can be released as a final product. The crude biodiesel is mixed with water to scrub out the impurities, and then the water is allowed to settle to the bottom of the reactor. Because wash water has a high conductivity of about 2,500 microsiemen/cm, the Foxboro sensors can immediately detect the interface between methyl ester and wash water.

After the washing, the biodiesel goes to the final phase where a vacuum dehydrator warms the wet biodiesel and draws out any residual water. In this third application the Foxboro conductivity sensing probe is used to determine when the appropriate amount of water is removed. At that point what remains is finished biodiesel fuel.

Conductivity sensing technology allowed the successful automation of critical phase separation processes and will allow additional and ongoing process improvements such as automated and continuous processing, and further improvements in production efficiencies and more consistent product quality are expected.