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Assess the Performance of Dirty or Worn Flow Conditioners
A large portion of current natural gas metering technology requires a fully-developed velocity profile for accurate flow measurement results. Two methods can be used to obtain a fully-developed velocity profile in natural gas pipelines: long lengths of straight pipe, or shorter pipe lengths in combination with a flow conditioner. Due to size limitations, long lengths of straight pipe are not always practical and flow conditioners may be the only viable option.
Flow conditioners that are based on a distributed pattern of holes through a plate are commonly used in the natural gas industry and are referred to as “perforated plate” flow conditioners. The ability of a perforated plate flow conditioner to redistribute a disturbed velocity profile is based on multiple geometric characteristics of the plate (e.g., hole pattern, porosity, and plate thickness) and on the hole details (e.g., edge sharpness). Exposure of perforated plate flow conditioners to conditions in natural gas pipelines could result in changes to the geometric characteristics of the flow conditioner due to dirt buildup on the flow conditioner face or wear of the edge sharpness. The ability of dirty or worn plate flow conditioners to effectively redistribute a disturbed velocity profile is unknown.
Key Results
This project specifically addressed the ability of dirty or worn perforated plate flow conditioners to redistribute disturbed velocity profiles. Four flow conditioners were modified to exhibit two levels of buildup and wear that were representative of typical field examples of effected flow conditioners. An orifice meter and two ultrasonic meters were used to assess the effect of the changes in the flow conditioner geometry. Through the individual path measurement data, the ultrasonic meters provided information on the shape of the velocity profile, as well as information on the overall shift in meter error as a result of changes to the flow conditioner. In addition, the pressure drop across the flow conditioner was measured to determine if there was a significant change in pressure drop as a function of the wear or material buildup.