Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance

Riley Manwaring; Michael Johnson; Zachary Sharp; Steven Barfuss

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12

| Peer-Reviewed

Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance

Riley Manwaring, Michael Johnson, Zachary Sharp, Steven Barfuss

Published in Applied Engineering (Volume 7, Issue 1)

Received: 19 February 2023 Accepted: 13 March 2023 Published: 24 March 2023

Views: Downloads:

Download PDF

Share This Article

Twitter
Linked In
Facebook

Abstract

In order to fill gaps in research into the use of elbow flow meters and to reconcile both a lack of published standards and differing recommendations on the necessary minimum lengths of straight pipe that should be installed upstream of an elbow flow meter to ensure sufficiently accurate flow measurement, physical data were collected on 50 mm nominal (52.5 mm or 2.067 inch actual), 150 mm nominal (154.05 mm or 6.065 inch actual), and 305 mm nominal (304.8 mm or 12.00 inch actual) long-radius elbow meters to determine discharge coefficients in a straight-line pipeline configuration. The 150 mm (6-inch) long-radius elbow meter was further tested in order to determine the effects of different upstream disturbances on the accuracy of its metering performance. Three different upstream disturbances were tested at upstream distances of 25, 10, and 5 diameter-lengths, including: a single elbow in-plane “S” orientation, a single elbow in-plane “U” orientation, and a double elbows out-of-plane orientation. Discharge coefficients were calculated for each configuration at the three variable upstream distances between the upstream flow disturbance and the meter and compared to the straight-line calibration values to identify the percent difference shifts in the average discharge coefficients. Most importantly, findings from the present study conclude that the discharge coefficients for all elbow meter installations stabilize for pipe Reynolds numbers greater than 300,000. Additionally, even at upstream distances of 25 pipe diameter lengths (3.81 m or 12.5 feet) each of the three upstream flow disturbances continued to exhibit effects on the calculated discharge coefficients for the elbow meter; the observed difference in the average discharge coefficient for the two single elbow in-plane configurations “S” and “U” were within 1.00% of the straight-line values. Finally, the double elbows out-of-plane discharge coefficient values remained constant, regardless of the three tested distances between 5 and 25 diameter lengths between the elbow meter and the upstream flow disturbance, showing a more predictable shift in discharge coefficient than the two single elbow in-plane configurations.

Published in	Applied Engineering (Volume 7, Issue 1)
DOI	10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12
Page(s)	11-18
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Differential Pressure Flow Meter, Discharge Coefficient, Elbow Meter, Flow Measurement, Laboratory Studies

References

[1]	Burke, L. and Hannah, C. (2010). “Improve Accuracy with Proper Water Meter Installation”. Opflow, 36 (9), 18–21. http://www.jstor.org/stable/opflow.36.9.18
[2]	Stauffer, Taylor B., Johnson, Michael C., Sharp, Zachary B., and Barfuss, Steven L. (2019). “Multiple Tap Sets to Improve Venturi Flowmeters Performance Characteristics with Disturbed Flow”. AWWA Water Science, 1 (e1134). https://doi.org/10.1002/aws2.1134
[3]	Sharp, Zachary B., Johnson, Michael C., Barfuss, Steven L. (2015). “Effects of Abrupt Pipe Diameter Changes on Venturi Flowmeters”. Journal – American Water Works Association, 108 (8), E433-E441. https://doi.org/10.5942/jawwa.2016.108.0101
[4]	Jacobs, G. S. and Sooy, F. A. (1911). “New Method of Water Measurement by Use of Elbows in Pipe Line”, Journal of Electricity, Power and Gas, 27 (4): 72-78.
[5]	Murdock, J. W., Foltz, C. J., and Gregory, C. (1964). “Performance Characteristics of Elbow Flowmeters. Journal of Basic Engineering”, 86 (3): 498-503. https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/fluidsengineering/article-abstract/86/3/498/398646/Performance-Characteristics-of-Elbow-Flowmeters?redirectedFrom=fulltext
[6]	Spink, L. K. (1958). Principles and Practice of Flow Meter Engineering 8th Edition. The Foxboro Company: Foxboro, MA.
[7]	Upp, E. L., and LaNasa, Paul J. (2002). Fluid Flow Measurement: A Practical Guide to Accurate Flow Measurement 2nd Edition. Elsevier: London, United Kingdom.
[8]	Howe, W. H., Liptak, B. G., and Gibson, I. H. (2003). Instrument Engineers’ Handbook, Volume 1: Process Measurement and Analysis 4th Edition. CRC Press: Boca Raton, FL.
[9]	Miller, R. W. (1996). Flow Measurement Engineering Handbook 3rd Edition. McGraw-Hill: New York, NY.
[10]	Rawat, A., Singh, S. N., and Seshadri, V. (2020). “CFD Analysis of the Performance of Elbow-Meter with High Concentration Coal Ash Slurries”. Flow Measurement and Instrumentation, 72, 101724 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.flowmeasinst.2020.101724.
[11]	Eguchi, Y., Murakami, T., Tanaka, M., and Yamano, H. (2011). “A Finite Element LES for High-Re Flow in a Short-Elbow Pipe with Undisturbed Inlet Velocity”. Nuclear Engineering and Design 241 (11) 4368-4378, Elsevier: London, United Kingdon.
[12]	Weissenbrunner, A., Fiebach, A., Schmelter, S., Bar, M., Thamsen, P. U., and Lederer, T. (2016). “Simulation-Based Determination of Systematic Errors of Flow Meters due to Uncertain Inflow Conditions”. Flow Measurement and Instrumentation 52, 25-39. Elsevier: London, United Kingdom.
[13]	Mazumder, Q. H. (2012).” CFD Analysis of the Effects of Elbow Radius on Pressure Drop in Multiphase Flow”. Modelling and Simulation in Engineering 1687-5591, Hindawi Publishing Corp.: London, United Kingdom.
[14]	Finnemore E. J., and Franzini, J. B. (2006). Fluid Mechanics with Engineering Applications 10th Edition. McGraw-Hill: New York, NY.
[15]	The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). (2006). Test Uncertainty: An American National Standard. New York, NY: ASME PTC 19.1-2006.

Cite This Article

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Riley Manwaring, Michael Johnson, Zachary Sharp, Steven Barfuss. (2023). Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance. Applied Engineering, 7(1), 11-18. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Riley Manwaring; Michael Johnson; Zachary Sharp; Steven Barfuss. Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance. Appl. Eng. 2023, 7(1), 11-18. doi: 10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Riley Manwaring, Michael Johnson, Zachary Sharp, Steven Barfuss. Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance. Appl Eng. 2023;7(1):11-18. doi: 10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12,
  author = {Riley Manwaring and Michael Johnson and Zachary Sharp and Steven Barfuss},
  title = {Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance},
  journal = {Applied Engineering},
  volume = {7},
  number = {1},
  pages = {11-18},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ae.20230701.12},
  abstract = {In order to fill gaps in research into the use of elbow flow meters and to reconcile both a lack of published standards and differing recommendations on the necessary minimum lengths of straight pipe that should be installed upstream of an elbow flow meter to ensure sufficiently accurate flow measurement, physical data were collected on 50 mm nominal (52.5 mm or 2.067 inch actual), 150 mm nominal (154.05 mm or 6.065 inch actual), and 305 mm nominal (304.8 mm or 12.00 inch actual) long-radius elbow meters to determine discharge coefficients in a straight-line pipeline configuration. The 150 mm (6-inch) long-radius elbow meter was further tested in order to determine the effects of different upstream disturbances on the accuracy of its metering performance. Three different upstream disturbances were tested at upstream distances of 25, 10, and 5 diameter-lengths, including: a single elbow in-plane “S” orientation, a single elbow in-plane “U” orientation, and a double elbows out-of-plane orientation. Discharge coefficients were calculated for each configuration at the three variable upstream distances between the upstream flow disturbance and the meter and compared to the straight-line calibration values to identify the percent difference shifts in the average discharge coefficients. Most importantly, findings from the present study conclude that the discharge coefficients for all elbow meter installations stabilize for pipe Reynolds numbers greater than 300,000. Additionally, even at upstream distances of 25 pipe diameter lengths (3.81 m or 12.5 feet) each of the three upstream flow disturbances continued to exhibit effects on the calculated discharge coefficients for the elbow meter; the observed difference in the average discharge coefficient for the two single elbow in-plane configurations “S” and “U” were within 1.00% of the straight-line values. Finally, the double elbows out-of-plane discharge coefficient values remained constant, regardless of the three tested distances between 5 and 25 diameter lengths between the elbow meter and the upstream flow disturbance, showing a more predictable shift in discharge coefficient than the two single elbow in-plane configurations.},
 year = {2023}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance
AU  - Riley Manwaring
AU  - Michael Johnson
AU  - Zachary Sharp
AU  - Steven Barfuss
Y1  - 2023/03/24
PY  - 2023
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12
T2  - Applied Engineering
JF  - Applied Engineering
JO  - Applied Engineering
SP  - 11
EP  - 18
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2994-7456
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12
AB  - In order to fill gaps in research into the use of elbow flow meters and to reconcile both a lack of published standards and differing recommendations on the necessary minimum lengths of straight pipe that should be installed upstream of an elbow flow meter to ensure sufficiently accurate flow measurement, physical data were collected on 50 mm nominal (52.5 mm or 2.067 inch actual), 150 mm nominal (154.05 mm or 6.065 inch actual), and 305 mm nominal (304.8 mm or 12.00 inch actual) long-radius elbow meters to determine discharge coefficients in a straight-line pipeline configuration. The 150 mm (6-inch) long-radius elbow meter was further tested in order to determine the effects of different upstream disturbances on the accuracy of its metering performance. Three different upstream disturbances were tested at upstream distances of 25, 10, and 5 diameter-lengths, including: a single elbow in-plane “S” orientation, a single elbow in-plane “U” orientation, and a double elbows out-of-plane orientation. Discharge coefficients were calculated for each configuration at the three variable upstream distances between the upstream flow disturbance and the meter and compared to the straight-line calibration values to identify the percent difference shifts in the average discharge coefficients. Most importantly, findings from the present study conclude that the discharge coefficients for all elbow meter installations stabilize for pipe Reynolds numbers greater than 300,000. Additionally, even at upstream distances of 25 pipe diameter lengths (3.81 m or 12.5 feet) each of the three upstream flow disturbances continued to exhibit effects on the calculated discharge coefficients for the elbow meter; the observed difference in the average discharge coefficient for the two single elbow in-plane configurations “S” and “U” were within 1.00% of the straight-line values. Finally, the double elbows out-of-plane discharge coefficient values remained constant, regardless of the three tested distances between 5 and 25 diameter lengths between the elbow meter and the upstream flow disturbance, showing a more predictable shift in discharge coefficient than the two single elbow in-plane configurations.
VL  - 7
IS  - 1
ER  -

Copy | Download

Author Information

Riley Manwaring

Gannet Fleming, Inc., Phoenix, USA
Michael Johnson

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Utah State University, Logan, USA
Zachary Sharp

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Utah State University, Logan, USA
Steven Barfuss

Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Utah State University, Logan, USA

Download PDF

Sections

Plain Text BibTeX RIS

APA Style

Riley Manwaring, Michael Johnson, Zachary Sharp, Steven Barfuss. (2023). Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance. Applied Engineering, 7(1), 11-18. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12

Copy | Download

ACS Style

Riley Manwaring; Michael Johnson; Zachary Sharp; Steven Barfuss. Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance. Appl. Eng. 2023, 7(1), 11-18. doi: 10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12

Copy | Download

AMA Style

Riley Manwaring, Michael Johnson, Zachary Sharp, Steven Barfuss. Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance. Appl Eng. 2023;7(1):11-18. doi: 10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12

Copy | Download

@article{10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12,
  author = {Riley Manwaring and Michael Johnson and Zachary Sharp and Steven Barfuss},
  title = {Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance},
  journal = {Applied Engineering},
  volume = {7},
  number = {1},
  pages = {11-18},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ae.20230701.12},
  abstract = {In order to fill gaps in research into the use of elbow flow meters and to reconcile both a lack of published standards and differing recommendations on the necessary minimum lengths of straight pipe that should be installed upstream of an elbow flow meter to ensure sufficiently accurate flow measurement, physical data were collected on 50 mm nominal (52.5 mm or 2.067 inch actual), 150 mm nominal (154.05 mm or 6.065 inch actual), and 305 mm nominal (304.8 mm or 12.00 inch actual) long-radius elbow meters to determine discharge coefficients in a straight-line pipeline configuration. The 150 mm (6-inch) long-radius elbow meter was further tested in order to determine the effects of different upstream disturbances on the accuracy of its metering performance. Three different upstream disturbances were tested at upstream distances of 25, 10, and 5 diameter-lengths, including: a single elbow in-plane “S” orientation, a single elbow in-plane “U” orientation, and a double elbows out-of-plane orientation. Discharge coefficients were calculated for each configuration at the three variable upstream distances between the upstream flow disturbance and the meter and compared to the straight-line calibration values to identify the percent difference shifts in the average discharge coefficients. Most importantly, findings from the present study conclude that the discharge coefficients for all elbow meter installations stabilize for pipe Reynolds numbers greater than 300,000. Additionally, even at upstream distances of 25 pipe diameter lengths (3.81 m or 12.5 feet) each of the three upstream flow disturbances continued to exhibit effects on the calculated discharge coefficients for the elbow meter; the observed difference in the average discharge coefficient for the two single elbow in-plane configurations “S” and “U” were within 1.00% of the straight-line values. Finally, the double elbows out-of-plane discharge coefficient values remained constant, regardless of the three tested distances between 5 and 25 diameter lengths between the elbow meter and the upstream flow disturbance, showing a more predictable shift in discharge coefficient than the two single elbow in-plane configurations.},
 year = {2023}
}

Copy | Download

TY  - JOUR
T1  - Effects of Upstream Flow Disturbances on Elbow Meter Performance
AU  - Riley Manwaring
AU  - Michael Johnson
AU  - Zachary Sharp
AU  - Steven Barfuss
Y1  - 2023/03/24
PY  - 2023
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12
T2  - Applied Engineering
JF  - Applied Engineering
JO  - Applied Engineering
SP  - 11
EP  - 18
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2994-7456
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ae.20230701.12
AB  - In order to fill gaps in research into the use of elbow flow meters and to reconcile both a lack of published standards and differing recommendations on the necessary minimum lengths of straight pipe that should be installed upstream of an elbow flow meter to ensure sufficiently accurate flow measurement, physical data were collected on 50 mm nominal (52.5 mm or 2.067 inch actual), 150 mm nominal (154.05 mm or 6.065 inch actual), and 305 mm nominal (304.8 mm or 12.00 inch actual) long-radius elbow meters to determine discharge coefficients in a straight-line pipeline configuration. The 150 mm (6-inch) long-radius elbow meter was further tested in order to determine the effects of different upstream disturbances on the accuracy of its metering performance. Three different upstream disturbances were tested at upstream distances of 25, 10, and 5 diameter-lengths, including: a single elbow in-plane “S” orientation, a single elbow in-plane “U” orientation, and a double elbows out-of-plane orientation. Discharge coefficients were calculated for each configuration at the three variable upstream distances between the upstream flow disturbance and the meter and compared to the straight-line calibration values to identify the percent difference shifts in the average discharge coefficients. Most importantly, findings from the present study conclude that the discharge coefficients for all elbow meter installations stabilize for pipe Reynolds numbers greater than 300,000. Additionally, even at upstream distances of 25 pipe diameter lengths (3.81 m or 12.5 feet) each of the three upstream flow disturbances continued to exhibit effects on the calculated discharge coefficients for the elbow meter; the observed difference in the average discharge coefficient for the two single elbow in-plane configurations “S” and “U” were within 1.00% of the straight-line values. Finally, the double elbows out-of-plane discharge coefficient values remained constant, regardless of the three tested distances between 5 and 25 diameter lengths between the elbow meter and the upstream flow disturbance, showing a more predictable shift in discharge coefficient than the two single elbow in-plane configurations.
VL  - 7
IS  - 1
ER  -

Copy | Download