Rev. 03/15 -1.5- Series FD-400
The FD-400 ultrasonic flow meter is designed to measure volumetric
flow of solids-bearing or aerated liquid within closed conduit. Trans-
ducers are available as non-contacting (FD-400C) or insertion probe
(FD-400I) types. FD-400C non-contacting transducers are strapped
to the outside of a pipe and are suitable for most installations where
the pipe material supports the transmission of ultrasound. Some
pipe materials, such as concrete pressure pipe and some plastic
lined pipes do not allow ultrasound to penetrate to the liquid inside.
For these applications, the FD-400I insertion probe will be needed.
The flow meter operates by transmitting an ultrasonic sound from its
transmitting transducer through the pipe wall or from the probe tip
into the moving liquid. The sound will be reflected by useful sonic
reflectors
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suspended within the liquid and recorded by the receiving
transducer. If the sonic reflectors are moving within the sound
transmission path, sound waves will be reflected at a frequency
shifted (Doppler frequency) from the transmitted frequency. The
shift in frequency will be directly related to the speed of the moving
particle or bubble. This shift in frequency is interpreted by the
instrument and converted to various user defined measuring units.
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What makes a good Doppler reflector? The four criteria are:
The scattering material must have a sonic impedance (sound
speed difference) at least 10% different from the fluid.
There must be some particles large enough to cause longitudinal
reflection – particles larger than 35 micron.
For a given pipe size, the longitudinal reflection must have suffi-
cient energy to overcome the Rayleigh (energy wasting) scatter-
ing caused by smaller particles.
The reflecting material must travel at the same velocity as the
fluid for good accuracy.
The FD-400 flow meter can be successfully applied on a wide range
of metering applications. The easy to program transmitter allows
the standard product to be used on pipe sizes ranging from 1 - 120
inch (25 - 3050 mm) pipe I.D. With the small pipe transducer option,
the pipe size range is 0.25 - 1 inch (6 - 25 mm). A variety of liquid
applications can be accommodated: raw sewage, river water, plant
effluent, mining slurries, sludge, etc. Because the clamp-on
transducers are non-contacting and have no moving parts, the flow
meter is not affected by system pressure, fouling or wear. Standard
transducers are rated to 250 °F (121 °C). Optional high temperature
transducers are rated to operate to 400 °F (204 °C).
General
Application
Versatility
PART 1 - INTRODUCTION