A Coriolis is a type of flow meter which relies on the Coriolis effect of the Earth in order to take a measurement of “fluid mass” flow rates. In the flow body of this meter it is divided into 2 parallel sensored flow tubes that vibrate in an opposite way to the other via an “energized drive coil.” The phase shift on the mass-flow meter which is measured by the Hall Effect sensors is positioned at the outlet and inlet part of the sensor tubes which is caused by a Coriolis Effect which is proportional in a direct way to mass of this media that flows through these tubes. Therefore a Coriolis Flow Meter can be described as a true and accurate type mass-flow meter.
The Coriolis Effect is known as a natural-phenomenon which makes objects seem as though they “curve” when moving over the Earth’s surface. Coriolis Meters also known as Coriolis Flow Meters are a mass-flow meter that utilizes the Coriolis Effect in order to measure mass flow rates of particular processes.
In comparison to other types of flow-meter technologies, the Coriolis Flow Meters are still regarded as new and were not used widely for industrial applications up until the era of the 1980’s. Today the more modern type Coriolis meters come in various designs and the majority of their configurations feature a single or double U-shaped flow tubes that have an outlet on one side and an inlet on the other. The tubes are inside sensor housings which are connected to electronic units.
Variations of the standardized Coriolis meter designs now include the straight-through or double-looped singular tubes that have been designed for use with abrasive or dirty fluids that have the potential to clog up the U-shaped tubes.
When there is an absence of flow, the tubes will vibrate and sine-wave outputs for each of the hall-effect transducers will be in phase. However, when the flow starts, the liquids that flow through these tubes will create a twist or rotation to these tubes caused from the acceleration of what is known as the Coriolis Effect that will operate in an opposite direction on each side of the force applied.
An example of this would be when the Coriolis Flow Meter moves upwards in the beginning part of the cycle, liquid that flows into this meter will resist being pushed upwards and will push down on this tube. On the other hand, the fluids that flow out of this meter will resist the process of having the vertical motion reduced by placing pressure on this tube. This is the process that will cause a twist or rotation in the tube. When the fluids flow downwards in the second phase of the cycle of a vibration cycle, it causes the tube to rotate or twist in the other direction. These twists cause a time lag (phase difference) between the outlet and inlet sides. The phase difference will be affected directly from the mass that passes through these tubes.
The SmartMeasurementTM, ALCM family of Coriolis mass and density flowmeters features three of the most successful flow tube shapes in the industry. The ALCM employs the original yet robust U tube our ALCMUT for standard applications, as well as a better pressure drop features of our Microbend shaped in the ALCMMB, and our ALCMDT, the delta tube which is excellent for low flows and small sizes. The ALCM family of Coriolis mass/density measurement manufactured by SmartMeasurementTM offers a smart solution for many Coriolis flow applications.