Measurement of a radial flow profile with eddy current flow meters and deep neural networks *

Abstract

Eddy current flow meters (ECFMs) measure flows of conductive fluids. Recent interest in ECFMs has increased due to applications in advanced nuclear reactors. ECFMs are well suited for such applications, as they can provide non-invasive measurements of flow in fluids that are often difficult to measure. Traditionally, ECFMs are operated using an alternating current at a single frequency, limiting ECFMs to measure average fluid velocities, blockages, or voids. We expand the capabilities of ECFMs by measuring the fluid radial velocity profile of liquid mercury. To accomplish this, we made several ECFM sensitivity measurements at a range of frequencies. Different frequencies vary the electromagnetic skin depth of the device. By adjusting frequencies, we probed the fluid velocity at various radial locations and constructed a flow-velocity profile. The relationship between the ECFM measurements and velocity profile is nonlinear and requires solving an inverse problem. Using electromagnetic finite-element simulations to train a deep neural network (DNN), we created a model that provides a stable general relationship between the sensitivity measurements of an ECFM and the fluid velocity profile. Using ECFM measurements of liquid mercury, our DNN model calculates a flow profile that agrees well with computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. This technique has potential to improve flow monitoring for optimization, safe operation of conductive fluid loops, and/or validating complex CFD models.