Numerical investigation of the valve-induced disturbance of the performance of a swirl meter

Abstract

Abstract Flow through a swirl meter is numerically simulated and experimentally investigated to learn the effects of flow disturbance induced by an upstream valve on the performance and internal flow characteristics of the swirl meter. Investigations are performed for five valve openings and three upstream pipe lengths, as the two main influencing factors. Simulation results show that the valve affects the measuring accuracy of the swirl meter by increasing the inlet velocity and thus the internal flow acceleration and vortex precession. Experimental results show that the valve affects the flow rate measurement by as much as 35.7%, falling to ~1% when the valve is opened to 50% or the upstream pipe length is increased to 5 times the pipe diameter. To ensure the effectiveness and accuracy of flow rate measurements, the length of upstream straight pipe between the valve and swirl meter should be at least 5 times the pipe diameter.