Application Corner: Ideal flowmeters (Part 1)

One of the most animated topics in my Industrial Flow Measurement seminar is when students are asked to describe an ideal flowmeter. Common answers include flowmeters that are accurate, repeatable, linear, safe, and have little dependence on physical properties, little dependence on hydraulic characteristics of the flowmeter and of the fluid, low maintenance requirements, low cost, easy to install, and the like.

WRONG! We are talking about an ideal flowmeter. It is perfectly accurate, perfectly repeatable and perfectly linear, independent of physical properties, perfectly safe, and not affected by the hydraulic characteristics of the flowmeter or of the fluid. It is not low maintenance, but rather no maintenance. It is not low cost, but rather no cost. It is not easy to install, but rather it installs itself! After all, it is an ideal flowmeter.

Perhaps you can begin to understand why I enjoy leading this particular discussion. It engages the student, but more importantly, it opens students’ minds to other ways of thinking by looking beyond the routine and discovering what to strive for. Of course, ideal flowmeters do not exist. However, their attributes can enable the user to better relate an application to a particular flowmeter or flowmeter technology.

That said, maybe ideal flowmeters do exist. Many years ago, a senior engineer opined that the best equipment is that which is engineered out of the design and does not need to be installed, operated and maintained. Unless this happens, real flowmeters will need to be engineered, installed, operated and maintained. However, there are options as to which characteristics of ideal flowmeters are emphasized in each application, and (importantly) for what reason.