Measure, monitor and control gas flow with thermal mass flowmeters
Sage Thermal Mass Flow Meters are the ideal instrument to measure, monitor and control gas mass flow in various environmental, industrial and energy reduction applications. On this page you can find the various gases commonly measured using gas mass flowmeters and their applications.
Applications by Gas Type
- Waste Water Treatment - Aeration Flow
Aeration flow is necessary to oxygenate basins, which assists in the breakdown of municipal waste. It is the oxygen introduced through air flow which maintains the proper balance for breaking down the sewage. By closely monitoring and measuring the process, a significant energy reduction can result.
Sage Thermal Mass Meters are perfect to monitor the air mass flow and communicate the data to the blower control system.
- Air Flow - Typical Applications
Aeration flow, air injection flow, air purging, batching vessel inlet air flow, blow molding air, blower air, combustion air flow, compressed air flow, condenser air flow, cooling air flow, drying air flow, engine inlet air flow, exhaust air flow, heat exchanger air flow, HVAC, incineration flow, leak testing, pulverizing air flow, pump flow, sealed air flow, secondary treatment air and vent air flow.
- Alkanes
Thermal mass flowmeters have intrinsic mass flow measurement without needing to correct for temperature or pressure, low pressure drop, and sensitivity to measure flow of alkanes. Methane is the most common and simplest alkane, though ethane, propane, butane, pentane and isobutene also can require flow measurement.
- Ammonia
Ammonia measurement in the power industry is required for environmental control. It helps reduce NOx and SOx selective catalytic reduction systems.
- Argon
Gas mass flow meters, with dual range calibration, are the ideal solution for monitoring argon (and nitrogen) flow rate, for bottom stirring of molten steel which helps eliminate bubbles and other impurities and impacts the quality of steel. Argon, helium, and hydrogen are commonly used in heat treating, where measurement is required and thermal mass flow meters have fast response and turndown to help control the proper mixture. Gas mass flowmeters are ideal when measuring argon in leak detection.
- Biogas
When organic matter, like industrial waste, plant matter or garbage, decomposes in an oxygen free environment, like a biogas digester, biogas is produced. This is a mixture of approximately 70% methane and 30% carbon dioxide. Biogas can be used as a fuel source for electricity or heat.
The thermal mass flow meter plays a critical role in the entire biogas production process, from producing the gas to using the renewable fuel. In addition to the their use in production, to comply with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol and other reporting requirements for emission credits, there is a need to quantify the captured emissions, and Sage Metering gas mass meters have the ability to measure the low flow rates.
- Butane
Thermal mass flowmeters have intrinsic mass flow measurement without needing to correct for temperature or pressure, low pressure drop, and sensitivity to measure flow of alkanes. Methane is the most common and simplest alkane, though ethane, propane, butane, pentane and isobutene also can require flow measurement.
- Carbon Dioxide
The thermal mass flowmeter is used to comply with greenhouse gas protocols which require measuring carbon dioxide and methane mixes in landfills, and digester gas and bio gas. Additionally, flare gas which is mostly carbon dioxide is measured. Measuring carbon dioxide flow rate and consumptions are typical for the petrochemical, cement, pulp and paper, and steel industries.
- Chlorine Gas
Municipal water districts and waste water treatment facilities use chlorine to disinfect water. Control of the chlorine concentration is critical for the effectiveness and safety of the operation. Thermal mass flow meters, with optional Hastelloy construction (all wetted parts), provide flow rate data and control the chlorine dosage for optimal water purification. Additionally, chlorine gas measurement is common in vacuum chlorinators. The wide turndown, and low pressure drop of thermal gas mass flow meters are make it ideal for this application.
- Combustion Air Flow
A key approach to reducing energy consumption in most manufacturing facilities is to optimize the combustion control on various processes, like: industrial boilers, steam generators, furnaces, ovens, smelters and process heaters. When optimal fuel to air ratio is achieved at the burners, a significant savings in natural gas (or propane) can be achieved. Additionally, process efficiency, product quality and yields can be improved.
Various state and local environmental regulations are now mandating that medium and larger heating units require flow meters to help monitor and reduce plant emissions. ISO 50001, the new energy standard outlines best practices to improve energy performance and fuel line monitoring is considered an integral part. Common applications for combustion control monitoring are found in various industries including: textile, glass manufacturing, automotive, aluminum & steel, food & beverage, pulp & paper, power, chemical, and refining.
- Compressed Air Flow
Compressed air normally accounts for about one third of the electrical usage in an industrial facility. In large industrial applications the thermal mass meter can function as a compressed air flowmeter, and generate significant savings by identifying the optimal number of compressor units required in the application. Additionally, the meter can identify leaks in compressor systems, ascertain overall performance, improve efficiency and reduce consumption.
- Digester Gas - Farming Operations
Farmers and dairies are learning that manure, which normally breaks down to methane, can be converted to digester gas (65% methane/35% carbon dioxide) in an anaerobic digester. A digester system can produce a renewable fuel source that can be used for electricity or heat. Additionally, the methane destruction in the process has significant environmental benefits, since methane is 21 times more by likely to trap heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide.
Thermal mass flowmeters are used for various reasons in the digester process, but most significantly to quantify the emissions that are saved and comply with the EPA’s reporting standards and other initiatives.
- Digester Gas - Waste Water Treatment
When organic matter decomposes in the absence of oxygen, digester gas (65% methane and 35% carbon dioxide) is produced. Digester gas in a waste water treatment process can be harnessed and used as a source of fuel for the facility, as well as be added to a larger power grid.
Gas mass thermal meters are perfect to monitor digester gas flow rates for waste water treatment digesters. Secondary purposes in this process include measuring flow for co-generation, measuring the excess gas being stored, and monitoring flare gas; which is required if reporting greenhouse gas reductions.
- Ethanol Distillation and Refining
Ethanol production is a complex process involving fermentation and distillation tanks. Thermal mass flow meters measure the flow of air and fuel to the distillation tanks to improve the air to fuel ratio. Better combustion control improves boiler efficiency and reduces emissions. Gas mass flowmeters are also used to measure CO2 leaving fermentation tanks, which is essential to assess process inefficiencies or meet environmental compliance requirements.
- Flare Gas
There are many operations or applications where waste gas is flared to atmosphere. Flare stacks are typically seen at oil and gas wells, refineries, well drilling rigs, natural gas plants, waste water treatment plants, chemical plants and landfills. Strict regulations require the operation to measure and record the consumption of flare gas, and often at various points within the process.
- Flue Gas Monitoring
Flue gases are a by-product of a combustion process and typically consist of nitrogen and carbon dioxide with traces of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, other trace gases and miscellaneous particulates. Flue gases contain pollutants and are regulated by local, regional or federal government agencies. For this reason stacks, ducts, chimneys, large pipes or other process venting systems often require flow metering to comply with environmental reporting.
The thermal mass meter’s fast response to flow changes, low pressure drop, and reproducibility are significant characteristics for flue gas reporting applications.
- Greenhouse Gases
Effective 2010, the U.S. EPA requires greenhouse gas emissions to be reported in mass flow (40 CFR Part 98). This impacts thousands of operations. The Sage Thermal Mass Flowmeter quantifies emissions saved by measuring mass flow. What makes the Sage Metering product ideal for these applications is its ability to measure extremely low flow rates, even down to 5 SFPM. Additionally, Sage is the only thermal mass flow meter that has an in-situ calibration procedure so the meter doesn’t have to be removed from service annually and returned to the manufacturer for calibration. The meter provides non-resettable totalizers and a variety of outputs, all in compliance with U.S. EPA Greenhouse Reporting protocols and other environmental protocols.
- Helium
Helium (along with argon and hydrogen) is used in heat treating and thermal mass flowmeters have the fast response and turndown needed to control the proper mixture. Thermal mass flow meters also have been used to measure helium when used as a coolant for reactor vessels.
- Hydrogen
Monitoring hydrogen (and nitrogen) in solar cell manufacturing is an important part of the quality control in polysilicon manufacturing. Gas mass flow meters are also used to measure the flow rate of hydrogen reactors in batching operations and in gas distribution systems, and monitor the hydrogen flow to detect leaks in the plant turbine generators. The meters also are used to measure hydrogen, as well as argon and helium in heat treating.
- Landfill Gas
When municipal solid waste is broken down, landfill gas is formed. If landfill gas is extracted from wellheads and collected a mixture of approximately 50% methane and 50% carbon dioxide will result. This extracted landfill gas is renewable energy and can be used to heat buildings, run generators and power vehicles. Additionally, landfill projects at times are involved in carbon offset projects. In fact there are over one thousand active projects worldwide where landfill gas is collected and emissions credits are accrued to meet EPA reporting standards (or Kyoto protocols).
- Methane
Methane is a greenhouse gas that remains in the atmosphere for over 10 years. It comes from various sources, and approximately one-third is derived from landfills. The gas is 21 times more effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide which presents a growing environmental concern and explains why the focus of major Greenhouse Gas reduction initiatives is on methane. At the same time, methane is a primary constituent of natural gas and an important energy source. Efforts to use methane emissions to generate energy simultaneously offer economic and environmental benefits.
- Natural Gas
Natural Gas Flow is measured using thermal mass flowmeters in a number of applications, including: facilities monitoring, metering the main supply at manufacturing plants, sub-metering in industrial, commercial and government facilities, combustion control, boiler, generator and dryer inlet flow, building management systems. While many of these applications are driven by the need to reduce energy costs, other industrial opportunities used the meter to increase efficiency and product quality.
- Nitrogen
Nitrogen tank blanketing process is used in many manufacturing industries, especially in the petrochemical and pharmaceutical industries. Here, nitrogen “blankets” the vapor space of a storage tank above the liquid. The primary purse of nitrogen blanketing is to avoid the emission of toxic fumes, and prevent fire or explosion. Thermal mass flow meters are excellent choices to measure the nitrogen flow, especially given their wide turndown and reproducibility. Nitrogen is also used in the food industry for blanketing, packaging and aerating food products such as Mayonnaise. The gas is often used as a substitute for compressed air and the gas mass flow meter is ideal because of its wide turndown and low pressure drop.
- Oxygen - Odor Control
At many large municipal wastewater treatment plants, deodorizing aeration basins is required and can be achieved by blending a controlled amount of a fragrance compound with oxygen. The fragrance-infused oxygen is infused into the aeration basin, which minimizes the odor for neighboring communities. Thermal gas mass meters provide accurate, real-time measurement of the oxygen flow, assisting in controlling the dosing of fragrance compounds. Oxygen furnaces also require measurement to improve combustion control.
- Ozone - Water Purification
Thermal mass flow meters are often used to measure ozone, oxygen and sometime traces of nitrogen, in ozone systems which are an environmentally friendly alternative to chlorination at water treatment plants.
The Sage In-Line Style Thermal Mass Flow Meter is calibrated for the exact mix of ozone and oxygen, and optimally and accurately delivers the gases to purify the water. Among the benefits are direct mass flow, fast response, and reproducibility for this application.
- Propane
Propane, which has more than double the BTU content of Methane, is frequently a backup fuel to natural gas. To improve combustion efficiency, using a gas mass flowmeter to measure the flow rate to the boiler, or heater, is not only desirable but often required to meet environmental regulations. The low pressure drop and wide turndown for thermal mass flowmeters is ideal for this application.
- Vent Air Flow
Thermal mass flow meters are ideal to measure supply air, exhaust air or flue gas in incineration, vent air for environmental compliance, exhaust flow in stacks, test pumps for leaks, air flow for heat treating furnaces, or drying air, because of their turndown and sensitivity. They are easy to install, have negligible pressure drop, and provide direct mass flow so there’s no need for temperature and pressure instrumentation, all beneficial to air flow applications.
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