How to select a turbine flowmeter?

1. Measuring Medium
Turbine flowmeters are suitable for clean, low-viscosity liquids (such as clean water, gasoline, diesel, light oil, chemical reagents, etc.).
They are not suitable for media containing solid particles, fibers, or high-viscosity fluids (which may cause jamming or affect accuracy).

2. Flow Range
Select the appropriate pipe size and range based on the normal, maximum, and minimum flow rates of the pipeline.
Turbine flowmeters generally achieve the best linearity when operating within 30% to 80% of the rated flow range.

3. Accuracy Class
Standard type: ±0.5% to ±1.0%; high-accuracy type: up to ±0.2% to ±0.3%.
Choose high accuracy for trade settlement; standard accuracy is acceptable for process control.

4. Pipe Size
Common sizes: DN4 to DN300.
Recommended flow velocity: 0.5–7 m/s for liquids, 4–40 m/s for gases (though turbine meters are mainly used for liquids).
Small pipe sizes (DN < 50) have a clear advantage for measuring low flow rates.

5. Output Signal and Power Supply
Output options: pulse output (for totalized flow), 4–20 mA analog output, RS485/Modbus, etc.
Power supply: battery power (local display), 24V DC external power, 220V AC.

6. Temperature and Pressure Ratings
Standard type medium temperature: –20°C to +120°C; high-temperature type can reach above 200°C.
Nominal pressure: 1.6 MPa, 2.5 MPa, 4.0 MPa, 6.3 MPa, etc. Higher pressures are available upon request.

7. Material and Corrosion Resistance
Body: mainly stainless steel (304, 316L).
Impeller materials: 2Cr13, 316L, duplex steel, titanium alloy, etc., selected according to the corrosiveness of the medium.

8. Explosion Protection Requirements
For use in flammable or explosive environments, select intrinsically safe or explosion-proof types with relevant explosion-proof certifications.

9. Straight Pipe Requirements
Turbine flowmeters are sensitive to flow velocity distribution. Generally, they require upstream straight pipe length ≥10D and downstream ≥5D.

10. Installation
Keep away from sources of flow disturbance such as pumps, valves, and elbows.