In the News

Welcome Azbil to our TN Customers

George Grant Company is proud to announce our new partnership with Azbil North America, Inc. covering Tennessee.

Azbil offers a wide variety of products for Industrial Automation including pressure transmitters, the venerable MagneW electromagnetic flow meter and cutting edge advanced transmitters.

Their control products include photoelectric, proximity, and fiber optic sensors along with limit, basic, miniature and safety switches. Also included in this category are liquid leak and level sensors, gas flow meter and control devices, single loop controllers, heat treating and combustion products.

 


V-Cone End Connections, Explained

Part of the V-Cone®’s appeal is its ability to be customized, including made-to-order end connections – a major benefit for engineers with a long list of specifications to meet and project goals to accomplish.

We spoke to the McCrometer V-Cone engineers about the various end connections available, and they shared answers to some of the most frequent customer questions.

What V-Cone End Connections are Best for High-Pressure Applications?

The V-Cone is commonly sold into high-pressure applications, as the meter’s ability to withstand up to 15,000 PSI and tolerate harsh media like liquid natural gasses and even wet gas make it an ideal metering solution.

For extremely high-pressure applications, American Petroleum Institute (API) flanges are often required by the customers. However, McCrometer isn’t limited to these hub end connections, and can accommodate numerous customer specifications. API end connections suit applications for crude oil and enhanced oil recovery, among others. For meters containing class 600 flanges or above, a weld-neck end connection is recommended, as it’s a more durable connection suiting high-pressure applications. Additionally, if the customer specifies a Weldolet®, a common pressure tap requested on V-Cones, the end connection would be weld-neck, to meet the specifications of the Weldolet taps.

What End Connections are Most Common for the V-Cone?

Depending on factors such as size and weight class, there are some standard end connections recommended by the McCrometer V-Cone engineers.

A popular standard end connection is the slip-on, which is similar to the weld-neck option, but usually at a lower cost, ideal for non-compressible fluids. A slip-on end connection overlaps a pipe, and a weld-neck seam is flush; a slip-on connection offers a smaller overall footprint, which may be highly desirable for customers looking to reduce space and weight.

A V-Cone with a raised face slip-on flange end connection.

A V-Cone with a raised face slip-on flange end connection.

For higher-pressure applications specifically at a larger line size, compact flanges are often specified for the meter, as they use much less material for construction, thus reducing the overall meter weight and price tag. This type of end connection allows V-Cone customers in applications such as offshore platforms meet their weight and space requirements.

What Other End Connections Exist?

For customers requiring a shorter lead time, or if they’d prefer to weld on their own flanges, a beveled end connection is ideal. This particular end connection may also be preferred by customers who have requested their meter be constructed of exotic materials. If a platinum or nickel alloy V-Cone is ordered, the customer may want to save on budget and weld the meter right into their line. The V-Cone offers a 25+ year lifespan and virtually no maintenance needed during that time, giving customers confidence when welding a beveled end V-Cone directly into the pipeline.

Smaller V-Cones, typically less than or equal to 4” nominal pipe size, may use a threaded end connection, which is a national pipe thread (NPT) used for connecting the V-Cone meter to the mating pipeline, typically for lower pressure or liquid media applications.

For flanged V-Cones, the ring type joint (RTJ) is prevalent in many metering projects. This acronym refers to the groove on the face of the flange that accommodates certain gaskets customary in higher-pressure applications.

Alternately, both raised face and flat face flanges are available as well, both commonly requested for process plant applications, as these flanges are specified to compliment the gaskets used during the installation process.

McCrometer customers often require standard flanges per the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), both of which McCrometer can meet.

Deutsches Institut für Normung (DIN) flanges, a common standard end connection for the European Union and in Australia, are regularly requested during international orders. McCrometer has the ability to meet a myriad of performance and product standards, more of which are detailed in our blog on meeting and exceeding flow meter standards.

What End Connection is the Best Option for my V-Cone?

The best end connection for your V-Cone is the one that allows you to best achieve your flow project goals. Whether you’re finding a custom solution for a tough retrofit project, or consciously staying beneath specific weight and space restrictions, the McCrometer V-Cone engineers can assist you by providing information on all the end connections available.

 


 

What Is A V-Cone Meter? And Why Should I Care?

There is a better alternative for differential pressure (DP) metering accuracy in problematic applications where other meter designs might compromise performance. A V-Cone meter’s simple mechanical design overcomes confined spacing, pipeline turbulence, and even noisy electrical environments that can hamper other meters. Best of all, it delivers + 0.5 percent accuracy and provides an easy retrofit solution for difficult installations.

What is a V-Cone meter and how does it work?

A V-Cone meter uses an advanced flow-sensing design, which is different from other DP meters. In addition to its highly accurate readings, the V-Cone is designed to cope with a number of challenges experienced in municipal and industrial water and wastewater measurement applications:

  • Tight Spacing. V-Cone operation allows for more compact new designs and fits easily into most retrofit applications because it can be installed in close proximity to elbows, valves, pumps, chemical injectors, and other structures that might hamper other flow measurement technologies.
  • Turbulence. Built-in flow conditioning technology minimizes straight pipe length requirements demanded by other types of meters.
  • Electronic Noise. The mechanical design of the V-Cone eliminates problems of noise or interference in electrically dense environments.
  • Variable Water Quality. Special V-Cone designs avoid the repetitive clogging experienced by mag meters in dirty water applications.

Why is the V-Cone design not more widely used for its physical performance advantages?

Some people who hear “differential-pressure meter” associate it with other, more limiting DP meter designs — such as those relying on orifice plates, which can induce more turbulence and permanent pressure loss. Because a V-Cone meter creates a smoother flow and operates at a lower differential pressure than other DP meters, it experiences low permanent pressure loss and reduces energy costs for pumping (Figure 1).

The best decision-making criteria for any metering technology — DP or otherwise — come from analyzing the total cost of ownership over the life of the meter. By comparing purchase cost, installation cost, ancillary piping design costs, maintenance impacts, and associated downtime costs, plus the longevity of the meter in the end-use application, a system designer or user can calculate the true value of each meter style. By that evaluation, V-Cone meters often provide a more cost-effective solution across a variety of applications.

Figure 1. V-Cone meters exhibit low permanent pressure loss as compared to other types of meters — including orifice and nozzle DP meters.

How does a V-Cone meter differ from other DP meters?

A big factor in V-Cone accuracy is in how it creates and measures differential pressure in a way that does not compromise other performance factors. This is the most important factor for piping designers to appreciate.

All DP meters calculate the volume of flow relative to the pipeline pressure before and after a change in the cross-section of the flow, based on Bernoulli’s theorem for conservation of energy in a closed pipe (i.e., velocity and pressure vary inversely according to the rate of fluid flowing through the pipe). Other types of DP meters, however — such as orifice plates, vortex meters, and Venturi meters — use a smaller opening, create more turbulence, and use a differential pressure that is at least twice as high as a V-Cone meter. That is why they generate a higher permanent pressure loss, put more stress on pumps, and require higher energy costs (Figure 2).

By contrast, a V-Cone meter is inherently less disruptive than other DP meter designs because the flow-conditioning aspects of its cone create a stable flow profile that complements the flow sensing design and increases accuracy. Unlike an orifice plate that presents an abrupt stop of flow around the inner surface of the pipe to create its upstream vs. downstream pressure differential, the V-Cone shape centrally positioned within the pipe gently reshapes the flow profile symmetrically around the pipe’s interior surface. This creates a smoother transition and results in a more stable signal that improves the accuracy of its readings. This video comparison shows how a V-Cone meter also creates a smoother flow through a pipeline.

Figures 2A and 2B. V-Cone meters provide a greater opening (beta ratio) in the cross-section of the pipe and use a lower pressure differential than other types of DP meters to deliver more favorable performance characteristics.

Where has the V-Cone meter design proved its value in industrial and commercial applications?

Due to its simplified mechanical design, no moving parts, and no need for electrical power to take measurements, plus a high degree of flexibility in the fluids it can measure, the V-Cone meter design has experienced wide-ranging acceptance in the oil, natural gas, and refinery marketplace.

Its ability to measure air, gas, steam, oil, water, and other fluids accurately provides advantages over multiple types of meters — including DP meters, mag meters, and others. Multiple formats of the basic V-Cone design are available in a variety of physical executions, designed to meet the space, configuration, and chemical environments in which they are used. Corrosion-resistant versions are also available for use with harsh fluids or in harsh environments.

What are some of the best-suited applications for V-Cone meters in municipal and industrial water and wastewater applications?

V-Cone meters are well suited to a wide range of municipal and industrial water applications — well water production, raw water influent, pipe headers and filter galleries, finished water effluent, pump stations, cooling water, reclaimed water, and other water collection/distribution applications. While they are designed primarily for clean water flow, they can tolerate modest amounts of sand, minerals, or minor biological solids entrained in the flow. 

With its mechanical design, can a V-Cone meter be part of a digital data collection and management system?

Yes, V-Cone meters use a differential pressure transmitter to measure and convert the differential pressure signal from the primary element to an electronic signal that can be interpreted by a flow monitor or process control system. HART, Modbus, Profibus, and Fieldbus communication protocols are available.

What advantage does a V-Cone meter offer for new and retrofit applications?

Installation spacing is a particular advantage, because V-Cone meter accuracy is unaffected by turbulent pipeline flows where other meter designs would require long runs of straight piping. Other types of meters can require from 10 to 20 diameters of straight pipe between them and a valve, elbow, or other pipeline components to assure accurate readings. In new piping configurations, those straight-run requirements can translate into significantly higher pipe expenses and greater space demands.

Whether a user is replacing an existing meter or adding a V-Cone meter to an installation that did not previously have a meter, the V-Cone adapts well to existing pipelines with tight spacing, turns, and other turbulence-inducing structures. Also, because a V-Cone meter can be made in custom lay lengths, it is an easy swap-out replacement for existing flange-mounted mechanical or electronic meters.

What types of applications are better suited to a V-Cone design rather than a mag meter?

There are several plant environments that the V-Cone mechanical design with no moving parts accommodates better than an electromagnetic meter. One environment would be in electrically charged areas, which can disrupt the electromagnetic sensing of mag meter performance. This can occur in areas around a pump array or other circumstances where there might be excess electrical noise in the pipeline or in the external environment that could cause erratic flow measurements. As a pressure-related mechanical solution, V-Cone performance is not compromised by such electrically dense environments. A second environment is in raw water intakes or wastewater effluent with turbidity or entrained solids that can foul electromagnetic sensors.

Why can a V-Cone meter be a better solution than a mag meter for dirty water or water with entrained solids?

A V-Cone with a wall-tap design made especially for dirtier water provides a better option than a mag meter whose readings could be compromised if its sensors become coated with debris. The difference in V-Cone performance can translate into significant savings in downtime and labor expense relative to removing and cleaning fouled mag meter sensors.

For dirty water applications, it is important to incorporate the correct V-Cone model and to mount it correctly to take advantage of its low-maintenance performance and operational accuracy. For example, on any V-Cone differential pressure meter, the high-pressure reading is always taken through the wall of the pipe upstream of the V-Cone insert. Normally, the low-pressure reading is taken through the hollow body of the cone itself. In cases with dirty water or entrained solids, the cone is sealed and the low-pressure reading is taken through a wall-tap in the pipe after the flow passes the cone (Figure 3). This allows the meter to read the differential pressure without risking a clog within the hollow cone itself. The rated accuracy of the wall-tap design is + 1 percent accuracy vs. the + 0.5 percent accuracy of the standard open-back V-Cone. In those cases, however, the prospect of consistent performance without undue maintenance makes the balance between the minor difference in accuracy and favorable total cost of ownership a worthwhile trade-off.

Figures 3A and 3B. For clean water applications (left), the V-Cone meter measures the pressure differential between the pipeline before the cone and the interior of the hollow cone with an open port on its downstream side. To prevent potential clogging of the cone port in dirty water applications (right), the V-Cone meter uses a sealed cone and measures the pressure differential between the pipeline in advance of the cone and the pipeline just after the cone.

What does the “V” in V-Cone represent?

The “V” in V-Cone simply represents the shape of the cone. It does not stand for Venturi (Venturi-Cone). Although the underlying technology of V-Cone measurement is based on the same principles of Bernoulli’s theorem for measurement, as a Venturi meter is, the similarities end there.


McCrometer, Inc. Announces New McMag2000 Flow Meter

Hemet, Calif. – McCrometer, Inc., a globally recognized flow meter manufacturer, recently announced the upcoming launch of their newest product, the McMag2000TM flow meter.

Known for inventing America’s best-selling propeller flow meter, McCrometer has innovated in flow measurement devices since 1955, boasting an agricultural product line of both propeller and electromagnetic flow meters. The McMag2000 incorporates the best of each popular flow technology, including the “no-moving-parts” concept of electromagnetic meters and the wallet-friendly nature of propeller meters.

Developed for the dynamic ag-tech industry, the McMag2000 was revealed to attendees of the World Ag Expo in Tulare, CA this week, the world’s largest agricultural exposition. The McMag2000 is a saddle-style insertion electromagnetic flow meter, designed for the irrigation and water industry and best suited to applications like center pivot systems, well monitoring, surface water measurement, and more.

The McMag2000 aims to benefit farmers and irrigators by providing easy DIY installation and maintenance, for an overall low cost of ownership.

“When farmers need to repair or perform maintenance on a flow meter, they often need to shut down a line to remove the meter and send it back to the factory for service,” explains Aimee Davis, Product Manager for McCrometer. “Especially during a busy agriculture season, that can be a real hassle. The McMag2000’s design alleviates that headache completely in its design.”

The McMag2000 is modularly built, allowing each major component (saddle, electronic register, sensor, and other parts) to be independently replaced and self-serviced with little effort – and little budget.

“The in-field serviceability and price tag make the McMag2000 the farmer’s best friend,” Davis explains. “Its patented design creates minimal downtime and maximum control!”

The McMag2000 is currently available for pre-orders and will be fully launched at the end of March. For more information on McCrometer meters or to request a quote, visit www.mccrometer.com/water

About McCrometer: McCrometer’s advanced flow measurement solutions solve complex challenges in agricultural irrigation, municipal and industrial water & wastewater, oil and gas, process control, power generation and institutional facilities. McCrometer high-performance products and systems are found in thousands of installations worldwide, proudly exceeding many of the world’s most demanding industrial, safety and quality standards. For more information, visit www.mccrometer.com.


 Expo's New Website

Over the past few months Expo has been working hard building a new website, and we’re happy to say that the new site is now live.

Working across all platforms, desktop, tablet and mobile phone, the new site includes more comprehensive information on our products and services, interesting case studies and useful application notes, as well as an all-new product configurator. Like all good sources of information and knowldege, the site will continue to evolve, reflecting changes in the industries that we serve and featuring new Expo products and services.

We would like the site to become a go-to destination for hazardous area knowhow and we would welcome your feedback and suggestions on how we can improve.

If you would like to know more about Expo and keep up to date with our latest developments, then get in touch via our contacts page.


 


 


 

Hayward Gordon buys Scott Turbon Mixer

The Hayward Gordon Group is pleased to announce that it has combined with Scott Turbon Mixer. This follows Hayward Gordon’s earlier acquisition of Sharpe Mixers in December 2014 and further strengthens and expands our offerings and technical capabilities within the sanitary markets. As part of the transaction, Bill Scott of Scott Turbon Mixer will join Hayward Gordon’s senior management team and remain active in growing the business.

Based in Adelanto, California, Scott Turbon has a 35 year track record of providing efficient and technically sophisticated high shear stainless steel mixers and mixing systems for demanding applications in: pharmaceutical, chemical, food processing, beverage, diary, cosmetic and personal care markets. Hayward Gordon intends to make significant investments in the operations of Scott Turbon Mixer’s Adelanto factory and design center in order to expand its capacity and better serve customers with sanitary applications. Bill Scott commented on the transaction, “We are proud of our heritage at Scott Turbon Mixer and we are excited about the next chapter in our evolution. This partnership brings better distribution for our world class mixer products, and will help us to expand our Representative network to better serve the varied needs of our customers.”

Commenting on the acquisition of Scott Turbon Mixer, both John Hayward, EVP of Hayward Gordon and Ed Rogers, VP/GM of Sharpe Mixers stated, “The fit between the businesses is strong from both a product and market standpoint. Scott Turbon Mixer extends our range of mixers into high shear and high viscosity applications furthering our expansion in the US sanitary, pharmaceutical, chemical, and industrial markets, with a more complete product offering.”

Bill Dube, CEO of Hayward Gordon, added “We are delighted with the excellent synergies that will result from the combined entity. The product fit between Hayward Gordon, Scott Turbon Mixer and Sharpe Mixers is highly complementary and allows us to offer a broad range of mixers from 1/3 HP to 500 HP, making us a leader in mixing technology across a wide range of demanding applications. In addition, we believe we will be able to better serve and support our collective customers’ needs through our continued investment in people and operational systems across the three businesses.”

Hayward Gordon, headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, designs, manufactures and distributes mixers, pumps, and engineered systems for challenging fluid handling applications in a range of industries including: industrial, chemical, mining and mineral processing, oil and gas, and water and wastewater treatment. A controlling interest in Hayward Gordon was acquired by Element Partners in 2013, and serves as the platform for acquiring of pump and mixer manufacturers focused on sanitary and industrial process and other demanding fluid handling applications. Hayward Gordon was represented in this transaction by England & Company. The Royal Bank of Canada provided a credit facility to support the transaction.

For more information about Hayward Gordon, visit www.haywardgordon.com. For more information on Scott Turbon Mixer, visit http://www.scottmixer.com.