Magnetic Flow Meter | A Complete Review

A magnetic flow meter or mag flow meter is a high-performance device used to measure the flow of a liquid by determining the voltage produced during this flow. It is used in water treatment plants, untreated sewage plants, water processing, and chemical industries to process impurities and dirt particles.

This article includes comprehensive information about a magnetic flow meter’s working, installation, calibration, advantages, features, and operating conditions.

1# What Is A Magnetic Flow Meter?

A magnetic flow meter, a volumetric flow meter device that measures the flow of a liquid by measuring voltage induced during the flow of that material. It consists of a transmitter and sensor for measuring the bi-directional and highly accurate flow of a conductive material. It is available in various electrode options, sizes, and liner materials to meet your industrial requirements. It does not con any moving parts; it is suitable for multiple industrial applications where a low-pressure drop or low maintenance is required. However, it is not ideal for non-aqueous solutions, non-conductive solutions, distilled water, or hydrocarbons.

Two # What Is The Working Principle Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

The working principle of a magnetic flow meter is based on Faraday’s Law. According to this law, the voltage produced in a conductor placed at a right angle through a magnetic field is directly proportional to the conductor’s velocity. Thus, the entire cross-section of the flow tube generates a magnetic field. It is considered the measuring element of a magnetic flow meter. The magnetic flow meter sensor is placed inline valve to measure the induced voltage generated by the flow of a conductive liquid. Then, the transmitter converts this generated voltage into a flow measurement and then transmits it to a control system.

3# What Are The Applications Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

Generally, magnetic flowmeters account for 24% of the total flow meter sale. The high-performance magnetic flow meter is suitable for working with corrosive, abrasive, and reactive liquids. Here is a list of industries in which a magnetic flow meter is used.

1. Wastewater treatment plants
2. Mining industries
3. Mineral processing industries
4. Power generation industries
5. Paper & pulp industries
6. Chemical industries
7. Slurry flow and heavy media flow applications
8. Corrosive liquid applications

If you are seeking other intended applications of a magnetic flow meter, please let us know. We manufacture customized products as per your shared specifications to meet your expectations.

4# What Are The Application Considerations Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

1. It is not recommended to use a magnetic flow meter near its electrical conductivity limit because it gets turned off. Hence, it alters the operating conditions that change the electrical conductivity of the liquid.
2. The velocity of a magnetic flow meter should be 75% of the maximum velocity of the flow meter.
3. It is recommended to provide a more significant magnetic flow to gravity-fed pipes to reduce pressure drop. It allows a required amount of liquid to pass through the system without significant pressure drop in the piping system.
4. Generally, operating at the same flow rate in the larger flow meter results in a lower liquid velocity.

5# What Are The Features Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

1. A magnetic flow meter is suitable for combustible and explosive liquids.
2. It is easily adjustable in various piping system designs, including circular and rectangular piping systems.
3. The meter size of a magnetic flow meter is approximately ranging from 0.6 to 7.9 inches.
4. The velocity ranges of a magnetic flow meter vary from 0.98 feet per second to 32.8 feet per second.
5. It remains unaffected by the temperature, density, pressure, and viscosity of the material.
6. It produces no pressure loss during the flow of conductive fluid.
7. It improves reliability, accuracy, and flow rate capacity as it does not require moving parts.

6# How To Install A Magnetic Flow Meter?

1. A magnetic flow meter can be installed vertical, horizontal, or at an angle specific to the place of installation. Always choose the right installation location as per your industrial requirement.
2. Always install it away from a strong magnetic field or other electrical interference devices.
3. Fix the pipeline that has substantial vibration resources.
4. Open the package and inspect every element to check its accuracy.
5. Always install the meter in the direction of the arrow to allow flow in the forward direction.
6. Then, power on to warm up the magnetic flow meter for approximately 20 minutes.
7. Perform zero-point calibration to measure electromagnetic flow in the medium accurately.

7# How To Select A Magnetic Flow Meter?

Follow these simple points to select the right type of magnetic flow meter to meet your industrial requirements.

1. Determine your budget
2. Determine the cost of instrument installation and subsequent maintenance
3. Determine the type of fluid suitable for operation
4. Determine operating pressure, temperature, flow rate, viscosity, and conductivity
5. Determine the line size, injection point, valve for modulation, and flow rate measurement

Additionally, you can contact our experts to choose the right type of magnetic flow meter suitable for your industrial applications. Please visit our website or call us to get more information about high-performance magnetic flow meters.

8# What Are The Advantages Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

The high-performance magnetic flow meter directly measures the voltage changes due to the flow of conductive materials under the magnetic field. Following are the advantages of using a magnetic flow meter:

1. Linear wide range and measuring range
2. The rapid response rate to flow changes
3. Optimized measurement settings
4. No pressure drop
5. No leakage to the flow of conductive material
6. Show no effect to change in temperature, electrical conductivity, concentration, and viscosity of the material
7. Easy to operate
8. Available in a wide range of working section diameters
9. Perfect to use with aggressive materials
10. No moving mechanical parts
11. Produce high accuracy
12. Generate minimum hydraulic losses

9# What Are The Disadvantages Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

A high-quality magnetic flow meter is a robust volumetric device that quickly measures the flow of a liquid. Although it is suitable for multiple industrial applications, it has some drawbacks.

1. Usually expensive than other types of flow meters
2. Suitable for fluids with conductivity more significant than 20 micro ohms per centimeter
3. Not suitable for low-velocity fluids

However, these drawbacks are significantly ignorable when you can get a lot of benefits. Moreover, you can reduce the occurrence of disadvantages by getting proper consultation from our experienced engineers. Therefore, please contact us to get more details and share your queries with us.

10# What Are The Components Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

A high-performance magnetic flow meter contains the following components necessary to maintain an efficient flow of materials. It includes:

1. Electromagnetic coil
2. Sensor
3. Electrodes
4. Insulating liner
5. Grounding ring
6. Flow tube
7. Converter for signal processing, flow calculation, and display of output signal

However, it does not contain any moving parts, turbines, bearings, or rotating gears. Therefore, you can contact our manufacturing team unit to get customized magnetic flow meters at a very affordable rate. The personalized products vary in size and specifications to meet your industrial requirements. In case of more queries, please get in touch with our customer care unit.

11# What Are Types Of Conductive Materials Are Used In A Magnetic Flow Meter?

A magnetic flow meter only allows the flow of conductive liquids to generate a measurable amount of voltage. Here is a list most frequently used conductive materials in a magnetic flow meter.

1. Acetic acid
2. Blood
3. Beer
4. Coffee extract
5. Cleaning agents
6. Glycol & water mixture
7. Hydrochloric acid
8. Hydrogen peroxide
9. Latex paint
10. Nitric acid
11. Potassium hydroxide
12. Saltwater
13. Shampoo
14. Diluted sugar solution
15. Diluted sulfuric acid
16. Water-based coolant
17. Water and many others

However, if you want to use a magnetic flow meter to determine voltage produced during the flow of a conductive material, please inform us. We have a list of internationally accepted conductive materials to serve our clients in the best way.

12# How To Increase Shelf Life Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

Here are some proven tips to increase the shelf life of a magnetic flow meter:

1. Routine based calibration of the device
2. Regular maintenance
3. Determine any spike in voltage for similar conductive materials
4. Selection of the right of conductive materials
5. Monitoring of the environmental conditions
6. Cleaning inline valve, pipes, and electrode
7. Use twisted pair of shielded wires
8. Use super strong electromagnets
9. Routine checkups of filter and amplifier
10. Selection of the correct type of flow meter

Following the tips mentioned above significantly increases the life span of a magnetic flow meter. Please get in touch with us to get more product-specific information.

13# How To Calibrate A Magnetic Flow Meter?

Follow the below-mentioned points to calibrate a magnetic flow meter accurately.

1. First, disconnect a magnetic flow meter from the power generation device.
2. Check all the connections and electricity supply to ensure proper calibration.
3. Turn on the power supply and calculate the input signal value.
4. Now record the output values at each test point to identify the range of errors.
5. After this, adjust the zero at the lowest point in the instrument until the output reading is corrected.
6. Recheck the upscale and downscale readings to verify the calibrations.

If you have any questions about installing or calibrating a magnetic flow meter, please feel free to contact us.

14# How Can You Order Customized Magnetic Flow Meter?

It is straightforward to order a customized magnetic flow meter from Instruthink. You can book your order in bulk and single form. The prices of customized products vary as per your shared specifications. You are requested to share your specifications, including electromagnetic coil, sensor, electrodes, converter, insulating liner, grounding ring, and flow tube to customize a magnetic flow meter. First, we analyze your requirements to design a customized strategy. After getting approval from our experts, we start working on your products. All products are tested to meet international quality standards before shipment. All customized products are shipped within ten days after order confirmation.

15# What Is The Average Price Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

The average of a magnetic flow meter is based on its specifications. However, a high-performance magnetic flow meter costs around $100 to $3000. These are approximately 0.5% to 1.0% accurate in terms of their working and efficiencies. You can order customized products by keeping in view your products. Please visit our website for more pricing-related queries. Our expert engineers also provide a free estimate about the pricing of a magnetic flow meter. The estimated prices are based on the manufacturing details and current market rates. However, estimated rates may vary from actual rates due to technical details. Feel free to contact Instruthinkfor more pricing-related information.

16# What To Do When Noise Voltage Is Falsely Interpreted As Fluid Flow?

Sometimes, noise voltage is falsely interpreted as fluid flow when 60Hz AC energizes the coil. It generally happens when sensor electronics cannot distinguish between a 60Hz noise in the fluid and 60Hz motional EMF during fluid flow. It creates a problem in displaying a voltage signal that leads to a false interpretation of the output signal. Therefore, it is recommended to use a pulse excitation power source for the flow tube coils. It is called DC excitation by the magnetic flow meter. Hence, the resulting voltage signal is intercepted by electrodes and interpreted as flow rate. Please get in touch with our experienced team members for more queries.

17# What Is The Precision Of A Magnetic Flow Meter?

The precision, accuracy, and performance of a magnetic flow meter are based on its manufacturing. A typical magnetic flow meter has an accuracy of 0.5%. The measured value of a fluid flow is approximately 0.3 ft per second to 33 ft per second (0.1 to 10 meters per second). However, a high-quality mag flow meter shows accuracy up to 1.0%. It indicates a flow rate greater than 33 ft per second. The accuracy level of a magnetic flow meter varies from one type to another. Please visit our website or contact technical team members to get more information about a magnetic flow meter’s precision and working principle.

18# What Is The Difference Between A Magnetic Flow Meter & An Ultrasonic Flow Meter?

1. The “Mag Meters” works on the principle of electromagnetic induction or Faraday’s Law. On the other hand, an ultrasonic flow meter uses sound waves to determine the velocity of a fluid flowing through the system.
2. A magnetic flow meter is mounted perpendicular to the direction of flow. An ultrasonic flow meter is inserted as the two locations to measure the rate of velocity.
3. A magnetic flow meter is mounted outside the pipe, while an ultrasonic flow meter is inserted inside a tube.
4. A magnetic flow meter usually is not influenced by the temperature, velocity, and pressure of materials. Therefore, an ultrasonic flow meter cannot measure rapid changes in the working environment of a flowing fluid.

19# Under Which Conditions A Magnetic Flow Meter Never Work?

1. A magnetic flow meter never works when a pipe is not complete. Hence, it will read in error. Any discharge in the gravity-fed line or fluid drop in the pipeline produces this problem.
2. If the pipeline is full of entertained gas or air, it changes computed volume and volumetric flow via a magnetic flow meter. A significant bubble volume in an uncontrolled fashion changes the volumetric flow-through device.
3. If a flow starts or repeatedly stops because of a lag between flow time & flow velocity, a magnetic flow meter will never work. Therefore, it is not suitable for short-duration batching operations.

20# What Are Three Simple Rules For Using A Magnetic Flow Meter?

1. Straight Run:

It requires less straight run than typical flow meters. In upstream, it requires as little as diameters of the electrode plane. Downstream, it requires no diameters of the straight run.

2. Vertical Mounting:

Permanently mount a magnetic flow meter in the vertical direction to ensure a smooth flow through it.

3. Right Size:

A typical magnetic flow meter operates over the entire range from 0.09 meters per second to 10 meters per second.  Installing a mag flow meter at the lower end of that range produces a build-up of solids. As a result, it makes an error in the calculating volume of it.

21# How Does A Mag Flow Meter Work Exceptionally Under Varying Temperature & Pressure?

Mag flow meters have become the most widely used type of flow meters in the industry because of their ease of maintenance and simple operating conditions. However, their work correlates selecting the right kind of magnetic flow meter. A magnetic flow meter is designed to work under extremely high temperature and pressure conditions above or below its shared specifications. Usually, a pressed-in polyurethane or Teflon lining reduces potential hazards and inaccuracy in readings. It bypasses high pressure and high temperature to ensure smooth working of it. The electromagnetic induction is maintained by the accurate movement of the coil under varying working conditions.

22# What Is An Insertion Magnetic Flow Meter?

Insertion magnetic flow meter measures the flow of a conductive fluid over a wide dynamic range. It is simple to install in pipes of varying sizes ranging from 0.5 inches to 8 inches. Thus, it is suitable for diverse industrial applications. An insertion magnetic flow meter has an integrated temperature sensor for the measurement of flow velocity. The output frequency of an insertion magnetic flow meter ranges from 4 mA to 20 mA. An insertion magnetic flow meter has no moving parts for quick installation in pipes of larger diameters. However, an insertion magnetic flow meter is comparatively expensive than other types of mag flow meters.

23# What Is A Low Flow Magmeter?

The electrodes of a low flow mag meter are designed to eliminate fouling. A low flow mag meter works best for industrial applications where debris impedes mechanical meters. A low-flow mag meter has no moving parts and requires no maintenance in challenging working environments. In the piping configuration where there is a little space between meter and elbow, a low flow mag meter can be installed with little ease. It has a front panel touch keypad to adjust pulse output. A low flow mag meter is suitable for underwater applications up to 3 meters or 10 inches.

24# What Is An Inline Mag Flow Meter?

An inline mag flow meter measures the entire cross-section area to ensure accurate flow of fluid through pipes. Hence, it is designed for more precise flow measurement. It requires minimum lengths of piping straight run for installation. An inline mag flow meter needs 10 pipes diameter upstream and 5 pipes diameter downstream to maintain a complete flow through the pipe. It is permanently installed at any position to optimize the flow of conductive materials. It is suitable for pulp, paper, wastewater, and slurries.

The Bottom Line:

I hope that this article will provide sufficient information and strengthen your buying decision about a magnetic flow meter. A magnetic flow meter is a high-precision device that measures voltage generated during the flow of a liquid. It is suitable for a variety of conductive fluids under different industrial applications.

Please feel free to share your product-specific queries with our experts!