Field calibration of orifice meters for natural gas flow

Journal Article · Wed Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 1989 · Journal of Energy Resources Technology; (USA)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1115/1.3231397· OSTI ID:5339405

Ting, V C; Shen, J J.S. ^[1]

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1. Chevron Oil Field Research Co., La Habra, CA (USA)

This paper presents the orifice calibration results for nominal 15.24, 10.16, and 5.08-cm (6,4,2-in.) orifice meters conducted at the Chevron's Sand Hills natural gas flow measurement facility in Crane, Texas. Over 200 test runs were collected in a field environment to study the accuracy of the orifice meters. Data were obtained at beta ratios ranging from 0.12 to 0.74 at the nominal conditions of 4576 kPa and 27{sup 0}C (650 psig and 80{sup 0}F) with a 0.57 specific gravity processed, pipeline quality natural gas. A bank of critical flow nozzles was used as the flow rate proving device to calibrate the orifice meters. Orifice discharge coefficients were computed with ANSI/API 2530-1985 (AGA3) and ISO 5167/ASME MFC-3M-1984 equations for every set of data points. With the orifice bore Reynolds numbers ranging from 1 to 9 million, the Sand Hills calibration data bridge the gap between the Ohio State water data at low Reynolds numbers and Chevron's high Reynolds number test data taken at a large test facility in Venice, Louisiana. The test results also successfully demonstrate that orifice meters can be accurately proved with critical flow nozzles under realistic field conditions.

• OSTI ID: 5339405
• Journal Information: Journal of Energy Resources Technology; (USA), Journal Name: Journal of Energy Resources Technology; (USA) Vol. 111:1; ISSN 0195-0738; ISSN JERTD
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

03 NATURAL GAS
032000* -- Natural Gas-- Transport
Handling
& Storage
CALIBRATION
DATA ANALYSIS
ENERGY SOURCES
FEDERAL REGION VI
FLOW RATE
FLOWMETERS
FLUIDS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL GAS
FUELS
GAS FUELS
GASES
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
METERS
NATURAL GAS
NORTH AMERICA
PIPELINES
REYNOLDS NUMBER
STANDARDS
TEXAS
USA