Patent Application
20240302195
The invention generally relates to metering systems and methods and includes improvements to flow meters for measuring fluid flow.
Several flow meters are known in the art, including mechanical, magnetic & ultrasonic, amongst others. Flow meters perform flow measurement to quantify fluid movement via a pipeline. Orifice meters refers to pipeline assemblies using elements such as an orifice plate. The measurement philosophy is based on differential pressure generated by the flow of fluid through a restriction inserted into the pipeline. The differential pressure may be applied to a transmitter to provide a working output signal representative of the flow rate being measured. Orifice metering has been well established over 60 years. During this period there has been very little innovation despite the use throughout the globe, even today. The lack of innovation has caused several “pain points” as detailed in
A pipeline flow measurement assembly can be known as a “meter run”. Consisting of dedicated up and downstream pipe, and meter run components such as a Flow conditioner, Orifice plate and thermowell being fixed and intrusive in the pipeline. The only method of extraction is pipeline depressurisation, venting and dis-assembly. This process can lead to venting of harmful gasses to atmosphere and “bypassing” isolation lines leading to safety challenges and further venting. Meter runs are also required to be shutdown and inspected on a frequent basis.
One of the joint inventors of the subject application previously developed and patented a novel and improved metering run, as fully disclosed in his UK Patent No. GB2558906, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference. That prior invention, and the present invention disclosed herein that improves upon that prior invention, were conceived with the collective intent to at least partially address one or more of the following aims:
In brief, the present invention further builds and improves upon the prior UK patented invention with continued aim toward the goal of providing improved metering and ease of extraction with minimal interruption to the pipeline.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a rotary chamber isolation valve selectively operable to establish double block and bleed (DBB) isolation between two sections of a flow meter run, said rotary chamber isolation valve comprising a housing having an internal chamber containing rotatable discs, each having different spots thereon that, via rotation of said rotatable discs, are selectively movable into and out of a working position residing inline of the two sections of said flow meter run to change a flow status of said rotary chamber isolation valve between a closed DBB state establishing said DBB isolation between said two sections of the flow meter run, and at least one flow state that allows flow between said two sections of the flow meter run.
According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a metering system comprising a flow meter run, a sensor suite installed in said flow meter run and a flow computer connected to said sensor suite, wherein said metering system is characterized by an absence of any radioactive gamma ray source, and said sensor suite includes a combination of:
According to a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a metering system comprising a flow meter run, a sensor suite installed in said flow meter run and a flow computer connected to said sensor suite, wherein said sensor suite includes a direct density measurement sensor and a direct viscosity measurement sensor, from which direct density and viscosity measurements are used for automated calculation of a Reynolds number, which said flow computer uses to automatically and dynamically updates a drag coefficient (Cd) for accuracy optimization of other automated measurement calculations using said drag coefficient.
According to a fourth aspect of the invention, there is provided a metering system comprising:
Disclosed embodiments of the present invention include a flow meter run assembly, comprising of a series of DBB (Double Block and Bleed) isolation valves to (i) safely isolate components for extraction purposes (ii) safely isolate meter run sections to reduce the volume of bleeding. A DBB valve generates a two independent blocks with a middle bleed section to allow for venting to atmospheric pressure, whilst monitoring this bleed section for any bypass of the primary block section. Although DBB valves have previously been employed for the inlet and outlet section of a meter run, unique designs disclosed herein improves these valve components to add the benefits previously advised for extraction and section isolation.
Safety is increased in certain embodiments by using a line blind design versus traditional ball valves which have a tendency to bypass.
By reducing the physical area of venting, certain embodiments also improve the environmental aspects of flaring the product to atmosphere.
Certain embodiments allow the extraction of any intrusive pipeline components and allows for the unique process of “pigging” the meter run with out the need for breaking pipeline integrity. This process allows for the live pipeline cleaning and inspection previously undertaken in a depressurised and dis-assembled state. This vastly reduces cost and increases safety for this operation.
Certain embodiments include a rotary design of a combined DBB Line Blind and Flow Conditioner, which allows for multiple options upstream of the meter. This rotary design houses a plurality of plates (e.g. 3-5 plates) for differing needs (Closed state, Open state and one or more different flow conditioning states). The design vastly reduces the physical footprint and weight of the system.
In addition to use this rotably-selectable plurality of plates at a flow condition upstream of the flow meter, a similar rotary design is also used in the flow meter itself in certain embodiments, and optionally also downstream of the flow meter in certain embodiments, e.g. in a final downstream DBB valve of the metering run at the outlet section thereof.
In certain embodiments, by having an open plate within the rotary housings of each these DBB valves (flow conditioner, flow meter, and final DBB), this allows a pig to freely move through the complete meter run without any line intrusions during a pigging operation.
Other extractable components in certain embodiments may include one or both of a Thermowell & Sample Probe that can be removed under line pressure by utilising DBB isolation philosophy.
Upstream of the flow conditioner, an extractable filter is preferably included, which can be removed via DBB isolation. This filter removes particulates prior measurement to reduce the probability on inaccurate measurement.
As mentioned above, the flow meter itself is of a rotary design housing multiple plates in certain embodiments. These plates can be rotated into selective alignment with an eccentric pipeline offset from the rotational center of the flower meter, and can preferably be inspected and removed from an included inspection port in the housing.
In certain embodiments, this flow meter can be further adapted with the use of a fractional cross section monitor that analyses the various phases of the process stream (oil/water/gas). Combined with the flow meter (Velocity) and a water cut meter preferably included downstream, the resulting combination of signal outputs to the flow computer enables a novel method for single, dual and multiphase measurements without the need for a radioactive gamma source.
Additionally, by including direct density and viscosity measurements in certain embodiments, the flow meter is able to monitor changing process conditions on a dynamic basis to amend the Cd (Co-efficient Discharge) value of the meter in the computer-executed process monitoring and control algorithms to allow for accurate measurement. This dynamic approach is unique to flow measurement.
The rotary orifice meter in certain embodiments also allows the option to switch from traditional orifice plates to multi-hole plates (to reduce the upstream straight length), or alternatively a flow nozzle (more suited for abrasive process).
In certain embodiments, the meter run is provided with multiple DP (Differential Pressure), P (Pressure), T (Temperature), Viscosity, Density and Water Cut sensors. These instruments monitor and control the process of maintaining accurate measurements. These instruments also allow for condition-based monitoring by cross correlation of the High, Low and Recovered DP values across the meter.
Output signals from these instruments are routed into the flow computer and control unit and may be used to alert authorized personnel and thereby incite any necessary human and/or automated action needed in relation to any process monitored by these instruments.
By integrating automation into the DBB instrument valves and actuation of the rotary chambers in certain embodiments, this offers the unique benefit to remotely control the meter and its validation without the need for human integration and there by offering a completely autonomous operation.
In certain embodiments, validation of the DP transmitters are carried out remotely by utilising a pressure source via a precise pressure controller into a solenoid manifold. In turn this, pressure can be directed to any high or low port of the transmitters to verify the reading therefrom against the outputted pressure values of the pressure controller, and in turn notifying the control station of a validated transmitter whose performance has been confirmed against a prescribed accuracy standard.
In certain embodiments, the flow conditioner is monitored by way of DP transmitter in the interest of maintaining measurement accuracy. A partially blocked Flow Conditioner can affect accuracy by 0.25%. The transmitter will dynamically monitor this and alert the control room of any discrepancies and need for rectification.
The design philosophy shared among the forgoing aspects of the invention, and others that may be apparent from the further detailed disclosure below, can offer huge versatility, particularly with incorporation of the disclosed measurement applications using state of the art instrumentation and communications, hence the use of tradename “iModul®”—Intelligent & Modular, by which any number of components, systems or subsystems describes herein may be referred.
Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:
With reference to
The pig launcher 14 and pig receiver 19 may each be of a conventional design utilising commercially available prior art products. In a manner well known in the art, these components allow for the introduction of a cleaning and/or measuring pig into the metering run pipeline, which is accommodated in the present invention in a unique manner disclosed below, resulting in whereby offering a uniquely efficient pigging process within the inventive metering run.
The filter 15 is preferably the extractable type disclosed in the aforementioned UK patents, and though illustrated within the metering run itself in the illustrated example, may alternatively be installed and utilised upstream of the metering run in other examples. The filter has a housing and is offered with a DBB. Although major filtration systems are utilised prior to metering, there are particles still reaching the primary measurement point (see
Turning now to the combined flow conditioner and line blind 16 of the present invention, a novel rotary design is employed that borrows from the rotary configuration of the rotatably adjustable orifice meter disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,055, the assignee of which is one of the joint inventors of the present application, and the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference. A commercially available example of such a rotatably adjustable orifice meter is the Roto-Boss™ multi-port orifice meter by Sur-Flo Meters and Controls Ltd., of Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
With reference to
The combined flow conditioner and line blind 16 of the present invention similarly employs a housing installed eccentrically of the pipe spool sections of the metering run to provide an internal chamber in which rotatably adjustable components are held for selective rotation thereof into a working position within the metering run, and into a retracted position extracted from the metering run. However, the eccentric rotary chamber design is modified in a unique way to fulfills the roles of both flow conditioning and isolation. By way of rotating the uniquely configured internal components of the chamber, the combined flow conditioner and line blind 16 is selectively manipulatable between three-different operating modes: (1) an Open state for pigging; (2) a Closed state for isolation; and (3) a Conditioning state for flow conditioning purposes. To enable this unique operation, the chamber of the combined flow conditioner and line blind 16 houses two independently rotatable discs D1, D2, whose selective rotation can be operated either manually or in automated fashion by suitable actuators, for example operating on a respective shaft of each disc that protrudes externally from the chamber via a respective one of the flange plates nearest to that disc (not shown), in similar fashion to the shaft-based rotation control of the singular disc in the multi-port orifice meter of the aforementioned US patent. The chamber further includes pressure instrumentation to allow for the performance monitoring of the flow conditioner, and/or confirmation of achieved positive isolation when in the Closed state (DBB mode).
With reference to the schematic illustration
To place the combined flow conditioner and line blind 16 in the closed state (DBB mode), the discs are rotated into positions placing both of their closed plates into the working positions in-line of the metering run, thereby accomplishing full isolation. To place the combined flow conditioner and line blind 16 in the open state (pigging mode), the discs are rotated into positions placing the singular open plate of one disc and any of the three open plates of the other disc into the working positions in-line of the metering run. To place the combined flow conditioner and line blind 16 in the conditioning state (normal mode), the discs are rotated into positions placing one of the flow conditioning plates of the one disc and any of the three open plates of the other disc into the working positions in-line of the metering run. The number of holes and plates may be varied, for example to as few as three holes (open, closed and conditioning), or to more than four holes (e.g. five holes, of which the fifth is occupied by yet another differently configured flow conditioning plate to increase the number of available flow conditioning options selectable by the operator/controller). While the illustrated example has only open and closed plates on the second disc, one or more conditioning plates could be included on the second disc, provided that at least one open plate is included to achieve the open state for the pigging mode of operation. The process stream could be directed through two aligned conditioning plates in the two discs for a compound conditioning effect, or through a conditioning plate of one disc when aligned with an open plate of the other disc for a non-compound single-plate conditioning effect. The benefits afforded by this novel rotary conditioner/DBB design include enabled extraction of the Flow conditioner plate(s) from the metering run without the need for depressurisation or dismantling.
Turning now to the combined flow meter and line blind 17, the illustrated embodiment uses a dual-disc rotary chamber of similar construction to the combined flow conditioner and line blind 16, but differing somewhat therefrom in terms of the particular selection of plates installed in the two rotatable discs thereof. The illustrated example particularly takes the form of a combined orifice meter and line blind, thus incorporating at least one orifice plate into at least one of its rotatable discs, in cooperation with pressure sensors for measuring differential pressure across the orifice, though it may alternatively use other metering technologies within the Differential Pressure category such as Nozzle, Cone, Wedge, or Venturi. Alternatively, the two discs could be equipped solely with open and closed plates for DBB functionality, while relying on other metering technologies for flow measurement, such as ultrasonic, Turbine, Coriolis or any other metering technology that may require or benefit from the pipeline isolation and/or Flow conditioning capabilities of the inventive metering run.
As described above for the combined flow conditioner and line blind 16, the first disc in the upstream/inlet half of the rotary chamber of the combined flow meter and line blind 17 has at least three holes for receiving three respective plates, including, at minimum, one open plate, one closed plate and at least one metering plate. Each metering plate could be, for example, a standard concentric square edge single-hole orifice plate, a multi-hole orifice plate to reduce overall length, and or a nozzle plate to improve measurement in abrasive process streams. The second disc in the downstream/outlet half of the chamber has at least two holes for respectively receiving open and closed plates. A first disc with more than three holes, e.g. four or five holes, could therefore accommodate multiple metering plates, whether of identical size and category, different size within a same metering category (e.g. differently sized concentric single-hole orifice plates), or different metering categories (e.g. single-hole vs. multi-hole orifice plate, orifice vs. nozzle plate, etc.).
The open plate preferably has a sufficient open space void to allow a “pig” to pass through if required. The result is three different operational modes, similar to those described above for the combined flow conditioner and line blind: (1) an Open state for pigging; (2) a Closed state for isolation; and (3) a Metering state for flow metering purposes. However, the present invention also encompasses rotary chamber flow conditioners and flow meters used on metering runs lacking a pig launcher and receiver, in which case the particular sizing of the open space void in the open plate need not be dictated by pig size. As disclosed in the aforementioned US patent, an access/inspection port is preferably provided to enable inspection, cleaning, swapping or replacement of plates, though in the present invention, such a port is provided on both flange plates of the housing to enable such access to the plates of both discs. The unique rotational multi-disc design of the combined flow meter and line blind 17 allows for ease of access to the plates, increased flow range by having different sized plates or extended frequency of inspection if the same size plates are utilised. All internal components of the rotary design are encapsulated in a sealed unit, so not to interfere with the pipeline process, pressure or integrity.
Whilst the combined flow meter and line blind 17 includes traditional High- and Low-Pressure taps for taking pressure readings upstream and downstream of the orifice or other metering constriction, it also incorporates a recovered pressure tap 23 downstream to offer condition-based monitoring. Upstream of the meter is a multiphase fractional sensor 24A, which along with an installed downstream water cut meter 24B, offers a unique method of calculating multiphase flow. Additional sensors 21, 22 which directly measure the density and viscosity are also included, optionally incorporated into a retractable thermowell 18, as schematically shown in
Turning to
For other instruments such as sample probe and temperature thermowell, if required, they can optionally be uniquely positioned within an extractable DBB housing for selectable extraction from the pipeline without interruption to the main pipeline process.
Referring again to
It will be appreciated that all outgoing communication signals generated by the flow computer based on measurements taken from the inventive meter run can be monitored both locally in the field, e.g. via a visual display incorporated into the flow computer, or via wired or wireless communications to a remote control centre.
In summary, the invention disclosed herein includes several unique aspects, benefits and advantages, a non-exhaustive listing of which includes:
Since various modifications can be made in the invention as herein above described, and many apparently widely different embodiments of same made, it is intended that all matter contained in the accompanying specification shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limiting sense.
This application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/170,754, filed Apr. 5, 2021, the entirety of which is incorporated herein by reference.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/CA2022/050508 | 4/4/2022 | WO |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63170754 | Apr 2021 | US |
