Compressed Air Flow Meters – a Leak could make you Bleak

Compressed air is termed as an air which is kept under a steadfast pressure, usually greater than the atmospheric pressure. The Compressed Air terminology is spreading its wings widely over the industrial and commercial sector of the economy. Some studies states that few percentile of this air is capable of generating thousands of terawatt of power. The easily understandable examples of this Compressed Air are, Jackhammers & Screwdrivers used in manufacturing units; Car lifting jack, air hoses and couplings and many more. Its diverse use made this substance as precious as wild pearls and thus, wastage is unbearable. In this article, I will be mentioning few areas where we intentionally waste this most expensive air. I learned these during one of my workshop before joining work, “safety measures – be wise and save money” and we will also learn why do engineer stress on using Compressed Air Flow Meters.

Instructor: I welcome you all in this workshop in which we will learn about the common mistakes we all do while working with compressed air equipment. Before you are told to work on compressed air flow systems, make yourself clear about the working of Compressed air flow meters.

Mistake 1: We all use these compressed air equipments for blowing dust or dirt off

This is the stupidest thing most of us do (especially in manufacturing units); we use this highly expensive compressed air for blowing dust or dirt off. We do this, because of its availability; but the hazard we overlook is, “compressed air blows at very high pressure, which simply can be dangerous enough to tear up things in particles. At some section of industry, it may be released at a high pressure then the rest of the areas. Using this for blowing dust off can reasonably dislodge particles. Moreover, we know that cleaning dust with compressed air never produce 100% results.

Mistake 2: Mishandling can cause embolism

Ever heard about this term called embolism? It is an air bubble in the blood stream. As we will be working in an industrial sector, which is prone to cuts and wounds; I urge you not to use these compressed air equipments for blowing dust off from you. The simplest reason is, there are high possibilities that air can enter into your blood stream via a cut or wound, which you might get while working. This air, once enter in your blood stream will result in a bubble, which is known as embolism. The final result of this embolism is death.

Most of us will be joining company's Canadian manufacturing unit; so for those, please be advised that in out Alberta, Quebec and Manitoba units, compressed air dust cleaning is prohibited by law.

However, above mentioned risks can be mitigated by implanting Compressed Air Flow Meters, which will regulate the flow of air as per the requirements on particular equipment and thus, a halt can be put on wastage and associated dangers.

1% Negligence with Gas Flow Meters Could Cause 99% Loss

Gas Flow Meters, the name says everything; a meter that regulates the flow of gas; a meter that acts like a gladiator, which is under an oath to protect the investment at any cost. The above title is righteously given, because 1% percent mistake in the flow measurement could result in 99% loss of assets and that too irreparable. In case you are opting about giving a second thought to these meters, explore a bit about dreadful accidents that took place in Japan's pesticide factory in late 1980 and Hydrogen explosion accidents held in the same country in the year 1991.

Anyone can have a glimpse of these Gas Flow Meters in their parking or courtyard area of their property; a meter coated in gray or silver color, which performs two main functions; it regulates the flow and measure the consumption. These meters besides in residential uses, plays an important role in Industrial sectors, especially in chemical, oil and gas or power industry. In these factories, these meters serve a real purpose. Irrefutably, any malfunctioned reading means loss of gas, deteriorated quality and poor flow. These losses then become a limelight on the fiscal reports.

Let us explore some common flow measurement related mistakes, which results in wrong readings:

• Wrong selection: The biggest challenge in industry is, “how to select a right flow meter”, and most of the time, the reason behind its failure is the wrong selection. Therefore, before resting your investment on a particular meter, do check its sustainability; do check whether that meter is okay for measuring all sorts of gases. One needs to make a thorough comparison between its tangible and intangible factors, before implanting it in a unit. It is simply not recommended to install a flow meter without judging its flow range, desired accuracy, filter requirements, data update frequency, etc.
• Gas carry under: these carry under conditions varies a lot while measuring other liquid flow which may or may not alter the accuracy of liquid flow measurement and this wrong mensuration results in shrinkage. This shrinkage later on results in wrong gas flow readings.
• Straight run requirements: undeniably, every flow meter cannot measure every kind of flow; or in other words, these liquefied gases have different sensitivities to different kind of flow field deformations.
• Meter installation: sometimes the reason behind wrong measurement is its installation, i.e. it is not properly installed. There might be mistakes with its alignment, direction, piping geometry and many others.

Therefore, one need to buy a flow meter that can assure the best reading or measurement or a particular liquid gas, without any discrepancies. These Gas Flow Meters must be checked for above mentioned points before implanting, in order to slay any chance of loss.