Natural Gas Vortex Flow Meter

Standard LUGB ships at ±1.5 % of reference volume with 1:15 working turndown; sufficient for plant gas inlets, CHP fuel feeds, and biogas/biomethane plants. The LUGB-VRd version; 2024 China Instrument Society Top-10 New Product; extends to ±0.5 % at 1:70 turndown for strongly variable demand. Every order ships with a factory calibration certificate against a traceable flow stand and a K-factor matched to the stated gas composition and operating P/T range.

Natural-gas density depends on pressure and temperature, so converting raw volumetric flow to Nm³/h reference volume needs both readings live. The LUGB integrates a Pt1000 RTD and a piezoresistive pressure transducer on the meter body; the on-board flow computer combines them with the vortex frequency to output Nm³/h directly on the 4-20 mA loop. No external flow computer, no SCADA-side correction script, no spreadsheet adjustment; the value on the wire is already gas-day-corrected.

CNEX Ex d IIC T6 Gb (flameproof, Zone 1, gas group IIC, surface-temperature class T6) ships as standard for hazardous-area orders; confirm the zone on the quote. IP65 / IP66 / IP67 ingress protection is available. EMC compliance to the EU Electromagnetic Compatibility Directive 2014/30/EU (Annex II) ships as standard, covering EN IEC 61000-6-1, -6-2, -6-3, -6-4, EN IEC 61000-3-2, and EN 61000-3-3.

Biogas (50–65 % CH₄, 30–45 % CO₂, trace H₂S after conditioning): yes with standard 316L wetted parts; conditioned biogas with H₂S below 4 ppm is handled without modification. Biomethane (>96 % CH₄ after grid-injection upgrade): treat as standard natural gas. Raw biogas with higher H₂S or sour-gas service: specify Hastelloy C wetted parts at quote time. CHP fuel inlet service is the same range as plant gas inlet, with built-in T+P compensation feeding the heat-rate calculation directly.

Plant gas demand often swings 1:10 to 1:30 across a working week; process changeovers, weekend versus weekday utility load, seasonal heating ramp. Standard vortex meters cover 1:10 to 1:15. The LUGB-VRd version; built on patented isolation-generator technology; covers 1:70 turndown in a single meter, eliminating the parallel-meter bypass piping older sites used to span seasonal swing.

Three options ship as standard. (1) 4-20 mA analogue carries flow in Nm³/h, scaleable to the DCS range. (2) Pulse output gives uncompensated volume per pulse for prover work and totalizer cross-check. (3) RS485 Modbus RTU exposes the full register map: instantaneous Nm³/h, totalized Nm³, density, live P and T, K-factor, status word. HART is a factory option, and a GPRS/4G IoT gateway is available for remote sites without a DCS link.

Vortex (LUGB-class) fits clean, dry pipeline gas at DN50 – DN300, ±1.5 %, no moving parts, lowest installed cost in this size range. Ultrasonic multipath suits transmission lines (DN300+) with zero pressure drop at 3–5× the price. Turbine fits high-pressure work with stable flow but narrow 1:10 turndown and needs strict filtration. Thermal mass fits low-pressure low-flow inlets. Vortex covers roughly 70 % of industrial gas-inlet measurement points where the pipe is DN50 – DN300 and budget matters.

5–7 business days from the factory for every configuration in this model; standard, VRc anti-vibration, or VRd award-winning version; at any DN, PN rating, output mix, or hazardous-area code. Engineering review on the configurator submission turns around within 4 business hours and locks the model code before production starts.