At the end of 2009, it was two years since Fluxo installed the first non-intrusive ultrasonic flow meter (clamp-on) on a monobuoy. The equipment is fully operational at Tefran (São Francisco do Sul Terminal), which receives crude oil from the Campos Basin and sends it to Repar.
At Transpetro terminals, reading the flow in crude oil receiving operations through monobuoys has become essential to ensure safety during pumping. Tefran already had two Siemens/Controlotron clamp-on meters installed in the 32” inlet ducts. With the first meter installed on the monobuoy, located more than 9 km from the terminal, it was possible to monitor the transfers of ships and follow the flows in the monobuoy and at the entrance to the terminal, quickly detecting any possible problem or even a possible break in the line, which could cause an oil leak at sea.
The application of the clamp-on meter on the monobuoy was only possible due to the automatic compensation of the flow according to the Reynolds number and the upstream accident configured in the meter, which allows its installation in points where there is no straight upstream section available without increase your measurement uncertainty.
Eulis Santos Matos, Tefran's Project and Works Technician, who has been following the operation of the meter since it was installed, explains the application and approves the performance of the Siemens / Controlotron meter:
“On the monobuoy, there are only 80 cm of straight section to install the transducers, and upstream there is a 90° elbow and downstream there is a curve, that is, the conditions are extremely critical for measurement, but the meter performance is satisfactory, despite these conditions.”
After many months of efficient operation, the second meter on the monobuoy will now be installed in November and both transfer lines will be monitored, in addition to installing modbus communication boards in the meters to allow remote access to the meters for diagnostic purposes.