Ultrasonic clamp-on meters have become an established technology for non-invasive flow measurements. Under disturbed flow conditions, their measurement values must be adjusted with corresponding fluid mechanical calibration factors. Due to the variety of flow disturbances and installation positions, the experimental determination of these factors often needs to be complemented by computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. From a metrological perspective, substituting experiments with simulation results raises the question of how confidence in a so-called virtual measurement can be ensured. While there are well-established methods to estimate errors in CFD predictions in general, strategies to meet metrological requirements for CFD-based virtual meters have yet to be developed. In this paper, a framework for assessing the overall uncertainty of a virtual flow meter is proposed. In analogy to the evaluation of measurement uncertainty, the approach is based on the utilization of an expanded simulation uncertainty representing the entirety of the computational domain. The study was conducted using the example of an ultrasonic clamp-on meter downstream of a double bend out-of-plane. Nevertheless, the proposed method applies to other flow disturbances and different types of virtual meters. The comparison between laboratory experiments and simulation results with different turbulence modeling approaches demonstrates a clear superiority of hybrid RANS-LES models over the industry standard RANS. With an expanded simulation uncertainty of 1.44 × 10⁻², the virtual measurement obtained with a hybrid model allows for a continuous determination of calibration factors applicable to the relevant mounting positions of a real meter at a satisfactory level of confidence.

The 90 ° - bend represents the most common structural element in piping systems and can have a significant impact on the measuring accuracy of flow meters installed downstream. Within the type-approval procedure of water meters, its impact is emulated by means of a segmental orifice plate with a segment area of 7 % (SOP7). In research and development, coverage rates of 33 % (SOP33) or more are sometimes used as an alternative. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the comparability of the flow conditions and their influence on the measurement deviation of flow meters, which is the basic requirement for using SOPs as a substitute for the 90°- bend. We present laser Doppler measurements downstream of an SOP33 and a 90°- bend and describe the flow development in a distance range from 2 to 30 diameters. Besides a quantitative comparison with performance indicators, the measurements are used to model the response of an ultrasonic and electromagnetic flow meter, including recent investigations of an SOP7. The results demonstrate the consistently poor agreement between the SOP7 and the 90°- bend, whereas the SOP33 provides similar flow conditions starting at a distance of 10 diameters. Further studies are necessary to develop a disturbance generator emulating the near-field range.

Flow meters are exposed to very disparate and usually adverse flow conditions produced by the pipe configuration at the installation location. These so-called installation effects may affect the accuracy of the flow measurement. Within performance tests of water, heat, and cooling meters at flow laboratories, a selection of such installation effects are emulated by standardized disturbance generators. In particular, the standardized swirl disturbance generator is designed to reproduce the flow conditions downstream from a double-bend out of plane, a common installation in realistic pipe networks. However, recent studies suggest that tests with standardized swirl disturbance generators might not be sufficiently reproducible due to instabilities generating random flow patterns downstream. Here, we analyze the flow profile generated by a novel asymmetric swirl disturbance generator and a double-bend out of plane using laser-Doppler velocimetry. Our results suggest that the asymmetric swirl disturbance generator produces flow disturbances with similar features as those downstream from a double-bend out of plane. In consequence, the asymmetric flow disturbance generator is a good candidate for more reproducible and realistic tests of installation effects at flow laboratories and shall replace the current swirl generator in the standards.

In this study, the performance of several RANS and hybrid LES/RANS turbulence models along with different CFD solvers (ANSYS Fluent, OpenFOAM and RapidCFD) is tested in terms of their ability to reproduce the flow downstream of a 90° pipe bend. The focus is on the temporal mean profiles downstream of the bend up to approximately 31 times the pipe's diameter D. The turbulence models' accuracy is evaluated by means of performance indicators and flow profiles in comparison to LDA measurements. The results demonstrate that the use of RANS models is suitable as long as the location of interest is in the vicinity of the bend up to approximately 10 D downstream of the bend. With increasing distance, the accuracy of the RANS models decreases, and the use of hybrid LES/RANS models is recommended.Three hybrid LES/RANS models are tested: the stress-blended eddy simulation (SBES) model as well as the Spalart-Allmaras-based and the k-omega SST-based improved delayed detached eddy simulation (IDDES) models. All three models show enhanced results for a distance to the bend >10 D. Additionally, it is found that in this geometry configuration, the IDDES models require a transient inlet. The flow separation due to the redirection inside the bend is too weak to generate turbulent fluctuations and a fast transition to full LES mode in the separation region. Due to the turbulent excitation at the inlet, the RANS region downstream of the bend is distinctly reduced, resulting in an enhanced performance of the hybrid IDDES models.