Ultrasonic level measurement in the wastewater industry
September 2000
Level Measurement & Control
Ultrasonic open channel flow and ultrasonic level measurement is the most reliable, commonly used noncontact measurement for level and flow. It would also be fair to say that ultrasonic level measurement can be used on far more applications than any other level measurement instrumentation.
Ultrasonics can be used to measure the level of many materials. Common liquid applications are water, slurry, sewerage, oils and corrosive liquids. Common solid applications include sand, rock, coal, lime, ash, pellets and ore. Common flow applications are sewerage, water treatment plants and for monitoring effluent flow from factories.
With new gain and pulse amplifier technology, the ultrasonic level can now work in far dustier environments than ever before. This new software technology allows the return echo to be analysed, for example, in a dusty silo, and then adjust the appropriate firing power of the transducer and the gain of the receiving amplifier circuit.
The SUMPI FM from KAB Instruments is a low-cost, easy to install open channel flowmeter. It is capable of measuring flow rates in all types of open flow applications up to a range of 10 m. It is a noncontact means of measuring flow, thus requiring no maintenance - and there are no mechanical moving parts that may become blocked and worn, necessitating maintenance. It is commonly used in the water and sewerage treatment industry to measure flow.
The meter displays both flow rate and the totalled flow. With its menu driven display there is no need to use a complicated manual and a multitude of parameters to program the instrument.
An example: The menu-driven display will ask if your application is for a Venturi Flume, Parshall Flume, V-notch or rectangular weir. A 21-point lineariser is available for non-standard applications. The instrument provides an isolated 4 to 20 mA output proportional to the flow and two relays that can be programmed for pulsed outputs and/or high/low level alarms.
The SUMPI ultrasonic level transmitter is used for measuring the level of liquids and solids up to a range of 10 m. It has a 4 to 20 mA output for continuous level indication which can be linearised to suit the vessel shape and two relays that can be programmed to control pumps and/or to be used for high and low level alarms. It has a local display, which can be programmed to display the level in percentage, volume or any engineering unit that the customer desires. It is commonly used by water treatment plants, for stock control in lime storage silos and reactive agent tanks.
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