Custody transfer steam measurement for brewery

A Dutch energy supplier was commissioned to build a steam boiler plant for a well-known beer brewery.

The energy for this steam boiler plant is generated via wind turbines. The water of the steam boiler is thus heated in a sustainable way. Eventually, it releases steam, which is then transported through pipelines to the brewery and surrounding offices. In this way, the energy is used sustainably, both for producing beer and for heating the office buildings.

In order to accurately measure and calculate the steam, within the conditions specified by the energy supplier, the company was looking for custody transfer and reliable measuring instrumentation to enable the supplier to accurately charge the "green" steam to the end customer.

KROHNE provided an energy-efficient Plug & Play solution with the Venturi Delta P measurement, with an assembly of 3 pressure transmitters, 2 x OPTIBAR DP7060 and 1 x OPTIBAR PM5060, a temperature transmitter and a certified flow computer SUMMIT 8800.

In a Venturi DP flow element, the cross section of the pipe is tapered at one position to increase the flow rate of the medium, while the overall volume flow in the pipe remains unchanged. One or more differential pressure transmitters are used to measure the resulting pressure drop (energy efficient). The pressure drop across the DP flow element, is a proportional measurement of the increased flow rate (kinetic energy) in the flow element.

If the cross-section area of the flow element and the density of the medium in the pipe are known, the DP flow measurement principle directly determines the volume flow. Also, the flow element determines the mass flow of liquids, gases and steam in the pipe (round or square).

The customer can measure very accurately the lowest as well as the highest flow ranges, within the 0.5% standard, allowing almost all energy to be measured, with a turndown ratio of 10 to 1. As a result, there is minimal energy loss, and the customer can accurately invoice the energy delivered via a billing system.

The customer chose KROHNE as a total supplier for the entire project. From quotation to the complete installation/commissioning of the unit, as well as the engineering, hardware and documentation certification.

Result: efficient sustainable Plug & Play solution for supplier and end customer.

Highlights

OPTIBAR DP 7060 differential pressure transmitter

-       High performance DP transmitter with integrated line pressure measurement

OPTIBAR PC 5060 pressure transmitter

-       Robust design, with corrosion- and wear-resistant ceramic diaphragm

SUMMIT 8800 flowcomputer

          - Digital flow computer for custody transfer (CT) measurements

OPTITEMP TR/C - A 30-37 temperature transmitter

    - Temperature measurement for a wide range of applications

VENTURI DP flowmeter

    - Highest requirements in terms of accuracy and long-  term stability