Oil Refineries, well drilling operations (such as offshore oil rigs), wastewater treatment plants, chemical processing plants, natural gas plants, and landfills are but a sampling of applications where waste gases are flared. Flares are subject to stringent regulations, requiring operators to measure, record, and report the amount of burned gases. Requirements to monitor the flow rate and consumption of flare gas may involve measurement at points within a complex series of feeder and header pipes, as well as the actual flare stack. Also, monitoring of the flare output provides essential information for process control.

Sage Insertion Style Thermal Mass Flow Meters provide the wide turndown required to cover both the extremely low flows (low velocities) associated with standard venting, as well as the extremely high flows (high velocities) associated with an upset condition. Their fast response to flow changes, low-pressure drop, and reproducibility are significant characteristics for a flare application. Also, Sage Flow Meters provide the customer with a unique procedure, the In-Situ calibration Check, at a “No Flow” (0 SCFM) condition. This vital procedure assures that the Flow Meter has retained the original NIST traceable calibration, verifies the meter’s accuracy, confirms that the sensors are clean and that the Flow Meter hasn’t drifted or shifted. It is a tremendous benefit since it eliminates the cost and inconvenience of annual calibrations on the flow meter, and also provides the data needed to comply with many Environmental protocols.