ALTOSONIC V is a unique flowmeter system for custody transfer flow measurement of hydrocarbons. It offers substantial improvements in accuracy and turndown required for custody transfer of high value petroleum products. Until now, ultrasonic flowmeters were not capable of meeting the stringent requirements for true fiscal and commercial metering. ALTOSONIC V is the first ultrasonic flowmeter in the world to gain approval for custody transfer applications defined by the OIML R-117 guidelines. ALTOSONIC V received type approvals from NMI, DTI, LNE and PTB. In February 2005 , The American Petroleum Institute (API) has released the long awaited standard “Measurement of Liquid Hydrocarbons by Ultrasonic Flow Meters Using Transit Time Technology”. The standard is now released and moved to the Manual of Petroleum Measurement Standards (MPMS) Chapter 5.8. (First Edition, February 2005). The field of application of the API MPMS Chapter 5.8 is the dynamic measurement of liquid hydrocarbons with Ultrasonic Flowmeters (UFM). While the document is specifically written for custody transfer measurement, other acceptable applications may include allocation measurement, check meter measurement and leak detection measurement. The scope of the document defines application criteria for UFM's and addresses the appropriate considerations regarding the liquids to be measured. The standard also tells about installation, operation and maintenance of UFM's in liquid hydrocarbon service.
Operating and maintenance costs of flow metering can be significantly reduced by ALTOSONIC V. Operating costs are low because there is negligible pressure drop and no filters are required. Maintenance is nearly none as there is no wear and periodical re- calibrations are not required. ALTOSONIC V operates independent of the viscosity, which makes it ideal for measurements in pipelines handling different products. Re-calibration, and expensive calibration facilities, are no longer necessary, nor is the change of devices when changing products.