The increase of hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and other extreme weather events puts an end to speculation about whether climate change is real.
Another disturbing reality is that Earth’s average temperature has increased in recent years. According to a continuous study conducted by NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, Earth’s average global temperature rose by 1.4 °F since 1880. In 2023, the planet’s average temperature was the warmest since recordkeeping began, averaging 2.12 °F above the 20th century average. Changing weather patterns and Earth’s rising temperature continue to demonstrate the importance of taking definitive action to reduce carbon emissions and slow down this dangerous trend.
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How renewable energy can help
Climate change is almost universally recognized by governments worldwide, and many large corporations make combating climate change a priority. Reducing reliance on fossil fuels and substituting renewable energy in their place is chief among these efforts. There are two main areas where renewable energy has had a major impact:
- In the power industry, including generating electricity
- In renewable gas flow applications
Renewable energy usually refers to one of these two areas.
Power generation
In the power industry, where electricity is generated. Traditional (fossil-based) methods of providing power to generate electricity include coal, oil and natural gas. Coal is the most environmentally unfriendly way to generate electricity. Oil is cleaner than coal, while natural gas is cleaner than oil. There are at least eight ways to generate electricity using renewable methods:
- Solar power: Solar panels convert sunlight into electricity using semiconductor materials (solar photovoltaic). Mirrors focus sunlight to heat a fluid, which heats water, which creates steam that turns a turbine (concentrated solar power).
- Wind power: Wind turns turbine blades that turn a rotor. The pinning rotor is connected to a shaft, which spins a generator to create electricity.
- Hydropower: Hydropower plants use dams or other structures to alter the flow of a river or stream. Water flows through a pipe, or penstock, and against the blades of a turbine. The turbine spins a generator, which produces electricity.
- Geothermal energy: Heat energy from within the planet is captured and harnessed to produce electricity, for heating, cooling and other purposes.
- Biomass energy: Biomass is organic matter such as plants, animals, wood and waste that can be burned or converted into liquid or gaseous fuels.
- Tidal energy: Tidal energy captures the natural rise and fall of the tides and converts it into power and electricity.
- Wave energy: Wave energy harnesses the natural up-and-down movement of ocean or river waves. Once this motion is captured, it is used to drive a generator that produces electricity.
- Hydrogen: Hydrogen can be produced from multiple sources including coal, nuclear power, natural gas, biomass, solar and wind. The most common hydrogen is grey hydrogen, produced from fossil fuels. Only hydrogen produced from renewable sources is considered renewable (green hydrogen).
Renewable gas flow applications
Renewable energy also refers to one of the following methods of producing renewable gas:
- Biogas measurement (anaerobic digestion, landfill gas and other);
- Measurement of gases from other biomass processes (gasification, pyrolysis);
- Coal mine methane recovery and measurement;
- Hydrogen flow measurement (as noted previously, only green hydrogen is considered renewable);
- CCUS (carbon capture utilization and storage); and
- Renewable hydrogen storage, including ammonia.
Flowmeters used in renewable energy applications
The use of flowmeters in renewable applications varies with the technology used for generation. In solar applications, turbine meters measure water or glycol circulated through solar collectors. Magnetic flowmeters measure the flow of water with dissolved salt and other additives.
In wind power, turbine, positive displacement and ultrasonic flowmeters measure the flow of coolants such as oils or glycol, and of lubricating fluids.
Hydropower involves the flow of water, so there are more opportunities to measure flow. River flows are measured by open channel flowmeters, The height of the river is determined from marked level devices, and the dimensions of the channel are generally known. Turbine and ultrasonic meters are used to measure the flow in the penstock, and in the smaller pipes beyond the penstock, leading to the spinning turbine. Differential pressure flowmeters are also used in these applications. In hydropower, some measurement is done for efficiency, and some for regulatory reporting purposes.
Flowmeters are also used in geothermal, biomass, tidal and wave energy, although the exact types and applications require further research. Thermal flowmeters are used in these applications, especially those involving measuring gases. Many companies are working on measuring hydrogen, and Coriolis and ultrasonic flowmeters are best suited.
The main types of flowmeters used to measure renewable gas applications include Coriolis, ultrasonic, vortex, thermal and differential pressure. Thermal flowmeters are widely used in these applications since high accuracy is often not required. Coriolis meters are used for mass flow and for higher accuracy.
Measuring natural gas, refined fuels and other fossil fuels is still the largest segment of the flowmeter market, and no company should abandon that area, especially if they are already established in it. However, measuring renewable energy is clearly the wave of the future, and companies that want to be ahead of the curve will do well to take a close look at this expanding market.
