NEL Invests £1 million in new high pressure calibration facility

NEL is investing £1 million (appr. €1.4 million) to create the UK’s only flow meter calibration facility capable of testing at significantly elevated pressures and temperatures.

This new test loop will reduce oil and gas operators’ financial exposure by performing meter calibrations closer to actual service conditions.

By more accurately reflecting the increasing temperatures and pressures at which flow meters must operate, the uncertainty of meters deployed in the field will be minimised significantly.

Douglas Griffin, head of Petroleum Measurement & Allocation, the Oil & Gas Authority, says: ‘Both equipment manufacturers and operators face significant flow measurement challenges, with elevated temperatures and pressures causing a substantial gap between calibration and actual service conditions.’

The pressure capability of NEL’s high pressure/high operating temperature liquid flow loop will increase from 5 bar maximum capability to 100 bar, with its ability to deal with higher temperatures increasing from 40ºC maximum capability to 80ºC.

The new facility will be fully operational during quarter three of this year.

NEL’s flow facilities are already widely recognised as one of the best in the world and are the primary flow measurement standard for the UK, under the UK’s National Measurement System (NMS).

‘NEL’s investment means that the UK is leading the improvement of flow meter performance in ever more challenging operating conditions,’ says Dr Phil Mark, group manager, NEL.

‘NEL’s new high pressure/high operating temperature liquid flow loop fills the gap between calibration and service conditions, allowing manufacturers to prove the performance of their meters, while operators and taxation authorities can be assured of more accurate fiscal measures.’