Exact Flow offers dual-rotor meters for race cars

Exact Flow is offering dual-rotor turbine flowmeter technology for use on Formula One race cars.

Chosen for their repeatability of 0.02 per cent, dual-rotor turbine flowmeters are small, lightweight and rugged and do not require straight fuel line sections for flow conditioning, according to the company.

These turbine meters will help race teams cope with a Federation Internationale de L'Automobile (FIA) rule change prohibiting mid-race refuelling, which will be imposed for the first time in the 2010 season.

According to the FIA, refuelling during a race will be forbidden in order to save the cost of transporting refuelling equipment and to increase the incentive for engine builders to improve fuel economy.

'We provide advanced dual-rotor turbine flowmeters, which can be custom designed for installation on board Formula One race cars to measure engine fuel consumption,' said Regan Morrison, Exact Flow application engineer.

The advanced dual-rotor design provides a performance that is not obtainable with traditional single-rotor turbine meters, according to Exact Flow.

This design enhances universal viscosity curves and extends the usable flow measurement range.

The meters offer bearing diagnostics, precision, long-life ceramic bearings and high-shock internals.

Additional advantages include the use of helical rotors for both dual- and single-rotor turbine flowmeters, which optimise energy transfer over the entire surface of the blade, enhancing the speed of response to step changes in flow rates.

Helical rotors also produce less pressure drop across the meter, as compared with the traditional flat-bladed rotor design.

This reduction, translated into force, reduces bearing wear, allowing the meter to maintain its original calibration over a longer period of time.

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