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Custody Transfer Flow Measurement with New Technologies

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Custody Transfer Flow Measurement with New Technologies CUSTODY TRANSFER FLOW MEASUREMENT WITH NEW TECHNOLOGIES Stephen A. Ifft McCrometer Inc. Hemet, California, USA ABSTRACT New technologies can often bring advances to the operational processes within many industries. These advances can improve the overall production of a facility with better performance, better reliability, and lower costs. Obstacles exist, however, to the introduction and use of these new technologies. The natural gas industry has such obstacles, particularly with the use of new technology for custody transfer flow measurement. Paper standards from international organizations like the International Organization for Standardization, the American Petroleum Institute and the American Gas Association are examples of these obstacles. While these paper standards serve to protect and guide companies in their use of technology, they prevent the introduction of new and often better technology. A reform is underway in the natural gas industry to allow companies to take advantage of newer technologies that were not accessible before. This will hopefully redefine the phrase “approved for custody transfer measurement.” This phrase has been used incorrectly around the world for decades since none of the organizations listed above actually approve meters for custody transfer measurement. If companies are to reap the benefits of newer and better technology, the industry must continue to reform the existing paper standards that exclude every technology but those that are decades old. As new technologies become available, the industry must have procedures ready for evaluating their possible benefits and detriments. Without these procedures, the advances of the modern world will be overlooked. McCrometer Inc. is a manufacturer of flow measurement devices, including the V-Cone differential pressure flowmeter. McCrometer has first-hand knowledge of the obstacles to bringing a new technology to the natural gas market. This paper will explain how one new technology has been used successfully in custody transfer flow measurement applications even without “custody transfer approval”. Also, the author will review how the industry is transforming (and should transform) to exploit the new technologies available today. INTRODUCTION natural gas leaders for standards of The natural gas industry is the leader for measurement that can guide the many other industries in terms of installation, use, and evaluation of measurement technology and measurement devices. knowledge. Standards within the United States natural gas industry are often used Organizations within the United States within unrelated industries, such as natural gas include the American Gas chemical, paper, and power industries. Association (AGA) and the American These industries and others turn to the Petroleum Institute (API). Currently the Saudi Aramco 1999 Page 1 Stephen A. Ifft, McCrometer Inc. AGA is focusing its efforts towards AGA, API, and ISO all have one thing in natural gas distribution and consumer common, the term “Custody Transfer”. use. The API is focusing its efforts This term has many different definitions towards gas production and and uses. This author will define the transmission. Even with their different term custody transfer as the flow focuses, there is substantial overlap measurement of a product between between the organizations and there is parties where the measurement will be much cooperation between them. used for financial purposes. AGA and API both have programs that By using standards written by these write, publish, and support paper organizations, a flow meter user can be standards. These standards cover a wide assured that the flow measurement is the range of topics including gas sampling, best possible level available by that gas storage, safety and pollution. This device. paper will focus on the paper standards for flow measurement devices only. By For instance, if a user buys, installs and far the most widely used standards are maintains an orifice plate according to those written around the orifice plate one of the above standards, that user will differential pressure flow meter. This is be making a measurement that is as because the concentric, square-edged accurate as can be expected from an orifice plate is used in more than 50% of orifice plate. This accuracy is usually in flow measurement applications around the range of 0.5 to 1.0% of reading. the world. Another advantage to using these The AGA and API standards concerning standards is the legal support they give orifice plates are as follows: the user. Ideally a custody transfer AGA Report No. 3, parts 1, 2, 3, 4 measurement is an agreement to buy and API Chapter 14.3, parts 1, 2, 3, 4 sell a product between two parties. This is not normally just two people shaking The International Organization for hands over an agreement. The Standardization (ISO) also writes, agreement must be in a legal publishes and supports paper standards environment. As a legal issue, the for measurement, including flow agreement must be binding and measurement devices. Their standard supportable. By referring to a paper for the orifice plate is as follows: standard for flow measurement, both the ISO 5167-1:1991 buyer and seller (through their legal departments) agree to use a certain type This standard also covers other of meter in a certain way. For instance, differential pressure meters, such as if the agreement states the flow venturis and flow nozzles. measurement must be made in accordance with AGA Report #3, then an orifice plate is the choice of meters. CUSTODY TRANSFER FLOW If any disagreement occurs between the MEASUREMENT parties, the AGA paper standard is used to determine if the flow measurement was properly made or not. Saudi Aramco 1999 Page 2 Stephen A. Ifft, McCrometer Inc. do the standards call out how the user New technologies should use the meters, but also how they As new technologies for flow should be built. Thus any meter that is measurement enter the industry, paper covered under a paper standard could not standards are not automatically written be a proprietary design. All the AGA, around them. This is understandable for API, and ISO paper standards specify many reasons. Many new technologies exactly how the meter itself should be enter the industry every year. The built. If a company with a patented demand to write a new paper standard design wanted to have a design standard for each new technology would be written around the product, it would overwhelming. AGA, API, and ISO have to release the design information make money off the sale of their that makes their product unique. standards, but they could not commit the Obviously, most companies with new, resources to write a standard for so many patented technologies will not release new products. Many of these new such data. technologies also will not last the test of time. This has been proven over and A recent movement in the natural gas over. A new technology will appear to industry may be changing the very solve many traditional flow nature of the paper standards of today. measurement problems. As this new API is considering making new paper product is tested and used over time, standards not design standards but new, unforeseen problems occur that performance standards. Thus, a meter make the meter unusable for many with the performance required for applications. All the standards certain applications would receive organization would not spend time approval. This movement is due mainly writing a paper standard around a soon- to the increased popularity of ultrasonic to-be-obsolete product. meters. Many natural gas customers would like to use ultrasonic meters for As expected, there is also a legal reason measurement but each manufacturer why these organizations do not write makes their meter slightly different. standards for new technologies. By With so many different designs, API writing a paper standard, these could not reasonably write a design organizations are guaranteeing the standard for each one. A performance success of a product. If Company X has standard was proposed and is now being a product that has a paper standard considered. written around it, it would very likely do better than a product from Company Y Government involvement without such a document. For this Within the United States, the reason, these organizations will not government has surprisingly little to do consider writing a paper standard around with the custody transfer flow a metering device with a proprietary measurement of natural gas. While there design. exist standards regulating the flow measuring of gasoline at consumer gas Design standards stations and standards regulating the The paper standards that exist today are flow measurement of pasteurized milk, considered design standards. Not only the government keeps a laissez-faire Saudi Aramco 1999 Page 3 Stephen A. Ifft, McCrometer Inc. approach to the natural gas industry. Europe, national standards refer back to This is understandable since the industry the appropriate ISO paper standards. can safely and fairly regulate itself. For Asia, Africa, and the rest of the While the consumer has little protection world, the particular standard referenced against measurement biases, large in government documents varies. corporations have a vested interest in receiving and delivering accurate “APPROVED FOR CUSTODY amounts of product. TRANSFER” The term “approved for custody This type of self-regulation exists in the transfer” is used throughout the world. United States and has been a successful If a vendor tries to introduce a new approach for more than a hundred years. product to an industry, one of the first The governments of other countries, questions is “Is the meter approved for however, do get involved in the custody transfer measurement?” In the production and transportation of natural United States the answer to this question gas. Canada is one such example. the is “No.” Even if the meter under Canadian government regulates the question is an orifice plate, the answer is custody transfer transportation of natural “No.” This is because there is no gas flow measurement.
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