Natural Gas Submetering and Integration Services
Utility Gas Meter Integration
Integration of utility gas meters are typically performed through pulse outputs installed by the utility company. Since the gas meter is an asset for the utility company, we request that the end user makes this request for an output. Once this output is provided, Emergent will provide the necessary hardware to integrate the pulses and convert the pulses back to flow (Cubic Feet) or energy (therms / KWH).
This integration method provides the most accurate measurement for the site's gas consumption since the pulses are originating from the utility gas meter itself. Since the main utility gas meter's output is being monitored, this does assume the utility gas meter to be 100% accurate regardless of its age, make and model.
New Inline Gas Sub-Meters
New inline gas submeters are recommended for locations where power is limited and temperature range might be a concern for insertion thermal mass meters. Installation of an inline gas meter will require additional mechanical labor to thread or flange in a new meter.
Pressure and temperature compensation is typically not implemented on these meters due to the high cost of the compensation components. If this meter fails, flow through the meter will be impacted, which might require the user to install a bypass line to remove and service the meter. This meter also uses system pressure to turn its measuring components, this will lead to a slight pressure drop through the meter head.
New Insertion Thermal Mass Gas Sub-Meters
New insertion thermal mass gas meters are recommended for locations where there might be limited space for pipe modifications to fit an inline meter into the flow path. insertion thermal mass meters are both pressure and temperature compensated and are typically installed through insertion of the flow sensor into the flow path. A thread-o-let is welded to the gas pipe, where a ball valve and compression coupling is then used to secure the meter in the pipe.
This meter provides the lowest installed cost as long as power is available to service the meter. This option provides ease of service as the meter can be removed from the pipe without a system shutdown or a bypass.
Accuracy
We are integrating the utility meter's outputs. Since there is no other reference meter to determine the system's accuracy, the data collected will be considered to be 100% accurate
Reliability & Serviceability
The meter is owned and managed by the utility company. They will own their meter's operation and will be the one to install the output from the meter. MEter reliability is not a concern.
Data Quality
Monitoring of a site's main gas meter will provide gas consumption data for only the main meter. Live energy usage data will be provided. Additional submetering at point of use points might be needed for boilers and high gas usage points.
Accuracy
New inline meters are typically not equipped with pressure and temperature compensation. Due to this, these meters will be less accurate as they are pure volumetric meters. The data integration and dashboarding system will be able to account for a static pressure value by implementing a BTU / CF Offset.
Reliability & Serviceability
These meters are typically used on applications where there is limited power availability. Requiring flanged or threaded connections, a bypass is typically needed to provide meter serviceability. This ultimately increases the cost for installation. These meters are typically quite reliable and will work in wide temperature ranges since there are no electronics in the meter.
Data Quality
Inline gas meters are equipped with volumetric pulsers that will provide a dry contact closure. The granularity of the meter is determined by the pulser's multiplier.
Accuracy
These thermal mass meters provide the greatest degree of accuracy because of the pressure and temperature compensation that is built into the meter. Due to the flow velocity measurement properties of this meter, ensuring proper pipe lengths to achieve laminar flow is critical to maintain this accuracy.
Reliability & Serviceability
With the electronics involved with these meters, operating temperature is more of a concern. Meters are easy to service because of the valve and compression fitting installation that allows for meter removal from the pipe with ease. These meters are typically serviced by 24VDC and should be serviced by a power and integration panel that is fairly close by due to voltage drops.
Data Quality
These meters can communicate through open protocol such as BACNET or MODBUS RTU. With both analog and pulsed output options. With the range of communication and output options, this meter provides the greatest integration flexibility.
Gas Meter Data Integration and Dashboarding
Emergent Energy utilizes the Panoramic Power cloud dashboard as the primary integration platform for gas meters. Depending on the level of data integration and fault detection needed, there are other options for dashboarding and fault detection.
