• Other Fluke companies:
  • Fluke
  • Fluke Biomedical
  • Fluke Networks
  • Fluke Process Instruments
See more Fluke brands
Accelix Amprobe Beha-Amprobe Comark Emaint Landauer Pacific Laser Systems Pomona RaySafe Schad
Home
Precision, Performance, Confidence.
Fluke Calibration: US
  • Register
  • Log in
  • Contact Us

US - English [Change]

 

Get Quote

Flow Calibration

Fluke Calibration provides a flow calibration system that allows you to use sonic nozzle flow elements at higher pressure and a robust internal pneumatic design. Request a quote today!
Request a Quote
Keep me informed
Gas Flow Standards
Gas Flow Standards »
Gas Flow Accessories
Gas Flow Accessories »
GFS Primary Gravimetric Flow Standard
GFS Primary Gravimetric Flow Standard »
Flow Calibration Software
Flow Calibration Software »

What is gas flow calibration?

Gas flow calibration refers to the calibration of a flow sensing device such as a flow meter or flow controller by comparing its measurement against a flow measurement reference. Typically the device, or unit under test (UUT) is pneumatically connected in series with the flow reference so that they measure the same gas flow, then the indications of the two devices are compared.

Where is gas flow calibration used?

  • Flow meter/controller manufacturing and service

    Manufacturers of flow meters and mass flow controllers (MFC) have a large volume of calibrations to perform and require a standard that is fast, accurate and can be automated. molbloc/molbox’s accurate real-time flow output is especially important for manual adjustment of mass flow meters and mass flow controllers. Many MFC service centers use molbloc/molbox to perform manual analog MFC calibrations.

  • Process control

    Technicians use molbloc/molbox for calibration, testing and troubleshooting instruments and test systems from manufacturing to research applications. In these applications, the key requirements are often repeatability, speed and portability.

    • Semiconductor/fiber optics/photovoltaic

      These and other processes involving coatings and gas deposition processes are heavily reliant on the performance and stability of mass flow controllers. Calibrating MFCs at the plant-level may save money over outsourcing the service, and having a reliable reference for troubleshooting can save hours of downtime. A molbloc can often be connected directly into a manifold to check MFC performance without uninstalling.

    • Bio-pharmaceutical

      Gas flow rates into bio-reactors and fermenters can be critical, and molbloc/molbox is used to perform traceable MFC calibration in many pharmaceutical plants. Transportability is key for many in-situ calibration applications, and molbloc/molbox can deliver a portable solution for up to hundreds or even thousands of liters per minute with molbloc-S.

    • Petrochemical (R&D)

      Accurate testing of both flow meters and controllers is key in research facilities developing petrochemical processes that can be later scaled up to production quantities. Fluke Calibration can provide or specify simple hardware setups to allow molbloc to test devices running at pressures of 3,000 psi or more.

    • Fuel cell testing

      Testing fuel cell performance requires accurate measurement of hydrogen and other gas flows. molbloc/molbox is a fast and accurate way to calibrate MFCs in small or large fuel cell testing environments.

    • Gas blending

      Dynamic gas blending is an alternative to weighing or other filling methods to more quickly create standard blends of gases. molbloc/molbox can provide traceability of the blending system flow devices, or in critical applications can be used directly in the blending control system.

  • Environmental quality/monitoring

    molbloc/molbox is the first choice for calibration of ambient and toxic gas monitor “calibrators.” These devices control critical concentrations of pollutant gases for calibration of monitors. molblocs are easily connected to the calibrators in the lab or field for traceable calibrations. molbloc/molbox is used by state, local, national and international agencies to support their air quality monitoring instruments, and by instrument vendors who supply them.

    Calibration of FTS flow transfer standards for PM2.5 particulate monitoring systems is also easy using molbloc-S.

  • Medical/breathing systems

    Calibration of flow meters and testing of breathing air systems is a common and highly critical application for molbloc/molbox, both in production or recertification. Aircraft/safety medical.

  • Leak testing

    • Nuclear, gas mask, manufacturing

      molbloc/molbox is used to test flow meters and orifices used for leak testing of various products, from gas masks to medical devices. molbloc/molbox is the choice for flow calibration of leak rate monitors used in nuclear utilities because the molbloc can be operated at the elevated pressure required for running upstream of the devices.

  • National Measurement Institutes (NMI)

    Both molbloc/molbox and Fluke Calibration’s primary gravimetric flow standard, GFS2102 are used in premier NMI gas flow laboratories around the world. GFS is a true primary mass flow reference and molbloc/molbox provides the utmost precision as a flow transfer standard.

Additional reference materials

Four steps to more effective gas flow calibration »
Mass flow vs volume flow in gas flow measurement »

Mass flow vs. volume flow

A frequent topic of discussion and confusion surrounding gas flow measurement is that of mass flow and volume flow. Flow meters and flow units used for flow measurements are inherently used to measure and express either the amount of volume of gas, or the amount of mass (or number or moles or molecules) passing through the device. When performing a gas flow calibration it is nearly always beneficial to use a mass flow reference measurement, because the mass flow rate stays constant throughout a flow system in steady state. Since gas is compressible, the volume flow rate varies at different locations in a flow system due to changes in density caused by changing temperature and pressure. molblocs are mass flow standards, which allow reliable comparisons to other flow devices. The molbox terminal is also able to calculate and express the flow rate in terms of volume flow at another point in the system to allow testing of volume-based devices.

Primary flow standard vs. transfer standard

Fluke Calibration offers both primary gas flow standards and secondary standards (or transfer standards) that deliver the utmost in measurement performance. Customers are sometimes faced with the question of whether they are best served by using a primary or secondary standard. Our advice is that customers should use a standard that provides the required measurement uncertainty and reliability and also compliments the needs of the calibration lab. Fluke Calibration’s GFS2102 dynamic gravimetric mass flow system is a primary mass flow standard offering the lowest possible measurement uncertainty. But for the vast majority of customers, it is more effective to use a molbloc/molbox flow calibration system. molblocs are calibrated by comparison to a calibration chain based on primary gravimetric flow measurements and produce highly repeatable and precise performance as a flow calibrator. Meanwhile, molbloc/molbox offers far greater speed, convenience and portability and is more cost effective than GFS.

molbloc/molbox has been selected by laboratories to replace many piston prover and bell prover systems in mass flow calibration and rotameter calibration applications. Piston provers and bell provers are widely considered primary standards, but it is important to note that they are primary volume flow measurement devices. Most often, they use a direct volume flow measurement along with pressure and temperature measurements and gas property data to calculate a mass flow rate that is used for calibrations.

An important characteristic of secondary flow standards is that they must undergo a rigorous flow comparison during each recalibration. Primary standards are not calibrated by comparison to another flow measurement standard, but are instead calibrated by only testing their measurement components individually (time, distance, mass, pressure, or temperature for example). Without regular proficiency testing and intercomparisons to a suitable flow reference, the user does not have assurance of the primary standard’s flow measurement performance. Most importantly, laboratories must select a flow calibrator that offers the best measurement reliability, and operational features.

Related reference materials

Mass flow vs volume flow in gas flow calibration

Video: molbox: Gas Flow Calibration system

Request a Quote
Keep me informed
  • Home
  • Products
    • New Products
    • Electrical Calibration
      • Electrical Standards
      • Electrical Calibrators
      • Bench Multimeters
      • Electrical Calibration Software
    • RF Calibration
      • RF Reference Sources
      • RF Calibration Accessories
      • RF Calibration Software
    • Data Acquisition and Test Equipment
      • Bench Multimeters
      • Data Acquisition
      • Data Acquisition Software
    • Temperature Calibration
      • ITS-90 Temperature Standards
        • ITS-90 Fixed-point cells
        • Standard Platinum Resistance Thermometers
        • Maintenance Apparatus
        • Liquid Nitrogen Comparison Calibrator
        • Resistance Bridges
        • Standard Resistors
      • Calibration Baths
        • Compact Calibration Baths
        • Standard Calibration Baths
        • Special Application Baths
        • Bath Accessories
        • Bath Controllers
        • Bath Fluids
      • Industrial Calibrators
        • Field Metrology Wells
        • Metrology Wells
        • Handheld Calibrators
        • Field Dry-Block Calibrators
        • Micro Baths
        • Infrared Calibrators
        • Thermocouple Furnaces
        • Dual Block Dry-Well
        • Zero-point Dry-Well
      • Probes / Sensors
        • Platinum Resistance Thermometers (PRTs)
        • Thermistors
        • Thermocouples
      • Digital Thermometer Readouts
      • Multifunction Calibrators
      • Temperature Calibration Software
    • Humidity Calibration
      • Humidity Generators
      • Humidity Data Loggers and Monitors
    • Pressure Calibration
      • Piston Gauges
        • NMI Piston Gauges
        • Absolute Piston Gauges
        • High Pressure Pneumatic Piston Gauges
        • Hydraulic Piston Gauges
        • Piston Gauge Accessories
      • Automated Pressure Controller / Calibrators
        • Low Pressure Controllers / Calibrators
        • Pneumatic Pressure Controllers / Calibrators
        • High Pressure Pneumatic Controller / Calibrators
        • Hydraulic Controller / Calibrators
      • Pressure Monitors
        • Low Pressure Monitors
        • Digital Pressure Gauges
        • Reference Pressure Monitors
      • Deadweight Testers
        • Pneumatic Deadweight Testers
        • Oil Deadweight Testers
        • Water Deadweight Testers
        • High-Pressure Hydraulic Deadweight Testers
        • Deadweight Tester Accessories
      • Manual Pressure Calibration
        • Pressure Calibrators
        • Pneumatic Pressure Control
        • Hydraulic Pressure Comparators / Pumps
      • Handheld Pressure Calibrators
      • Air Data Calibration
      • Environmental Monitors
      • Pressure Calibration Accessories
      • Pressure Calibration Custom Systems
      • Pressure Calibration Software
    • Flow Calibration
      • Gas Flow Standards
      • Gas Flow Accessories
      • GFS Primary Gravimetric Flow Standard
      • Flow Calibration Software
    • Process Calibration Tools
      • Temperature Calibrators
        • Handheld Temperature Calibrators
        • Dry-Block Calibrators and Micro-Baths
        • Precision Digital Thermometers
        • Temperature Probes
        • Infrared Calibrators
        • Hygro Thermometer with Data Logging
      • Pressure Calibrators
        • Digital Pressure Calibrators
        • Handheld Pressure Calibrators
        • Deadweight Testers
        • Precision Digital Pressure Gauges
        • Calibration Hand Pumps
      • Multifunction Calibrators
      • mA Loop Calibrators
      • Process Calibration Software
    • Calibration Software
      • MET/CAL® Software
      • MET/CAL® Support
      • Asset Management Software
      • Temperature Calibration Software
      • Pressure Calibration Software
      • Flow Calibration Software
      • Mechanical / Dimensional Calibration Software
    • Service and Support
    • All Calibration Instruments
    • Handheld Test Tools
  • Purchase Info
    • Where to Buy
    • Request a Quote
    • Request a Demo
    • Request a Sales Consultation
    • Certified Pre-Owned Equipment
    • General Services Administration (GSA)
    • Financing Program
    • National Stock Numbers (NSNs)
    • Payment Options and Tax Info
  • News
    • Press Releases
    • Promotions
    • Industry Links
    • Metrology Salary Survey
  • Training and Events
    • Conferences and Exhibitions
    • Training Courses
    • User Group Meetings
    • "How To" Seminars
    • Web Seminars
      • Live Seminars
      • On-Demand Seminars
  • Literature and Education
    • Education Hub
    • About Calibration
    • Articles and Education
    • Product Literature
    • Product Manuals (User Guides)
    • Videos and Virtual Demos
    • Resource Centers
    • Blog
  • Service and Support
    • Service Request (RMA)
    • Service Plans
    • Technical Support
    • Knowledge Base
    • Accreditations
    • Authorized Service Centers
    • Calibration Certificates
    • Community Forum
    • My MET/SUPPORT
      • Activate
      • Procedures
      • Software
      • Technical Bulletins
      • Priority Support
      • Manuals
    • Product Manuals (User Guides)
    • Safety Data Sheets (SDS)
    • Safety, Service, and Product Notices
    • Software Downloads
    • Tools
      • PT100 Calculator
      • PT100 Table Generator
      • ITS-90 Reference Function Calculator
      • Thermocouple Table Voltage Calculator
      • Thermocouple Voltage to Temperature Calculator
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Visit Us
    • Employment
    • Fluke Calibration
      • Hart Scientific Temperature Calibration
      • DH Instruments Pressure and Flow Calibration
      • Pressurements Pressure Calibration
      • Ruska Pressure Calibration
    • Fluke Companies
    • Integrity and Compliance
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Why buy Fluke Calibration ?
Home|Products|Flow Calibration

Sidebar Request a Quote

Request a quote

Your information is protected by our privacy policy.

Products

  • Product index
  • New products
  • Where to buy
  • Request a quote

Services

  • Calibration and repair
  • About Fluke Calibration
  • Service centers
  • Software downloads

Resources

  • Catalogs
  • Manuals
  • Web seminars
  • Subscribe to e-news
  • Supplier Handbook

Company

  • Contact us
  • About Fluke Calibration
  • Why choose us
  • Other Fluke companies
©1995-2023 Fluke Corporation
             

Secondary menu

  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Statement
  • Terms of Use
  • Terms of Sale