Venturri Tubes

A broad d definition
n of a Ven nturi, The simplest
s appparatus, as
a shown, is a device e which
produce es a reducttion in pres ssure due to
t a constrriction of th
he flow in a pipe, it iss known
as Venturi Tube or simply a Venturi in which fluid f flows through a length of pipe of
varyingg diameter. The Ventu uri is nameed after Gio
ovanni Batttista Venturri (1746–18 822) an
Italian physicist, who first discovered the effectt. Commerrcially this type of device is
known by severall names: ejecto,e injec
cto, eductoo, jet pump p and air pump
p and can use
variouss mediums as a motive force, typically
t air, steam, water,
w or any
a other suitable
liquid. IIt can entra
ain air, liqu
uids, powdeers and granulated solids.
The Venturi effectt is an effect; as with a funnel the velocity y of the fluid increasess as the
cross s sectional area
a decreases, with the static c pressure correspond dingly decrreasing.
Accordiing to the laws governing fluid d dynamics s, a fluid's
s velocity must
m increase as it
passes through a constriction to satis sfy the prin
nciple of continuity, while its pressure
p
must decrease to satisfy the e principle of conservvation of mechanical
m energy. Th hus any
gain inn kinetic en nergy a fluuid may accrue
a duee to its in ncreased velocity thrrough a
constricction is ne egated by a drop in pressure. To avoid undue drag, a Ventu uri tube
typically has an en ntry cone of
o 30 degrees and an exit
e cone of 5 degrees s.

Figure 1. A
A typical Ventu
uri representingg the entry and
d exit cone 

Venturii tubes are available in

n various sizes from 100
1 mm to 813 mm with
w flow coefficient
value o
of 0.984 fo or all diam
meter ratios s. They arre widely used
u due tot low perrmanent
pressurre loss. The
ey are morre accurate e over widee flow ranges than oriifice plates or flow
nozzles
s. However it is not ussed where the
t Reynold
ds number is less than
n 150,000.

 
Venturri Theory
A Venturi operate es on the BBernoulli's principle, similar
s to an
a aircraft wing, wherre air is
forced to pass fa aster acrosss the upp per surface e, reducingg pressure and creatting lift.
Referrinng to the figure
f 2, th
he same efffect is crea ated with flow in a pipe. By forccing the
liquid through a constriction
c , the flow at i speeded up in comparison to point a.
a point b is
This ressults in a re
educed pressure at po oint b.
The cla assical Ven nturi tube (also kno own as the Hersche el Venturi tube) is used
u to
determine flowrate through h a pipe. Differential pressure is the pressure diffference
betwee en the pressure mea asured at Da and att Db. Othe er devices typically used
u to
determine flowratte are orificces and noz zzles, but thhe Venturi tube has le
ess head looss than
either oof these otther metho ods due to its stream mlined design. For ex xact geome etry and
specific
cations for Venturi tub bes, see ISO (1991) or o ASME (1971). Ventturis with c cast iron
entrancce cones (the converg ging portion n) are typic
cally used in 4 to 32 inch (10 to 80 cm)
diamete er pipes. Venturis
V witth machined converge ences are typically used in pipess having
diameter less than 10 inches (25 cm) while Venturis with a welded sheet metal
convergence are used for larger pipes, typically up to 48 inch (1.2 m) diameter (ASME,
1971). The ASME and ISO have been working on guidelines for Venturi tubes since the
early 1900s. The organizations have the most confidence in Venturi tube accuracy when
the Reynolds number is in the range of 105 to 106 as will be discussed.

 
Figure 2.  

As long as the fluid speed is sufficiently subsonic (V < mach 0.3), the
incompressible Bernoulli's equation describes the flow. Applying this equation to a
streamline traveling down the axis of the horizontal tube like a Venturi gives:

0.5  

From continuity, the throat velocity Vb can be substituted out of the above equation to
give:

0.5 1 

Solving for the upstream velocity Va and multiplying by the cross-sectional area Aa gives
the volumetric flowrate Q:

2∆

Ideal, inviscid fluids would obey the above equation. The small amounts of energy
converted into heat within viscous boundary layers tend to lower the actual velocity of
real fluids somewhat. A discharge coefficient, C is typically introduced to account for the
viscosity of fluids:
 2∆

In fact, as fluid exits a reservoir through a small hole and enters another one, or flows
out to the open air, stream lines tend to contract itself, mostly because of inertia, also
the friction losses may not be negligible and viscosity and turbulence effects may be
present, for those reasons the discharge coefficient is introduced.

C is found to depend on the Reynolds Number of the flow, and usually lies between 0.90
and 0.98 for smoothly tapering Venturis.

The Mach Number is a dimensionless value useful for analyzing fluid flow dynamics
problems where compressibility is a significant factor.

The Mach number can be expressed as M =

where

M = Mach number
V = fluid flow speed (m/s, ft/s)
C = speed of sound (m/s, ft/s)

Alternatively the Mach number can be expressed with the density and the bulk modulus
.
for elasticity as M =

where

ρ = density of fluid (kg/m3, lb/ft3)

E = bulk modulus elasticity (N/m2 (Pa), lbf/in2 (psi))

The bulk modulus elasticity has the dimension pressure and is commonly used to
characterize the fluid compressibility and it can be obtained for fluids from the
references.

Practical calculations using ISO reference as includes a more complete discussions to

calculate classical Venturi Tube carrying a liquid are as below:

∆
, , ,
√

As discussed the discharge coefficient, C varies with Reynolds Number, then it can be
found their relationship from ISO (1991) or from some equations fitted like below:

C=a+b(log (Re))2+c(log (Re))3

Where a, b, and c depend on the type of Venturi tube.

Terminology
In the world of home brew Biodiesel the following terminology has generally been
accepted as a standard:
 Venturi … device creating suction by means of a constriction.
 Ejector … device creating suction by means of a jet discharging across a gap into
a throat and discharge cone.
 Eductor … submerged devise for mixing contents of processor tank.

Choked Flow
The limiting case of the Venturi effect is when a fluid reaches the state of choked flow,
where the fluid velocity approaches the local speed of sound. In choked flow the mass
flow rate will not increase with a further decrease in the downstream pressure
environment. However, mass flow rate for a compressible fluid can increase with
increased upstream pressure, which will increase the density of the fluid through the
constriction (though the velocity will remain constant). This is the principle of operation
of a de Laval nozzle. Increasing source temperature will also increase the local sonic
velocity, thus allowing for increased mass flow rate.

Venturi Sizing
Graham Laming first introduced the Venturi to home biodiesel production with a
relatively simple and easily made devise more along the lines of an orifice plate. This
important step forward in safety was later developed by Jamesrl who, after much
research, published a more efficient design which has become widely accepted as a
standard by home brewers. At a similar time, Dickjotec developed an easily
made ejector design which is used by many as a very effective alternative.
A Venturi is designed to operate with a specific flow rate, so before any manufacture can
commence the flow rate of the pump being used to drive it must be ascertained. This
can be found by looking at the pump performance curve. Jamesrl has devised a simple
“rule of thumb” formula for Venturi throat sizing:

Venturi Throat Diameter (mm)=

Where Fr = flow rate at the Venturi in litres per minute

A simple (but practical) approximation of this formula has been offered by the reckless
engineer: √

This throat diameter is the only variable which needs calculating when constructing a
Venturi. All the other dimensions are dictated by pipe size and angles which remain
constant, regardless of size.
  
Figure 3. D
Design of a typ
pical Venturi

Venturri Manufac
cture
There aare many ways a Ve enturi can be made, many req quire specia
al equipmeent, but
others are achievable with few
f tools and
a just a little
l skill. See casting
g a Venturri. Other
methodds include spinning,
s and forming and fabrication and turning.
ha

Installing a Ventturi
Althouggh it differrs from Grraham Lam ming origina al processo or design, common practise
currenttly locates the
t Venturii in the verrtical pipe run
r from thhe pump an nd before th he bend
into the processo or, but many constru uctors locatte their Ve enturi in th he horizonttal pipe
immediiately beforre the proce essor with equal effec ct.
For a V
Venturi to fuunction corrrectly the flow
f from th
he throat needs to pas ss along the walls
of the d
discharge cone.
c In this
s respect, an
a ejector is i probably superior as its design n
automa atically encoourages this effect.
If a Vennturi is made in such a way thatt the throatt forms a jet, for exam mple with a drilled
throat, then the jetj will pas ss straight through th he discharg ge cone witthout touch hing the
sides and fail to establish suc ction in the
e suction po ort.
This prroblem can n be preve ented in several
s ways; by having a bend with sufficient
resistan
nce to upset the jet but not en nough to re estrict the flow i.e. a swept or formed
bend, bby mountin ng the Ventturi vertica ally or a jett breaker. The latter is a simple e device
involvin
ng cross-drrilling the pipe
p immeddiately dow wnstream off the Ventu uri and solddering a
rod acrross the diaameter of th he pipe. Thhis rod serv ves to break k the jet, splitting
s the
e flow to
the outtside of thee pipe, withhout causin ng excessiv ve resistanc ce. At the time
t of writting the
jet breaker picturred is thou ught to be the only one o in use so addition nal referennces are
needed d. It has, ho
owever, pro oved to be very effecttive and cou uld possiblyy allow the Venturi
to disch
harge direc ctly into the
e processor.
Figure 4. D
Depicting the u
undesired effecct that the flow
w fails to establiish suction in suction port

Webpa
ages and other
o Refe
erences:

1. www.efund da.com/form
mulae/fluid
ds/venturi_fflowmeter
2. www.enginneeringtoolb
box.com/mmach-numbe er-d_581
3. www.flowmmeterdirectory.com/flo
owmeter_v venturi_calcc
4. www.biopoowered.co.uuk/wiki/Ven
nturi
5. www.lmnoeng.com/venture
6. Wikipedia Encycloped
E dia