The New 4200 2-Wire Transmitter
Many oil and gas, and chemical plants are struggling with aging infrastructure and need to upgrade much of their legacy equipment. Until recently, when considering upgrading aging 2-wire measurement devices, their options were limited to equipment similar to what they had. The option for the gold standard measurement device, the Coriolis meter, didn’t exist with a 2-wire transmitter, until now.
There are several unique challenges these plants face when considering upgrades. Most of them have gone through boom and bust cycles over the years, in the same location, which means, at this point, space is at a premium and they can’t make room for large new devices that might require additional piping and/or cabling.
The other challenge is that most of these facilities have miles and miles of old cabling in the overhead trays that nobody wants to excavate; it wouldn’t be safe and it would mean shutting down parts of the plant and processes, bringing in equipment and personnel to reach all those old cabling nests.
For that reason, running extra cables for a 4-wire device has never been a consideration.
2-Wire Coriolis is the Best Option for Upgrading Unreliable Flow Points
With the new 4200 2-wire Coriolis transmitter, upgrading to Coriolis flow meters is finally a viable option. Which means more – repeatably – accurate flow measurements as well as a more reliable device that requires less maintenance because the meter itself has no moving parts.
Engineering an upgrade path is easier when you can eliminate planning for new cabling pathways as well as the – considerable – expense of additional cabling along with the planning and engineering process of providing AC power to remote areas in the plant.
The new meter provides highly accurate and repeatable mass flow and density measurements, which enables users to optimize production, improve safety by preventing spill hazards due to overfilling, improve cost allocation and product usage, improve throughput and optimize reaction time. To ensure reliability, the device comes standard with Smart Meter Verification, the only 2-wire Coriolis meter diagnostic tool on the market that checks the structural integrity of the tubes. The data historian, with up to 14 days of storage and a real-time clock, facilitates trouble-shooting by time-stamping process data, audit trails and reports. A touch control display provides a simplified user experience and reduces commissioning time. The 4200 is also SIL 2-capable with single use and SIL 3-capable with multiple meters. The 4200 offers a remote mount option if the display for the transmitter is required to be located in an area where the operator can easily access the device.
2-Wire Coriolis is the Best Option for New Builds
When considering a plant expansion or building a new facility, the cost of cabling and installing AC power – as we showed in a previous blog post – adds up quickly. If you only need a loop powered device without installing AC power for your new build and you can have the top of the line, durable and reliable meter on the market, a 2-wire Coriolis option just makes sense.
So, No Additional Wiring?
No additional wiring will be required to set up the new 4200 2-wire Coriolis transmitter on a Coriolis flow meter in a facility that has historically used 2-wire devices. In addition, using a loop powered device dramatically lowers the CAPEX needed to plan, engineer, and install AC power where power is not centrally located.
