Company Profile

Magnetic Flow Sensors: Robust Full-Bore Flow Tubes for Industrial Fluids

Quick Answer: Silver Automation Instruments supplies magnetic flow sensors with robust full-bore flow tubes for conductive liquids from DN15 to DN2000. These meters handle water, wastewater, chemicals, food products, seawater, and slurries with no moving parts. Send your pipe size, flow range, pressure, and temperature to get a model recommendation and price.

What a Full-Bore Magnetic Flow Sensor Does

A magnetic flow sensor, often called an electromagnetic flow meter, measures volumetric flow of conductive liquids. Faraday law drives the measurement. A full-bore flow tube means the internal diameter matches the pipe ID. There are no internal obstructions or moving parts. Pressure loss stays very low. That matters for dirty fluids, slurries, and liquids with solids.

In practice, most engineers choose a magmeter when a fluid has at least 5 µS/cm conductivity. Water, wastewater, acids, caustics, and food slurries qualify. Oil, diesel, and pure hydrocarbons do not. The signal depends on charged particles moving through the magnetic field.

Why Full-Bore Flow Tubes Matter for Industrial Fluids

A reduced bore meter creates a venturi effect. That can damage polymer chains in certain chemicals or trap solids. A full-bore design avoids that. We have seen this on customer sites many times. A paper mill in Indonesia replaced a reduced bore meter after pulp fibers kept collecting at the inlet. The full-bore DN200 magnetic flow sensor solved the blockage.

The same principle applies to mining slurry in Chile or sewage in the Philippines. Full-bore tubes keep the pipe geometry clean. They also simplify cleaning in food and beverage plants. No crevices at the sensor inlet means fewer bacteria risks.

Typical Specifications We Quote

Silver Instruments stocks and builds magnetic flow sensors from DN15 to DN2000. Standard liner options include hard rubber, soft rubber, PTFE, and PFA. Electrode materials include 316L stainless steel, Hastelloy C, titanium, and tantalum. Accuracy is 0.5 percent of reading as standard. A factory calibration with traceable cert can improve that to 0.2 percent.

Output options cover 4-20 mA HART, pulse, RS485 Modbus, and Profibus DP. Power can be 220 V AC or 24 V DC. Process temperature ranges from -25 °C to 180 °C depending on the liner. Pressure ratings go from PN10 to PN40. For hazardous areas we supply ATEX Zone 1 and Zone 2 certified converters.

Here is the thing. Do not oversize a magnetic flow sensor. Most installations run well between 0.5 and 10 m per second flow velocity. Below 0.1 m per second, repeatability drops. Above 12 m per second, liner wear becomes a concern in abrasive fluids.

Applications in Specific Regions

A water utility in Perth, Australia uses a DN300 hard rubber liner for raw sewage pumping. The sensor sends 4-20 mA HART to a PLC for flow totalising. The full-bore design passes rags and solids without clogging.

A chemical plant in Vietnam runs a DN50 PTFE lined magnetic flow sensor on 30 percent hydrochloric acid at 35 °C. Tantalum electrodes prevent chemical attack. A paint manufacturer in Southeast Asia uses a DN80 soft rubber liner for latex emulsion. The meter outputs pulse to a batch controller.

In the Middle East, a desalination plant in Saudi Arabia measures seawater intake with a DN150 PFA liner and titanium electrodes. In Latin America, a food factory in Jalisco Mexico measures CIP caustic at 80 °C with 316L electrodes and PTFE liner.

How to Select the Right Magnetic Flow Sensor

Start with fluid conductivity. If it is below 5 µS/cm, a standard magmeter may not work. Some Silver Instruments units go down to 0.1 µS/cm but that requires a special amplifier. Next, check chemical compatibility. Use PTFE or PFA for acids and solvents. U