What is Coriolis Flow Meter? (Principle|Applications|Selection|Installation)

Time： 2025-07-09 | Read: 36

Coriolis Mass Flow Meter: A Comprehensive Guide

Coriolis flow meter, based on the Coriolis effect, plays a pivotal role in the gas and liquid processing plants nowadays. As a widely used flow measurement, it has been seed in various industries. Today, this post from Supmea walks you through this flow solution thoroughly where you can learn its working principle, advantages, applications, selection trips, installations, and maintenances, therefore, you can choose an optimum meter model tailored to your factory and make the best use of it.

What is a Coriolis flow meter？

A Coriolis flow meter is a flow sensor designed for measuring the mass flow rate, density, and temperature of the gases such as natural gas, hydrogen, carbon dioxide, oxygen, nitrogen, etc. or liquids like oil, slurry, wastewater, viscous substance passing through the fixed tube. Based on the Coriolis force and effect, it gets more and more indispensable by providing accurate readings of the measured substances for advanced industrial process. Now let's learn more about this flow reading device.

A brief history of Coriolis flow meter

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Coriolis Mass Flow Meter: A Comprehensive Guide

A Coriolis flow meter is a precision instrument used to measure the mass flow of liquids and gases directly — no need to guess based on volume, temperature, or pressure. It’s widely used in industries like food, chemicals, and oil & gas because of its accuracy and reliability.

It’s named after the Coriolis Effect, a physics principle that explains how motion behaves in a rotating system — like how Earth’s spin causes storms to swirl. This same principle helps the flow meter detect how much mass is moving through vibrating tubes.

In this guide, we’ll break down how Coriolis meters work, why they’re so precise, how they compare to other types, and what you need to know to install and maintain one in your process.

A brief introduction to the Coriolis flow meter

Before diving into the sorts of terminology and operating principles, let's trace the source of the Coriolis flow sensor first of all.

The story of the Coriolis flow meter begins with a long-standing challenge in engineering: how to measure the mass flow of a fluid accurately, especially when temperature or pressure changes can throw off volume-based measurements.

In the early 20th century, most flow meters relied on mechanical methods—like turbines or paddlewheels—which worked well for volume, but not so much for actual mass. This became a big problem in industries where precision matters, like chemical processing or oil and gas.

The real shift came in the 1950s and 60s, when engineers began exploring a new idea: using the Coriolis effect—a force that acts on objects in motion within a rotating frame (like Earth)—to measure mass flow directly. It wasn’t until the late 1970s that this idea turned into something practical.

That breakthrough came from an inventor named Jim Smith, who developed a flow meter that used vibrating tubes instead of spinning parts. As fluid passed through the vibrating tubes, the Coriolis effect caused a twist. By measuring that twist, engineers could calculate mass flow with high precision. This innovation became the basis of modern Coriolis meters.

In 1977, Smith's company, Micro Motion, released the first commercial Coriolis flow meter. It quickly gained attention for its accurate and reliable readings of flow rate, density, temperature, and other info. By the 1980s, other manufacturers like Endress+Hauser, Rheonik, and Krohne entered the market with their designs. Over time, the Coriolis mass flow calculator became more compact, more affordable, and more widely adopted.

Today, Coriolis flow meters are used in a wide range of applications, from food factories to fuel pipelines. They are greatly welcomed in various types of gas, liquid, and fluid processing plants for their all-in-one measuring ability.

Detailed explanations of the Coriolis flow meter's principle and techniques

In this section, we’ll explore how a Coriolis flow sensor works and what it’s made of. By the end, you’ll not only understand the core principles behind Coriolis-based measurement but also gain a clearer picture of how it fits into your overall industrial process.

How does Coriolis mass flow measurement work?

To grasp how a Coriolis flow meter operates, it’s essential first to understand the physical theory upon which it’s built.

The Coriolis force is an apparent force experienced by objects moving within a rotating system, like the Earth. Rather than traveling in a straight line, moving masses appear to deflect due to the rotation of the reference frame beneath them. In the Northern Hemisphere, this deflection is to the right, while in the Southern Hemisphere, it's to the left.

Although subtle on a small scale, this effect becomes significant in large-scale systems such as atmospheric circulation and fluid transport.

In engineering, this theory is applied in a controlled environment inside the meter. By observing how the Coriolis effect acts on fluid moving through a vibrating tube, we can directly measure mass flow with high accuracy. This foundational concept drives the entire operation of the Coriolis mass flow meter.

At its core, the Coriolis mass flow meter measures mass flow by detecting how a fluid affects the motion of vibrating tubes. Unlike traditional flow meters that rely on volume or velocity, this sensor uses the actual mass of the fluid as the basis for measurement. This operation makes it much more reliable, especially when temperature or pressure changes.

Let's put it simply：

Inside the meter, the fluid is directed through one or two U-shaped or straight tubes that are set to vibrate at a given natural frequency. These tubes are constantly oscillating, similar to the strings of a guitar to some extent, yet with a higher frequency in a controlled and measurable pattern.

Then, when a fluid starts to flow through these vibrating tubes, the Coriolis effect activates. Because the fluid has mass and velocity, it triggers a twisting motion — a phase shift — in the tubes during the process.

Imagine it like trying to twist a garden hose while water is running through it; the force of the moving water resists the motion, creating a twist. That twist is directly proportional to the mass flow rate of the fluid.

Sensors on the meter detect the time difference (or phase shift) between different points on the tube’s surface. The more mass flowing through the tube, the greater the twist — and therefore, the larger the time difference recorded. The meter then uses this data to calculate mass flow rate, and often also provides measurements for density, temperature, and even viscosity, depending on the model.

“Since the Coriolis meter doesn’t rely on external factors like pressure, temperature, or fluid state, it delivers precise readings — no extra compensation needed.

Based on the high precision, it has been seen across a wide range of industrial applications — from chemical processing and food production to oil, gas, and pharmaceutical flow control.

This is what urges the Coriolis mass flow meter, one of the most reliable and advanced technologies for flow measurement in today’s industrial processing.

What's the relationship between the vibrating tube and mass flow rate measurement?

The vibrating tube is at the core of how a Coriolis flow meter measures mass flow. When fluid flows through the vibrating tube, the movement causes a slight twist — kind of like when water runs through a spinning straw. The more mass that's flowing, the more the tube twists.

This twist is a direct result of the Coriolis effect, and it's carefully measured by the soldered sensors. By tracking how much the tube bends, the meter can calculate the exact mass flow rate. So, we can simply conclude the relationship between the oscillating tube and mass flow rate measuring into: more mass = more twist.

One more thing, the twist caused by the fluids flowing through the tube is the key point to measure the flow rate, regardless of the fluid’s temperature, pressure, or density.

If you're curious about the physics behind the twist, it actually follows a neat equation:

F = −2m(ω × v).

Where:

m is the mass of the fluid,
ω is the angular velocity of the vibrating tube, and
v is the velocity of the fluid inside.

This formula tells us that the amount of twist (the force) depends on both how fast the fluid is moving and how much of it is flowing. More mass or higher speed means more force — and that results in a stronger twist in the tube. The flow meter reads this twist and converts it into a highly accurate mass flow rate reading.

What are the main components of a Coriolis flow meter?

A Coriolis flow meter may look compact from the outside, but inside, it’s packed with smart engineering. Here are the key parts that make it work:

Flow Tubes: The tubes are one of the key parts of a Coriolis flow meter. They are made up of stainless steel or other corrosion-resistant materials for durability. When fluids flow through one or two inner tubes, they oscillate with a specific frequency.
Driver (Actuator): This component keeps the tubes vibrating. It sends a steady input signal to make sure the vibration stays consistent while fluid is passing through.
Sensors (Pick-Offs): Located on both ends of the vibrating tubes, these sensors detect the tube's motion and twist. They measure the time lag between vibrations, which directly relates to how much mass is flowing through the meter.
Transmitter (Electronics Unit): This part receives signals from the sensors, processes the data, and calculates mass flow rate, density, and sometimes even the temperature. It then outputs that info to your control system.
Flow Body / Housing: This is the outer casing that protects all the components. It also provides the connection points for your pipeline. It’s typically made of stainless steel or other durable materials in case the sensor is always exposed to a harsh working environment.