Measuring Fuel Flow


Gasoline Models

The concept behind a FloScan gasoline system is fairly simple - measure the flow of fuel as it travels from tank to engine with a flow sensor, then utilize a microprocessor computer to convert this raw data to rate of flow and fuel consumption. The heart of a FloScan system is an "opto-electronic", turbine-type flow sensor which uses an infrared light source to count rotations of the turbine. A signal generator reports this information to the meterhead's microprocessor to calculate fuel flow and the total fuel used. The design of the sensor eliminates and possibility of fuel blockage in the highly unlikely event that the turbine rotor is jammed. Installation of a gas system is fairly straight-forward and most buyers install it themselves. On inboard and I/O applications, the flow sensor is installed between the fuel tank and fuel pump; on outboards between the tank and priming bulb. The meterhead is installed at the helm station and wired to the flow sensor. Complete installation instructions included.


Diesel Models

Most diesel engine fuel systems employ forward and return fuel flow lines. The return flow amount must be measured and subtracted from the forward flow amount to determine consumption. Inaccuracies in flow measurement in either direction can compound the amount of error in measurement. The amount of return flow varies by engine type - from as little as 10% of fuel consumption to a much as 1000% or more - necessitating very tight margins for error when measuring flows and calculating the difference. Because Detroit Diesel and Caterpillar 3116/3500 Series engines use the return flow to cool unit injectors, the return flow temperature is substantially higher than the forward flow - leading to the possibility of error in measurement caused by the expansion of fuel. FloScan has designed special temperature compensated systems to accurately measure and compensate for these inconsistencies. Each pair of FloScan sensors (forward and return) is individually calibrated and matched to the microprocessor-driven.

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