TAPS flowmeter

To meet the needs of the US Air Force, Hedgefog Research Inc. (HFR) proposes to build a ōTAPSflowö meter capable of easy integration with the stainless-steel pipe lines that deliver the Tri-ethyl Aluminum (TEA) within the Towed Airborne Plume Simulator (TAPS) burner. The overall goal of this project is to address the Air ForceÆs call by demonstrating the feasibility and benefits of the new pyrophoric fluid metering technology. The Phase I effort will involve building a benchtop testbed to circulate liquid through a pipe geometry that accurately mimics that of the Towed Airborne Plume Simulator (TAPS) Tri-ethyl Aluminum (TEA) fluid lines. HFRÆs flowmeter will be a non-invasive easy-to-install device. Integrated sensors will be used to compute mass flowrates using an HFR proprietary algorithm. The laboratory testing results will be applied to the construction of a prototype TAPSflow meter in Phase I and, subsequently, a reduced size prototype in Phase II, using customized hardware.