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flow meter
device
Also known as: stromuhr
flow meter, Device that measures the velocity of a gas or liquid. It has applications in medicine as well as in chemical engineering, aeronautics, and meteorology. Examples include pitot tubes, venturi tubes, and rotameters (tapered graduated tubes with a float inside that is supported by the flowing fluid at a level that depends on the flow rate). Ultrasonic flow meters, in which reflecting ultrasound off a flowing liquid leads to a Doppler shift (see Doppler effect) that is calibrated to provide the flow rate of the liquid, have important industrial applications and have also been used to measure arterial blood flow.
This article was most recently revised and updated by Robert Curley.
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