A – as in Alcohol Measuring Device

What is an alcohol flow meter used for?

The alcohol flow meter is used to determine the amount of alcohol produced in the distillery. Based on additional data such as density and temperature, the liters of pure alcohol are determined and displayed. The liters of pure alcohol are relevant for customs purposes.

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What kind of alcohol is it?

The alcohol whose produced quantity is determined by the alcohol flow meter is the entire middle cut (heart, spirit) collected during the second distillation in the Spirit Pot Still and intended for later filling into casks.

How does the middle cut reach the alcohol flow meter?

The heart of the second distillation, i.e. the spirit, flows from the condenser and through the spirit safe via a sealed, double-walled pipeline directly to the alcohol flow meter. The alcohol flow meter is covered with a metal hood, which has also been sealed by customs against unauthorized opening.

What parameters does the alcohol flow meter measure?

The alcohol flow meter measures the density, temperature and volume of the spirit.

How are these parameters measured?

The spirit flows through the pipe to the alcohol flow meter, enters it and fills a chamber containing a floating weight. The density of the spirit is measured using this float. The corresponding temperature is determined by bimetals. Finally, the volume of the spirit is determined by means of a tipping drum. This has three chambers, each with a capacity of exactly five liters. If a chamber is completely filled with five liters of spirit, the drum rotates and empties the contents again. The number of rotations is registered and results in the total volume of spirit.

How are the liters of pure alcohol determined?

The liters of pure alcohol are determined using the three measuring parameters: volume, density and temperature of the spirit. This is done entirely without electronics, but purely mechanically using sprockets and weights.

What data can be read from the alcohol flow meter?

The alcohol flow meter displays the liters of brandy (old name for spirit), the temperature in °C and the mechanically determined liters of pure alcohol at 20°C. The volume indications can be read to two decimal places. The maximum flow rate of the alcohol flow meter is 3,000 liters of spirit per hour. The operating temperature is between 0°C and 30°C.

Is the alcohol flow meter checked?

Yes. To ensure that the alcohol flow meter functions accurately to the decimal point, it is calibrated every two years by employees of the former Federal Monopoly Administration and today's General Customs Directorate. This complex calibration is very time-consuming and takes a full working day.

How old is the alcohol flow meter?

This purely mechanical marvel of technology, which has been reliably performing its work at St. Kilian since 2016, is already over 40 years old. This so-called Siemens spirit meter was previously used in an industrial ethanol plant.

Are these types of alcohol flow meters still manufactured?

No. These mechanical alcohol flow meters have not been built since the 1980s.

How is the alcohol quantity determined today?

Today, the liters of pure alcohol are measured with electronic devices. With all the problems that this new technology can entail. But our old, purely mechanical alcohol flow meter has been running reliably and constantly for years, like a Swiss watch.