abbwatermasteraquamastercoriolismaster

ABB — full-line instrumentation, the water-utility magmeter leader

CoriolisMaster, ProcessMaster, WaterMaster, AquaMaster, VortexMaster, SwirlMaster and Sensyflow — comprehensive flow coverage with strong water and pulp & paper credentials.

TaglineSwiss-Swedish full-line instrumentation manufacturer with the dominant water-utility magmeter (WaterMaster), strong Coriolis (CoriolisMaster) and the only major SwirlMaster swirl-meter line.
Websitenew.abb.com/products/measurement-products/measurement-made-easy/flow-measurement
Technologies
corioliselectromagneticvortexswirlthermal massdifferential pressure
Product lines
CoriolisMaster (Coriolis)ProcessMaster / WaterMaster / AquaMaster (Electromagnetic)VortexMaster (Vortex)SwirlMaster (Swirl)Sensyflow (Thermal mass)266 / 2600T (Differential pressure)

When to choose ABB

When the application is water / wastewater (WaterMaster and AquaMaster are the most-deployed water magmeters globally), when standardising on ABB Ability System 800xA DCS, or when low-Reynolds gas measurement justifies the SwirlMaster (which is more stable below Re 10,000 than any vortex).

ABB at a glance

ABB is the only flow vendor with a single-vendor stack across DCS (Ability System 800xA), drives, motors, switchgear, MV power and field instrumentation. For greenfield process plants that go ABB-end-to-end, specifying ABB flow meters removes most of the integration risk between control system and field device — every device speaks PROFIBUS DP / PA, FOUNDATION fieldbus, HART, Modbus and Ethernet/IP natively.

The flow portfolio has been consolidated under the "Measurement made easy" brand:

  • CoriolisMaster — Coriolis mass flow.
  • ProcessMaster — process-duty electromagnetic.
  • WaterMaster — water-utility electromagnetic (the global volume leader).
  • AquaMaster — battery-powered buried-installation electromagnetic.
  • VortexMaster — vortex shedding.
  • SwirlMaster — fluidic swirl-flow.
  • Sensyflow — thermal mass for compressed air, biogas and clean gases.

Electromagnetic — the heart of the ABB flow business

ABB is the global leader in installed water-utility magmeters. The WaterMaster family (FEW 525 / FET 200 / FET 600 transmitters with WaterMaster primaries) holds the largest installed base across Europe and the UK water industry, with MID R49 / OIML R49 custody approvals.

  • WaterMaster — mains-powered, hard-rubber or PTFE-lined, ±0.4% of rate. The water-utility revenue standard.
  • AquaMaster 4 — battery-powered (up to 15 years) for buried-pit installations with no mains supply. Bluetooth / cellular telemetry options.
  • ProcessMaster FEP610 / FEP611 / FEH — process-duty industrial magmeter, PTFE / PFA / PEEK liner, ±0.2% of rate (FEP611).

Coriolis — CoriolisMaster

  • CoriolisMaster FCB / FCH — twin-tube Coriolis covering DN1.5 (1/16") to DN150 (6"), ±0.1% of rate liquid mass. The high-capacity FCH variant covers DN200 (8").
  • CoriolisMaster FCM — small-line low-flow variant for chemical injection and dosing.

ABB Coriolis is competitive but not the technology leader — for very high accuracy / custody-class duty Micro Motion Elite or Promass Q typically outperform.

SwirlMaster — the unique product

The SwirlMaster FSS is the only widely-deployed fluidic swirl-flow meter from a tier-1 vendor. Where a vortex needs roughly Re > 20,000 to stabilise vortex shedding, SwirlMaster generates a forced helical swirl downstream of a fixed guide vane and measures the precession frequency of that swirl. The result is stable measurement on gas, steam and clean liquid from Re ~ 10,000 down to roughly Re ~ 5,000 — about half the lower limit of a vortex. For low-flow steam custody allocation on small-line headers this is sometimes the deciding factor.

When InstruSelect promotes ABB

The selector ranks ABB strongly when:

  • The duty is water / wastewater revenue metering — WaterMaster and AquaMaster are class leaders.
  • The site is on ABB Ability System 800xA — full vertical integration.
  • The duty is low-Reynolds gas or steam where a vortex would marginal — SwirlMaster is the differentiating choice.

For premium Coriolis or premium custody ultrasonic, ABB is rarely the first recommendation; for pure water-utility / clean-water service ABB is hard to beat on price-performance.

Datasheet sources

Curated from public ABB Data Sheets (DS) and Operating Instructions (OI) on new.abb.com. Verify the live datasheet for any procurement decision.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is WaterMaster the same product as AquaMaster?

They share the same primary-sensor family but the transmitters and use cases differ. WaterMaster (FEW 525 / FET 200 transmitter) is mains-powered for above-ground installations. AquaMaster (FEX 300 / FEX 400 transmitter) is battery-powered for buried, cabinet-less installations with up to 15 years of battery life. Both are MID R49 / OIML R49 custody-grade for revenue water.

When does SwirlMaster beat a vortex?

When the duty Reynolds number drops below about 20,000 — the lower limit of stable vortex shedding for most designs. SwirlMaster's forced-helix architecture stays accurate down to roughly Re 5,000–10,000, which makes it the right choice for low-flow steam on small headers or compressed-air sub-metering where vortex would lose linearity.

Does ABB integrate with non-ABB DCS?

Yes — every ABB flow transmitter ships with HART 7 and most lines also support PROFIBUS PA, FOUNDATION fieldbus and PROFINET. DD / DTM files are available for AMS Device Manager, PRM and DeltaV. The native 800xA advantage is similar to the Siemens PCS 7 / SITRANS or Yokogawa Centum / Rotamass story.

Is CoriolisMaster competitive with Micro Motion?

For general process Coriolis duty (±0.1% of rate liquid), yes — CoriolisMaster FCB is technically comparable to Micro Motion F-Series. For metrology-grade custody transfer at ±0.05% of rate, Micro Motion Elite and Promass Q still tend to outperform on documented zero-stability and have broader OIML / MID approvals.

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