Loss characteristics of orifices and nozzles

Loss characteristics of sharp-edged orifices, quadrant-edged orifices for varying edge radii, and nozzles are studied for Reynolds numbers less than 10,000 for beta ratios from 0.2 to 0.8. The results may be reliably extrapolated to higher Reynolds numbers. Presentation of losses as a percentage of meter pressure differential shows that the flow can be identified into fully laminar regime, critical Reynolds number regime, relaminarization regime, and turbulent flow regime. An integrated picture of variation of parameters such as discharge coefficient, loss coefficient, settling length, pressure recovery length, and center line velocity confirms this classification.