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Flow Splitter

Overview and Key Concepts​

Flow processors are objects for which the input rate is always equal to the output rate. The flow splitter is a specific shape of flow processor used to release materials through multiple ports based on percentages that you define. It is most commonly used for chemical processes where the flows of the output components depend on the volume processed but their relative ratios are fixed.

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Blenders, pumps, and valves

Pumps, valves, blenders and splitters are all different shapes of a flow processor. You can switch between them using the Change Shape dropdown in the (Quick) Properties. The splitter is similar to the pump and valve, except that it has its outflow rule set to "Balanced flow on rate %" by default. The splitter always makes sure it is releasing the correct percentages. If the outflow rate is reduced on one of the output ports, all other ports will be reduced to keep the ratio between the outflow rates fixed. This implies in particular that if a downstream object is blocking on one output port, that the splitter will also stop the flow through all other output ports.

Events​

The splitter uses the standard events that are common to almost all FloWorks objects. See FloWorks Triggers for an explanation of these events. Note that the inflow rule for the splitter is fixed to "Preferred Order".

States​

For statistical purposes, the splitter's FloWorks state profile will be in one of the following states at various points during a simulation run:

  • Idle- The splitter is not sending any flow.

  • Processing- Material is being split at a non-zero flow rate.

Properties Panels​

The splitter object has five tabs with various properties. The first three tabs are standard tabs that are common to all flow objects. For more information about the properties on these tabs, see:

  • The Settings Tab

  • The Flow Tab

  • The Triggers Tab

The last two tabs are the standard tabs that are common to all fixed resources. For more information about the properties on these tabs, see:

  • The Labels Tab

  • The General Tab

Custom coding​

You may control the behavior of the flow splitter dynamically by writing FlexScript, for example in a Script window or by changing the code behind one of the options in an object trigger. The flow splitter is an instance of theFlowObjectclass, see the class reference for information about its properties.

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Dynamically controlling the ratio

For the splitter in particular, you may want to dynamically control the flow rate ratio between the output ports. Useobject.output.ports[i].ratioto get and set the ratio of the flow through porti. Just as when manually entering the ratios, the sum will be normalized to 100% automatically, unless the ratio forallthe output ports is set to zero.