Field Engineering Sciences

Sensors and Measurement Systems MEC372

Lecture 6 : Temperature Measurement Sensors

Dr : Aly Soliman Date : 15 / 4 / 2024

Temperature Measurements
Temperature :Is the thermal state of a substance that determines whether it
will give heat to another substance or receive.

Heat :Is a form of energy transferred from a hotter subset. to a colder one
Temperature Scales
Temperature Sensors
The important characteristics of liquid in glass thermometers are :-
The important characteristics of bimetallic strip are :-
 A pointer is attached to the
rotating coil which indicates the
temperature on the dial.

rotation is caused
by the difference in
thermal expansions
of the two metals.
Bimetal Coil
Types of Temperature Instrument
Thermocouple (T/C)
Resistance Temperature Detector (RTD)
Thermowell
Thermistor
Bi-metallic Thermometers
Filled Thermal Systems
 Electrical methods
Resistance Thermometer: based on the fact that :the electrical resistance of
a metal increases with the increase of temperature.
Advantages:-
 It can be used for calibration of other thermometers accurately
 Remote and continuous reading.
 linear scale.
• Disadvantages:-
 long response time
 Expensive and fragile
Specific electrical resistivity (units Ωm) of materials depends upon
temperature. Temperature can be therefore evaluated from measured
electrical resistance of sensor (resistor) by using for example Wheatstone
bridge arrangement
Sensor fixed resistors
Current
V source (1mA)
 Two wires of different metal alloys.
 Converts thermal energy into electrical energy.
 Requires a temperature difference between measuring junction and reference
junction.
 Easy to use and obtain.
Multiple-Junction Thermocouple Circuits
Thermopiles
Thermopile provides an amplified output signal; in this case the output voltage
would be N times the single thermocouple output, where N is the number of
measuring junctions in the circuit.
Thermocouples in Parallel
When a spatially averaged temperature is desired, multiple thermocouple
junctions can be arranged.

In such an arrangement of N junctions, a mean emf is produced, given by

 Thermocouples
Advantages Disadvantages

 Simple, Rugged  Least stable, least

 High temperature operation repeatable
 Low cost  Low sensitivity to small
temperature changes
 No resistance lead wire
problems  Extension wire must be of
 Point temperature sensing the same thermocouple type
 Fastest response to  Wire may pick up radiated
temperature changes electrical noise if not
shielded
 Lowest accuracy
Seebeck Effect
The Seebeck effect, named for Thomas Johann Seebeck (1770–1831), refers to
the generation of a voltage potential, or emf, in an open thermocouple circuit due
to a difference in temperature between junctions in the circuit.
The Seebeck effect refers to the case when there is no current flow in the circuit,
as for an open circuit. There is a fixed, reproducible relationship between the emf
and the junction temperatures T1 and T2 .

This relationship is expressed by the Seebeck coefficient, αAB, defined as

where A and B refer to the two materials that comprise the thermocouple. Since the Seebeck
coefficient specifies the rate of change of voltage with temperature for the materials A and B,
it is equal to the static sensitivity of the open-circuit thermocouple.
Peltier Effect
A familiar concept is that of I2R or joule heating in a conductor through which an
electrical current flows. Consider the two conductors having a common junction, shown
in Figure 8.14, through which an electrical current I flows due to an externally applied
emf.

The Peltier heat is the quantity of heat in addition to the quantity I2R that must be
removed from the junction to maintain the junction at a constant temperature.

This amount of energy is proportional to the current flowing through the junction; the
proportionality constant is the Peltier coefficient πAB, and the heat transfer required to
maintain a constant temperature is
Thomson Effect
In addition to the Seebeck effect and the Peltier effect, there is a third phenomenon that occurs in
thermoelectric circuits.

To maintain a constant temperature in the conductor it is found that a quantity of energy

different than the joule heat, I2R, must be removed from the conductor.

This energy is expressed in terms of the Thomson coefficient, σ, as

For a thermocouple circuit, all three of these effects may be present and may contribute to
the overall emf of the circuit.
 RTDs
RTDs (Resistance Temperature Detectors) operate under the
principle that the electrical resistance of certain metals increases
and decreases in a repeatable and predictable manner with a
temperature change.

 Wire wound and thin film devices.

 Nearly linear over a wide range of
temperatures.
 Can be made small enough to
have response times of a fraction
of a second.
 Require an electrical current to
produce a voltage drop across
the sensor
 RTD Applications

 Air conditioning and

refrigeration servicing
 Furnace servicing
 Foodservice processing
 Medical research
 Textile production
RTDs
Advantages Disadvantages
• Most stable over time • High cost
• Most accurate • Slowest response time
• Most repeatable • Low sensitivity to small
temperature measurement temperature changes
• Very resistant to • Sensitive to vibration
contamination/ (strains the platinum
element wire)
• Decalibration if used
beyond sensor’s
temperature ratings
• Somewhat fragile
RTD platinum thermometers
RTD Platinum thermometers Pt100, Pt1000 (nominal resistance 100/1000 Ohms respectively)
R = R0 (1 + 0.0039083 T − 5.77 ⋅10 −7 T 2 )
1 dR
Therefore coefficient of relative temperature change is approximately α = =
R
(this value slightly depends upon platinum purity, for example typical US standards α=0.00392,
Europian standard α=0.00385).
2-wires (reading is affected by parasitic ohmic resistance of long and tiny wires (which need not be
negligible in comparison with 100Ω of RTD). Example> compute resistance of Cu wire for specific
resistivity of copper 1.7E-8 Ω.m
Current source
Parazitic resistances of leading wires V (1mA)
are added to the sensor resistance

3-wires
Current source
V (1mA)
Parazitic resistances of leading wires
are partly compensated

4-wires
Current source
V (1mA)
Almost zero current flows in these two wires as
soon as internal resistance of voltameter is high
Thermistors
• A semiconductor used as a temperature sensor.
• Mixture of metal oxides pressed into a bead, wafer or other shape.
• Beads can be very small, less than 1 mm in some cases.
• The resistance decreases as temperature increases, negative
temperature coefficient (NTC) thermistor.
Thermistors
• Most are seen in medical equipment markets.
• Thermistors are also used are for engine coolant, oil, and air temperature
measurement in the transportation industry.
Thermistors
Disadvantages
Advantages • Limited temperature range
• High sensitivity to small • Fragile
temperature changes • Some initial accuracy
• Temperature “drift”
measurements become • Decalibration if used
more stable with use beyond the sensor’s
• Copper or nickel extension temperature ratings
wires can be used • Lack of standards for
replacement
Semiconductors
• Are small and result from the fact that semiconductor
diodes have voltage-current characteristics that are
temperature sensitive.
• Temperature measurement ranges that are small
compared to thermocouples and RTDs, but can be quite
accurate and inexpensive.

Semiconductor Applications
• Hard Disk Drives
• Personal Computers
• Electronic Test Equipment
• Office Equipment
• Domestic Appliances
• Process Control
• Cellular Phones
• To use the instrument the point where temperature is required to be
known is viewed through the instrument.
• The current through the lamp filament is adjusted so the filament
disappears.
• The temperature of filament is known from its electrical resistance.
• Since their operation requires the eye and judgment of an operator,
they are not suitable for recording or control.
• Temperature accuracy is ±5 oC (800oC-1300 oC) and ± 10 oC (1300oC-
2000 oC).

Optical Pyrometer
Total Radiation Pyrometer
Total Radiation Pyrometer
“Temperature of a body can be measured by measuring radiant energy
emitted by that hot body”

Q = σT4 (in W/m2)

σ = Stefan Boltzmann’s constant in W/m2.K4
T = Absolute Temperature in Kelvin

 Radiation pyrometers are used to measure the temperature of very

hot objects without being in contact with them.
 Molten glass and molten metals during casting and shaping
operations are typical of the objects they measure.
 In some instruments, a telescopic eye magnifies radiant energy to
measure smaller objects at longer distances.
 On some instruments, hot objects up to 1/16 inch in diameter can be
measured. The construction of the instrument components, such as
the lens and the curved mirrors, control the route of the view.