ERT 321

Process Control & Dynamics

CHAPTER 9
Control System Instrumentation
Dr Anis Atikah binti Ahmad
 OUTLINE

• Control System Instrumentation

• Sensors, Transmitters & Transducers
• Final Control Elements
• Sizing a control valve
• Signal Transmission
• Accuracy in instrumentation
Control System Instrumentation

FCE
Measurement
(Actuator)

Process

A controller/process interface
Sensors, Transmitters & Transducers

Figure 9.3 A typical process sensor-transmitter.

• Figure 9.3 illustrates the general configuration of a measurement

sensor-transmitter; it typically consists of a sensing element
combined with a driving element (transmitter).
• The sensing element is required to measure magnitude of
a process variable (e.g., flow rate, pressure, temperature, level,
or concentration).

• Transmitter for process measurements convert the magnitude

of a process variable (e.g., flow rate, pressure, temperature,
level, or concentration) into a signal that can be sent directly to
the controller.

• Transducer is a device that converts an instrumentation

signal from one form to another. One common application is
when the controller output signal is a current signal, and the
final control element is a pneumatic control. The required
conversion is performed by a current-to-pressure (I/P)
transducer. Voltage-to-pressure (E/P) transducers are also quite
common.
Standard Instrumentation Signal Levels
•Before 1960, instrumentation in the process industries utilized
pneumatic (air pressure) signals to transmit measurement
and control information almost exclusively.
•These devices make use of mechanical force-balance elements
to generate signals in the range of 3 to 15 psig, an industry
standard.
• Since about 1960, electronic instrumentation has come
into widespread use.

• Most industrial analog instrumentation now has a standard

4 to 20 mA range.
Sensors

The main categories of measurements used in process control

are temperature, pressure, flow rate, liquid level and
composition.

Selection criteria:

1. Measurement range (Span):

• The required measurement range for the process variable
must lie entirely within the range of instrument
performance.

2. Performance:
•Accuracy, repeatability, etc
•The speed of response must be included in a closed loop
control system.
3. Reliability:
Data available from the manufacturers provide baseline
conditions. Previous experience with the measurement
device is very important

4. Materials of construction:
•The instrument may need to withstand high temperatures,
high pressures, and corrosive and abrasive environments. For
some applications, seals & purges may be necessary.
5. Prior use:
•For the first installation of a specific measurement device at
a site, training of maintenance personnel and purchases of
spare parts might be necessary

6. Potential for releasing process materials to the

environment:
•Preventing exposure to fugitive emissions for
maintenance personnel is important when the process fluid is
corrosive or toxic.
•Sterility in bioprocesses must be maintained.

7. Electrical classification
•If the measurement device is not inherently compatible with
possible exposure to hazards, suitable enclosures must be
purchased & included in the installation costs.
Examples of measuring devices (sensor)
Transmitters
• A transmitter usually converts the sensor output to a signal
level appropriate for input to a controller, such as 4 to 20 mA.
• Transmitters are generally designed to be direct acting (the
output signal increases as the measured variable increase.)
In addition, most
commercial transmitters have an adjustable input range (or
span).
• For example, a temperature transmitter might be adjusted so that
the input range of a platinum resistance element (the sensor) is
50 to 150 °C.
• In this case, the following correspondence is obtained:
Input Output
50 °C 4 mA
150 20
 • This instrument ( has a lower limit or zero of 50 °C
and a range or span of 100 °C.
• The relation between temperature (input) and transmitted
signal (output) is

 20 mA 4 
Input Output
TmmA   
 mA  50°C
150°C

 T  50°C   4 mA
50 °C 4 mA 
150 °C 20 mA 
  0.16

mA 
°C T  °C 4 mA


The gain of the measurement element Km is 0.16 mA/°C. For any
linear instrument:
range of instrument output
Km  (9-1)
range of instrument input
Chapter 9

Figure 9.4 A linear instrument calibration showing its zero

and span.
Figure 9.5 Gain of a nonlinear transmitter
as a function of operating point
 Dynamic Characteristics of Sensor-Transmitters.

It is reasonable to model this type of measurement dynamics as a first-

order transfer function between the actual value y and the measured value
Ym:

where Km is the gain given by Eq. 9-1 and τ is the measurement time
constant. For the temperature transmitter example, the units of Km are
mA/⁰C.
 Final Control Elements
• Every process control loop contains a final control element
(actuator), the device that enables a process variable to be
manipulated.
• For most chemical and petroleum processes, the final control
elements (usually control valves) adjust the flow rates of
materials, and indirectly, the rates of energy transfer to and
from the process.
Control Valves
• There are many different ways to manipulate the flows of
material and energy into and out of a process; for example,
the speed of a pump drive, screw conveyer, or blower can
be adjusted.
• However, a simple and widely used method of accomplishing
this result with fluids is to use a control valve, also called an
automatic
control valve.
• The control valve components include the valve body, trim,
seat, and actuator.

Air-to-Open vs. Air-to-Close Control Valves

• Normally, the choice of A-O or A-C valve is based on safety
considerations.

7
• We choose the way the valve should operate (full flow or no
flow) in case of a transmitter failure.
• Hence, A-C and A-O valves often are referred to as fail-open
and fail-closed, respectively.
Chapter 9

Figure 9.7 A pneumatic control valve (air-to-open).

8
Example 9.1
Pneumatic control valves are to be specified for the applications
listed below. State whether an A-O or A-C valve should be used
for the following manipulated variables and give reason(s).

a) Steam pressure in a reactor heating coil.

b) Flow rate of reactants into a polymerization reactor.
c) Flow of effluent from a wastewater treatment holding tank into
a river.
d) Flow of cooling water to a distillation condenser.
a) Steam pressure in a reactor heating coil.

A-O (fail closed) to make sure that the transmitter

failure will not cause the reactor to overheat,
which is usually more serious than having it
operate at too low temperature
b) Flow rate of reactants into a polymerization reactor.

A-O (fail closed) to prevent the reactor from being

flooded with excessive reactant.

A-C (fail open) if the reactor flowrate normallly is close

to the maximum flow rate of the valve so that opening
the valve fully would cause relatively little change in
operating conditions.
(c) Flow of effluent from a wastewater treatment holding
tank into a river.

A-O (fail closed) to prevent excessive and perhaps

untreated waste from entering the stream.
(c) Flow of cooling water to a distillation condenser.

A-C (fail open) to ensure that overhead vapor is

completely condensed before it reaches the
receiver.
Valve Positioners
Pneumatic control valves can be equipped with a valve
positioner, a type of mechanical or digital feedback controller
that senses the actual stem position, compares it to the
desired position, and adjusts the air pressure to the valve
accordingly.

The valve positioner is usually

mounted on the side of the valve
actuator.

10
 Sizing a control valve
• Sizing of control valves depends on the fluid processing units, such as
pumps, heat exchangers, or filters, that are placed in series with the
valve.

• Considering only control objectives, the valve would be sized to take

most of the pressure drop in the line. This choice would give the
valve maximum influence over process changes that disturb the flow
rate, such as upstream (supply) pressure changes.

• However, the most economical operating conditions require the valve to

introduce as little pressure drop as possible, thus minimizing pumping
costs (electrical power).

• In general, a control valve should be sized so that it takes approximately

one-quarter to one-third of the total pressure drop in the line at the
design flow rate.
 Calculation of size of control valve
Specifying and Sizing Control Valves
A design equation used for sizing control valves relates valve
lift ℓ to the actual flow rate q by means of the valve coefficient
Cv, the proportionality factor that depends predominantly on
valve size or capacity:

Pv
q  Cv f  ℓ (9-2)
gs

• Here q is the flow rate, ℓf is the flow characteristic, Pv is the
pressure drop across the valve, and gs is the specific gravity of
the fluid.
• This relation is valid for nonflashing fluids
• Specification of the valve size is dependent on the so-called
valve characteristic f.
• Three control valve characteristics are mainly used.

• For a fixed pressure drop across the valve, the flow

characteristic f 0  f  1 is related to the lift ℓ 0  ℓ  1 , that
is, the extent of valve opening, by one of the following relations:

Linear: f 
Quick opening: f   (9-3)
Equal percentage: f  Rl1

where R is a valve design parameter that is usually in the range

of 20 to 50.
Figure 9.8 Control valve characteristics.
12
Rangeability
The rangeability of a control valve is defined as the ratio of
maximum to minimum input signal level. For control valves,
rangeability translates to the need to operate the valve within the
range 0.05 ≤ f ≤ 0.95 or a rangeability of 0.95/0.05 = 19.

General guidelines for valve characteristic

selection:
1. If the pump characteristic (discharge pressure vs. flow
rate) is fairly flat and system frictional losses are quite
small over the entire operating region, choose a linear
valve. However, this situation occurs infrequently,
because it results from an overdesigned process (pump
and piping capacity too large).
General guidelines for valve characteristic selection (cont.)

2. To Select an Equal Percentage Valve:

a) Plot the pump characteristic curve and ∆Ps, the system

pressure drop curve without the valve, as shown in Fig. 9.12. The
difference between these two curves is ∆Pv. The pump should be
sized so that ∆Pv / ∆Ps is 25 to 33% at the design flow rate qd.

b) Calculate the valve’s rated Cv, the value that yields at least
100% of qd with the available pressure drop at that higher flow
rate. 

c) Compute q as a function of using Eq. 9-2, the rated Cv, and
∆Pv from (a). A plot of the valve characteristic (q vs should be
reasonably linear in the operating region of interest (at least
around the design flow rate). If it is not suitably linear, adjust the
rated Cv and repeat.)
Figure 9.12 Calculation of the valve pressure drop Pv 
from the pump characteristic curve and the system pressure
drop without the valve Ps .
14
 Example 9.2

A pump furnishes a constant head of 40 psi over the entire

flow rate range of interest. The heat exchanger pressure drop
is 30 psig at 200 gal/min (qd) and can be assumed to be
proportional to q2. Select the rated Cv of the valve and plot the
installed characteristic for the following case:
a) A linear valve that is half open at the design flow rate.
b) An equal percentage valve (R=50) that is sized to be
completely open at 110% of the design flow rate.
(c) Same as in (b) except with a Cv that is 20% higher
than calculated
(d) Same as in (b) except with a Cv that is 20% lower
than calculated.
Figure 9.9 A control valve placed in series with a pump and
a heat exchanger. Pump discharge pressure is constant.

16
Solution
First, we write an expression for the pressure drop across the heat
exchanger
2
Phe q 
 (9-5)
30  200 
2
  q 
Ps  Phe  30   (9-6)
 200 
Because the pump head is constant at 40 psi, the pressure drop
available for the valve is
2
 q
Pv  40  P he
 40  30   (9-7)
 200 
Figure 9.11 illustrates these relations. Note that in all four design
cases Pv / Ps  10 / 30  33% at qd.
17
Chapter 9

Figure 9.11 Pump characteristic and system pressure drop

for Example 9.2.
18
 a) First calculate the rated Cv.
200
Cv   126.5 (9-8)
0.5 10

We will use Cv = 125. For a linear characteristic valve, use the

relation between ℓ and q from Eq. 9-2:
Chapter 9

ℓ q
(9-9)
Cv Pv

Using Eq. 9-9 and values of Pv from Eq. 9-7, the installed
valve characteristic curve can be plotted.

19
b) An equal percentage valve (R=50) that is sized to be completely open
at 110% of the design flow rate.

Calculate the rated Cv (valve fully open) at 110% of qd.

220
Cv   114 .4
3.7
Use a value of Cv = 115.

For the equal percentage valve, rearrange Eq. 9-2 as follows:

q
 R 1 (9.10)
Cv Pv
 q 
  1  log   log R (9.11)
 C P 
 v v 

Substituting Cv = 115, R = 50, & values of q and ΔPv yields the

installed characteristic curve in Fig. 9.12.
Chapter 9

Figure 9.12 Installed valve characteristics for Example 9.2.

20
(c) Same as in (b) except with a Cv that is 20% higher than
calculated

Use a value of Cv = 1.2(115) = 138.

(d) Same as in (b) except with a Cv that is 20% lower than

calculated.

Cv = 0.8(115) = 92
From these results we conclude that an equal percentage
valve with Cv~115 would give a reasonably linear installed
characteristics over a larger range of flows and have
sufficient capacity to accommodate flows as high as 110% of
the design flow rate.
 Signal Transmission
o Electronic controllers (digital or analog) can be located
relatively far from their instruments with little concern
for the impedance of the intervening transmission lines
or for the time of transmission, which for all practical
purposes is instantaneous.

o Most transmitter analog signals are in the form of

current rather than voltage because voltage is affected
by wire and connector resistances, which change with
wire length, temperature & aging.

o Voltage level control & instrumentation signals are

better restricted to laboratory environments where
short distances are normally involved.
Signal Transmission (cont.)
oPneumatic pressure signals between instruments are
transmitted by means of tubing, usually 1/4- or 3/8 in
diameter. The propagation of a signal changing in time
through such a medium is limited by dynamic accuracy
considerations to 100 or 200 meters at most.

o Signals from digital instruments and controllers are

usually transmitted in digital format as a sequence of on-
off pulses.
 Accuracy in instrumentation
Accuracy requirements are inherently related to control system
objectives.

• E.g. cooling water flow errors on the order of 10% might be

acceptable in a control loop regulating the temperature of a
liquid leaving a condenser, as long as the measurements are
simply biased from the true value by this constant
amount.

• However, errors in the feed flow rate to a process on the

order of 1 or 2% might be unacceptable if
throughput/inventory calculations must be made with these
data.
21
 Accuracy in instrumentation
Terms Used to Describe Instrument Accuracy
•The measurement error (or error) is the difference between
the true value and the measured value.

•It is often expressed as a percentage of full scale (%FS)

where the term full scale refers to the span of the
instrument.

•Suppose that the % FS error of a temperature transmitter

is reported as 1% and the zero and span are adjusted so that
the instrument operates over the range of 10-70 °C. Since
the span is 70-10 =60 °C, the measurement error is 1%
of 60 °C, or 0.6 °C.
Chapter 9

Figure 9.13 Analysis of types of error for a flow instrument

whose range is 0 to 4 flow units.
23
• Resolution refers to the smallest interval between two
numerical values that can be distinguished. For example, if a
temperature transmitter has a resolution of 0.1⁰C, it is not
possible for it to distinguish between actual temperatures of
21.62⁰C and 21.67 °C.

• Precision refers to the variability of a measurement for

specified conditions and a particular instrument (measure of
the closeness between several individual readings). If the four
measurements of a key component are 21.3, 22.7, 20.6, and
21.5%, the analyzer precision could be expressed as the range,
22.7-20.6=2.1 %, (usually written as “mean ± 2.1”, in this case
21.5 ± 2.1 %
• Systematic error (bias) = 0.37-0.25 = 0.12 units.

• The maximum error can be as large as 0.14 units.

• The accuracy (inaccuracy) is no worse than 0.14 at these

conditions.

• The repeatability of the measured value is ±0.02 flow units at

the constant conditions of this experiment (refers to the
variability of replicate measurements in a set of data)
Note:

o The precision (resolution) of a transducer can be good

while it accuracy is poor.

o The accuracy cannot be good if the precision is poor.