CA 506

Advanced Instrumentation

Week # 09: Dec 08, 2010

Engr. AHMED ALI 1

 Pressure Measurement and Sensors
PRESSURE AS A PHYSICAL QUANTITY
Together
T th with ith temperature,
t t pressure is
i one off the
th mostt important
i t t
physical quantities in our environment.

STATIC PRESSURE
Pressure, P, is defined starting with element of force exerted
perpendicularly on an element of surface A of the wall,
wall by the fluid
contained in the container

P =F/A

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 Pressure Measurement and Sensors
DYNAMIC PRESSURE
DYNAMIC PRESSURE is i defined
d fi d as an additional
dditi l pressure on surfaces
f
perpendicular to the flow direction, while having little impact on
surfaces parallel to the flow direction.

STAGNATION OR TOTAL PRESSURE

The sum of the static and dynamic pressures is called the total pressure or
stagnation pressure.

PT= Ps+ Pd

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 Pressure Measurement and Sensors
Pressure measurement is a very common requirement for most
industrial process control systems.
systems
Different types of pressure-sensing and pressure-measurement systems
are available.
It is important to explain some terms used in pressure measurement
and to define the difference between;
Absolute pressure
Gauge pressure
Differential pressure
Absolute pressure:
p
This is the difference between the pressure of the fluid and the
absolute zero of pressure.

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 Pressure Measurement
Gauge pressure:
This describes the difference between the pressure of a fluid and
atmospheric pressure.
pressure
Absolute and gauge pressure are therefore related by the expression:
Absolute pressure = Gauge pressure + Atmospheric pressure
Therefore, gauge pressure varies as the atmospheric pressure changes
and is not a fixed quantity.
Differential pressure:
This term is used to describe the difference between two absolute
pressure values, such as the pressures at two different points within the
same fluid
fl id (often
( ft between
b t th two
the t sides
id off a flow
fl ini a system
t measuring i
volume flow rate).

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 Pressure Measurement and Sensors
TYPICAL CONSTRUCTION OF PRESSURE SENSORS
ABSOLUTE PRESSURE SENSOR
An absolute pressure sensor measures static, dynamic or total pressure
with reference to a vacuum.

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 Pressure Measurement and Sensors
TYPICAL CONSTRUCTION OF PRESSURE SENSORS
GAUGE PRESSURE
A gauge pressure sensor measures static,
t ti dynamic
d i or total
t t l pressure with
ith
reference to ambient atmospheric pressure.
Relative Pressure sensor

A sealed gauge pressure sensor measures static, dynamic or total pressure

with reference to atmospheric pressure, sealed at the time of manufacture
of the sensor.

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 Pressure Measurement and Sensors
TYPICAL CONSTRUCTION OF PRESSURE SENSORS
DIFFERENTIAL SENSORS
A differential pressure sensor measures a static, dynamic or total
pressure with reference to an unspecified variable pressure.

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 Pressure Measurement

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 Pressure Measurement
In most applications, the typical values of pressure measured range
from 1.013
1 013 bar (the mean atmospheric pressure) up to 7000 bar.
bar
The main types of pressure sensor that are in use is concerned only
with the measurement of static pressure, because the measurement of
d
dynamic i pressure is i a very specialized
i li d area that
th t is
i nott off generall
interest.
Dynamic pressure measurement requires special instruments, although
modified versions of diaphragm-type sensors can also be used if they
contain a suitable displacement sensor (usually either a piezoelectric
crystal
y or a capacitive
p element).
)

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 Pressure Measurement
Diaphragms
Capacitive pressure sensor
Fibre-optic pressure sensors
Bellows
Bourdon tube
Manometers
Resonant-wire
Resonant wire devices
Dead-weight gauge
Special measurement devices for low pressures
High-pressure measurement (greater than 7000 bar)
Intelligent pressure transducers

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 Pressure Measurement
The diaphragm can be either plastic, metal alloy, stainless steel or
ceramic.
Plastic diaphragms are cheapest, but metal diaphragms give better
accuracy.
S
Stainless
ess ssteel
ee iss normally
o y used in highg temperature
e pe u e oor cocorrosive
os ve
environments.
Ceramic diaphragms are resistant even to strong acids and alkalis, and
are used when the operating environment is particularly harsh.
harsh
The typical magnitude of diaphragm displacement is 0.1 mm, which is
well suited to a strain-gauge type of displacement-measuring
transducer,
d although
lh h other
h forms
f off displacement
di l measurement are also
l
used in some kinds of diaphragm-based sensors.

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 Pressure Measurement
Diaphragm
S h
Schematic
ti representation
t ti off diaphragm
di h pressure sensor

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 Pressure Measurement
Diaphragm Pump

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 Pressure Measurement
Diaphragm Pump

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 Pressure Measurement
Diaphragm
A capacitive
capaciti e pressure
press re sensor is i simply
i l a diaphragm-type
di h t d i in
device i
which the diaphragm displacement is determined by measuring the
capacitance change between the diaphragm and a metal plate that is
close
l t it.
to it
Such devices are in common use.
It is also ppossible to fabricate capacitive
p elements in a silicon chipp and
thus form very small micro-sensors.

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 Pressure Measurement
Diaphragm
Fibre-optic
Fibre optic sensors provide an alternative method of measuring
displacements in diaphragm and Bourdon tube pressure sensors by
optoelectronic means, and enable the resulting sensors to have lower
mass and size compared with sensors in which the displacement is
measured by other methods.
The Fotonic sensor shown in Figure in which light travels from a light
source, down
d an optical
ti l fibre,
fib isi reflected
fl t d back
b k from
f a diaphragm,
di h andd
then travels back along a second fibre to a photodetector.
There is a characteristic relationship between the light reflected and
the distance from the fibre ends to the diaphragm, making the amount
of reflected light dependent upon the diaphragm displacement and
hence the measured pressure.

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 Pressure Measurement
Fotonic sensor

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 Pressure Measurement
The bellows, schematically illustrated in Figure is another elastic
element type of pressure sensor that operates on very similar principles
to the diaphragm pressure sensor.
Pressure changes within the bellows, which is typically fabricated as a
seamless (fault less) tube of either metal or metal alloy, produce
translational motion of the end of the bellows that can be measured by
capacitive, inductive (LVDT) or potentiometric transducers.
Different versions can measure either absolute pressure (up to 2.5
2 5 bar)
or gauge pressure (up to 150 bar).
Double-bellows versions also exist that are designed to measure
diff
differential
i l pressures off up to 30 bar.
b

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 Pressure Measurement
Bellow

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 Pressure Measurement
The Bourdon tube is also an elastic element type of pressure
transducer.
transducer
It is relatively cheap and is commonly used for measuring the gauge
pressure of both gaseous and liquid fluids.
It consists of a specially shaped piece of oval-section, flexible, metal
tube that is fixed at one end and free to move at the other end.
When ppressure is applied
pp at the open,
p , fixed end of the tube,, the oval
cross-section becomes more circular.
There is a displacement of the free end of the tube.
This
Thi displacement
di l t is
i measuredd by b some formf off displacement
di l t
transducer, which is commonly a potentiometer or LVDT.
Capacitive and optical sensors are also sometimes used to measure the
displacement.
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 Pressure Measurement
The three common shapes of Bourdon tube are shown in Figure

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 Pressure Measurement
Bourdon tube

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 Pressure Measurement
Manometers are passive instruments that give a visual indication of
pressure values. Various types exist.
The U-tube manometer, shown in Figure (a) is the most common form
of manometer.
Applied pressure causes a displacement of liquid inside the U-shaped
glass tube, and the output pressure reading P is made by observing the
difference h between the level of liquid in the two halves of the tube A
and B,
B according to the equation P = hg,
hg where is the specific gravity
of the fluid.
If an unknown pressure is applied to side A, and side B is open to the
atmosphere,
h the
h output reading
di isi gauge pressure.
If side B of the tube is sealed and evacuated, the output reading is
absolute pressure.
p

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 Pressure Measurement
The U-tube manometer also measures the differential pressure (p1-
p2) according to the expression (p1-p2) = hg.
p2), hg
If two unknown pressures p1 and p2 are applied respectively to sides
A and B of the tube.
The well-type or cistern manometer, shown in Figure (b) similar to a
U-tube manometer but one half of the tube is made very large so that it
forms a well.
The change in the level of the well as the measured pressure varies is
negligible.
The inclined manometer or draft gauge,
gauge shown in Figure (c),
(c) is a
variation on the well-type manometer in which one leg of the tube is
inclined to increase measurement sensitivity.

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 Pressure Measurement
Manometers: (a) U-tube; (b) well type; (c) inclined type

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 Pressure Measurement
Manometers

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 Pressure Measurement
A typical resonant-wire device is shown schematically in Figure.
Wire
Wi is i stretched
t t h d across a chamber
h b containing
t i i fl id att unknown
fluid k
pressure subjected to a magnetic field.
The wire resonates at its natural frequency according to its tension,
which varies with pressure.
Thus pressure is calculated by measuring the frequency of vibration of
the wire.
Such frequency measurement is normally carried out by electronics
integrated into the cell.

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 Pressure Measurement
Resonant-wire device

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 Pressure Measurement
The dead-weight gauge, as shown in Figure is a null-reading type of
measuring instrument in which weights are added to the piston
platform until the piston is adjacent to a fixed reference mark, at
which time the downward force of the weights on top of the piston is
balanced by the pressure exerted by the fluid beneath the piston.
piston
The fluid pressure is therefore calculated in terms of the weight added
to the platform and the known area of the piston.
The instrument offers the ability to measure pressures to a high degree
of accuracy but is inconvenient to use.
Its major application is as a reference instrument against which other
pressure-measuring devices are calibrated.
Various versions are available that allow measurement of gauge
pressures up to 7000 bar.
bar

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 Pressure Measurement
Deadweight pressure gauge

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 Pressure Measurement
Special measurement devices for low pressures
A number
b off special
i l devices
d i h
have b
been d l d for
developed f measurementt off
pressures in the vacuum range below atmospheric pressure (<1.013
bar).
These special devices include the thermocouple gauge, the Pirani
gauge, the thermistor gauge, the McLeod gauge and the ionization
gauge.
Unfortunately, all of these specialized instruments are quite expensive

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 Pressure Measurement
Special measurement devices for low pressures
Thermoco ple gauge
Thermocouple ga ge

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 Pressure Measurement
Special measurement devices for low pressures
(a) Pirani gauge;
ga ge; (b) Wheatstone bridge circuit
circ it to measure
meas re output
o tp t

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 Pressure Measurement
Special measurement devices for low pressures
((a)) McLeod gauge;
g g ; ((b)) ionization ggauge
g

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 Pressure Measurement
High-pressure measurement (greater than 7000 bar)
Measurement of pressures above 7000 bar is normally carried out
electrically by monitoring the change of resistance of wires of special
materials.
Materials having resistance-pressure characteristics that are suitably
linear and sensitive include goldchromium
gold chromium alloys.
alloys
A coil of such wire is enclosed in a sealed, kerosene filled, flexible
bellows, as shown in Figure.
The unknown pressure is applied to one end of the bellows, which
transmits the pressure to the coil.
The magnitude of the applied pressure is then determined by measuring
the coil resistance.
Pressures up to 30,000 bar can be measured by devices like the wire
pressure sensor.
sensor
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 Pressure Measurement
High-pressure measurementwire coil in bellows

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 Pressure Measurement
Intelligent pressure transducers
Adding
Addi microprocessor
i power tot pressure transducers
t d bi
brings about
b t
substantial improvements in their characteristics.
Measurement sensitivity improvement, extended measurement range,
compensation for hysteresis and other non-linearities, and correction
for ambient temperature and pressure changes are just some of the
facilities offered by intelligent pressure transducers.
It can be achieved with silicon piezo resistive bridge devices.
Inclusion of microprocessors has also enabled techniques of
displacement measurement.
measurement
The optical method of displacement measurement shown in Figure.

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 Pressure Measurement
Intelligent pressure transducers
The
Th motion
ti isi transmitted
t itt d to
t a vane that
th t progressively
i l shades
h d one off
two monolithic photodiodes that are exposed to infrared radiation.
The second photodiode acts as a reference, enabling the
microprocessor to compute a ratio signal that is linearized and is
available as either an analogue or digital measurement of pressure.

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 Pressure Measurement
Intelligent pressure transducers
E ample of intelligent pressure-measuring
Example press re meas ring instrument
instr ment

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 Pressure Measurement
Selection of pressure sensors
Choice between the various types of instrument available for measuring mid
range
g ppressures ((1.0137000 bar)) is usually
y strongly
g y influenced by
y the intended
application.
Manometers are commonly used when just a visual indication of pressure level
is required, and deadweight gauges, because of their superior accuracy, are used
in calibration procedures of other pressure measuring devices.
When an electrical form of output is required, the choice is usually either one of
the several types of diaphragm sensor (strain gauge, capacitive or fibre optic)
or, less commonly, a Bourdon tube.
Bellows-type instruments are also sometimes used for this purpose, but much
less frequently.
If very high measurement accuracy is required, the resonant-wire device is a
popular choice

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 Pressure Measurement

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 Pressure Measurement

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 Pressure Measurement and Sensors
The following are the commonly used principles for the measurement of
Pressure.
I. Resistance Variation
II. Capacitance Variation
III Inductance Variation
III.
IV. Piezoelectric
V. Oscillator
VI. Optical conversion
VII. Servo controlled sensors with balance of force
(INDIRECT MEASUREMENT)
I. Ionization
II. Molecular dragg
III. Thermal Conductivity of Gases
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 Pressure Sensor
THE SENSING DEVICE
In the case of pressure the sensing element is designed to generally provide a
DEFORMATION resulting in A DISPLACEMENT.
Typically, the most widely used sensing element is the welded diaphragm
with effective section which can be planar,
planar corrugated,
corrugated and cylindrical or a
more complex geometric form according to the pressure range or the fluid
under consideration.

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 Pressure Sensor
1. RESISTANCE VARIATION
Pressure sensors using the resistance variation can be further classified
in the following popular types:
I. POTENTIOMETER
II. STRAIN GAUGES
III. PIEZORESISTORS

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 Pressure Sensor
1. RESISTANCE VARIATION
A) POTENTIOMETER
The wiper of a potentiometer is connected to a diaphragm, a
Bourdon tube or cell so that the deformation of this sensing element
causes a displacement of the wiper.
wiper

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 Pressure Sensor
1. RESISTANCE VARIATION
B) STRAIN GAUGES
Foil-type strain gauges are still very widely used. A resistive grid is created
on foil glued to the sensing element.
The
Th measured d pressure induces
i d d f
deformation,
ti which
hi h causes change
h off
resistance.

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 Pressure Sensor
STRAIN GAUGES

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 Pressure Sensor
STRAIN GAUGES
A gauge with deposited film overcome the problem (attaching
problems), resistive layer is directly deposited on the wall of the
sensing element.
This deposition is carried out either by sputtering (several techniques
can be used) to obtain thin layer gauges or by screen-printing to
obtain thick layer gauges.

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 Pressure Sensor
STRAIN GAUGE

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 Pressure Sensor
STRAIN GAUGE

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 Pressure Sensor
1. RESISTANCE VARIATION
C) PIEZORESISTORS
These gauges use microelectronics technologies directly, allowing the
use of silicon as sensing element.
The piezoresistive effect describes the changing electrical resistance of
a material due to applied mechanical stress.
The piezoresistive effect differs from the piezoelectric effect. In
contrast to the piezoelectric effect, the piezoresistive effect only
causes a change in resistance; it does not produce an electric potential.
This sensor has the advantage of having very high sensitivity and good
miniaturization.

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 Pressure Sensor
PIEZORESISTIVE EFFECT IN SEMICONDUCTORS
The piezoresistive effect of semiconductor materials can be several orders of
magnitudes larger than the piezoresistive effect in metals and is present in
materials like germanium, amorphous silicon, silicon carbide, and single
crystal silicon.

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 Pressure Sensor
PIEZORESISTORS

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