CONSTRUCTION OF A THERMOCOUPLE THERMOMETER

By

Jim Roberts, Professor of Physics and Material Science

The University of North Texas

OBJECTIVE: This experiment is designed to show you how to construct a

thermocouple or a device made of two (couple) of dissimilar metals that can
produce a voltage when heat is applied, to collect voltage data, to plot the results
on a CFX-9850GC Plus graphing calculator and make a thermometer using the
results.

INTRODUCTION

There are two types of effects that arise when two dissimilar metals are

brought in contact with each other and the temperature is changed at the junction.

One effect produces an electrical potential (Seebeck effect) when heat is applied

and the other effect is to cool the junction when a current is passed through the

junction in the proper direction (Peltier effect). These two effects can be very

useful. Since the voltage at the junction depends upon the temperature of the end

points, we may generate a voltage by heating one junction while holding the other

constant in temperature, a source of electromotive force. The other effect is to

make a cooling device, a refrigerator, by passing a current through the junction in

the proper direction.

In figure 1 is shown a thermocouple. This is the structure of a commercial

thermocouple that is capable of sensing temperature changes at the junction. A

very practical usage of the thermocouple is to control the safety of gas delivering

systems. This is done by allowing the voltage produced to control the valve that

delivers gas to the burners. If the burner goes out, there is no heat to the

thermocouple and the voltage drops to release the valve and close off the gas flow,

thus preventing a potential explosion. All gas systems are now required, by law, to

have such safety valves.

 The device shown in figure 1 can be produced by the use of two electrically

dissimilar metals such as copper and iron or copper and constantan. When the

device has been constructed, it can be calibrated to read voltage and convert this

into a temperature scale. If the amplifier gain is high enough the voltage can be

read using an EA-200 to collect the data points. When this has been completed,

the data are transferred into the graphing calculator for processing and testing for

linear behavior over the temperature range of interest.

Figure 1. A thermocouple mounted into a finger and the thermocouple wires and
junction exposed so it can be seen what is in the sensing probe.

PROCEDURE

Construct your thermal junction by twisting a copper and an iron or

constantan wire together at the ends to form a closed loop. Cut the copper wire in

two pieces at the center and clean the surface to make good electrical contact with

the iron. The voltmeter mode of the EA-200 can now be used to measure any

potential difference at the terminals.

Figure 2. Schematic of the thermocouple set up for making a thermometer using
the voltage generated by a thermocouple. The signal from the thermocouple was
amplified to raise the voltage output and to match impedance to the EA-200 Data
Collector/Analyzer

Place the thermocouple in a small test tube to isolate it from water. If the

temperature of air is to be measured, the isolation test tube is not needed. The

tube is to isolate the junction from electrical interaction with the water. Place the

thermocouple in the tube in about 250 ml of water in a beaker and place the beaker

on a hot plate. Connect the voltage probe to the terminals of the thermocouple to

warm it over a range of temperatures. You can also change the temperature by

using a hair dryer to blow hot air over the temperature probe and the thermocouple

junction. Put the temperature probe in channel 2 with the voltage probe in channel

1. You are ready to collect temperature and voltage data so the thermocouple

voltage can be calibrated to become temperature.

 6
4
2
VOLTAGE

0
10.7

16.8

24.5

33.4

43.1

53.4

63.9

75.3

86.1
-2
-4
-6
-8
-10
TEMPERATURE

Figure 3. Left. An Excel plot of voltage versus centigrade temperature for the
thermocouple with a reference bath of ice and water to reference to 0 degrees
centigrade. Right. A picture of the CFX 9850 GB Plus calculator display window.
The bold line is produced by equation 1 below.

Usually the voltage produced by the thermocouple junction is linear over a

reasonable range of temperatures. When the data has been transferred to the

CFX-9850 GC Plus graphing calculator it is tested for linear behavior. When you

finish the plot the statistics for a linear least squares routine can be analyzed to

determine how well the data fit a linear response by the r2 value. If the data do not

fit a linear response, the graphing calculator function for X2 is used. The number r2

should be very close to 1. The values change from +1…..-1. If the number is +1

the data has a perfectly linear response and the data are well correlated to a linear

fit. If the value is -1 the data and a linear response are dis-correlated and the data

have the greatest departure from a linear response.

The data in figure 1 were fit by equation 1 as given below:

T = -7.0592V + 33.524 (1)

 2.4
2.3
2.2
2.1
2
VOLTAGE

1.9
1.8
1.7
1.6
1.5
14.8

19.1

23

28

33.6

39.5

46

52.7

59

64.9
TEMPERATURE (C)

Figure 3. Left. An Excel plot of the amplified voltage versus centigrade

temperature for the thermocouple with a reference bath of ice and water to
reference to 0 degrees centigrade. Right. A picture of the CFX 9850 Ga Plus
calculator display for the same experiment. Note the curvature is more pronounced
and the data fit a quadratic model. This effect is due to the nonlinear property of
the amplifier. The pictures were taken with a QV-7000-SX digital camera.

T = -104.849V2+331.175V -196.23 (2)

The thermocouple can be used to measure temperature by making a

voltage measurement and converting to centigrade temperature by using equation

1. The voltage depends on the gain of the amplifier so each unit must be calibrated

for the amplifier used in the measurement. The thermocouples used were obtained

from a hardware store and produce up to 30 millivolts when heated with a blue gas

flame. They serve as safety devices in conventional hot water heaters.

SUMMARY

The temperature sensor needs to be calibrated against a reference. This

may be ice and water at standard pressure or by use of a reference voltage against
which the instrument is calibrated. Both procedures were tested in this experiment.

The type thermocouple chosen must be one that will produce sufficient voltage to

activate the meter used to measure the output voltage. Of an amplifier is used, any

nonlinear response must be considered for the instrument to be accurate.

QUESTIONS

1. Can you save money by taking the energy from the Sun and converting it into

electricity by using a thermocouple? Discuss the costs involved in providing such

energy, if you answered yes to the question.

2. In the thermocouple part of this experiment you learned about converting heat to

electricity. Discuss how this may be done efficiently by using the Sun's energy.

Recall that focusing the rays of the Sun will multiply the heat energy falling on a

given area.

3. The apparatus shown in figure 1 of this exercise is a pyrometer or a device for

determining temperature. Discuss how you think this thing works.

4. One of the properties of nature is that if one process works, the reverse is true.

That is, the generator of electricity produces electricity when a magnet is moved in

a coil of wire. (The generator rule.) The inverse of this is that a current through a

wire will cause a magnet to move. (The motor rule.) Since heating the

thermocouple junction produces a voltage, might a current through the junction cool

it? Look up the Seebeck Effect and the Peltier Effect on the internet and discuss

these in the light of the “two faces of scientific processes”.

5. How many thermocouples of the composition studied above will need to be

placed in series to light a 120 volt light bulb?

6. Since the energy from the Sun can be used to heat the thermocouple to produce

electricity in the day time, discuss how we can store this electrical energy to be

used when the Sun is not shining.

7. The reference junction of the thermocouple system needs to be kept at a fixed

temperature to provide a reference for the second junction. Describe how the fact

that the temperature of the soil at the surface of the Earth relative to a few feet

below the surface is several degrees higher can be used to provide a temperature

change that can drive the thermocouple system.

8. Based on what you learned about the voltage potential, how much voltage can

be produced by the temperature difference found at a depth of one meter relative to

the surface temperature. Determine the temperature difference by using a

temperature probe and the EA-200 Data Collector/Analyzer.