Faculty of Engineering

Mechatronics Systems Engineering Program

MSE 355 – Sensors, Measurements, and Data Acquisition System
Fall 2023

Tutorial 3
1. What is the difference between the Seebeck effect and the Peltier effect?

2. What is the basic principle of thermocouple?

3. What is the phenomena of self-heat of RTDs, and how to overcome this phenomena?

4. A type-K thermocouple (made from a combination of Chromel–Alumel) is used to measure the tem-
perature within the range of 100◦ C to 350◦ C. Determine the range of output emf if the reference
temperature of the cold junction is 25◦ C.

5. A type-E thermocouple (made from a combination of Chromel–Constantan) is used to measure the

temperature. Determine the temperature measurement if the sensor output is 23.5 mV, while the tem-
perature of the cold junction is 25◦ C. Also, what will be the sensor output if the measured temperature
is 750◦ C.

6. Consider a copper RTD made of magnet wire (copper wire insulated with a polymer). The wire is 0.1
mm thick and the nominal resistance required is 120 Ω at 20◦ C. Neglect the thickness of the insulating
polymer, and determine the following:

ˆ The length of the wire.

ˆ The range of resistance of the RTD for use between −45◦ C and 120◦ C.

7. A platinum RTD with a nominal resistance of 100 Ω at 0◦ C has a temperature coefficient α of 0.00392
Ω/◦ C. Calculate the output current of this RTD at a temperature of 100◦ C if it is connected to 1.5V
battery.

8. A PT100 temperature sensor is used to measure the temperature within the range of −100◦ C to
800◦ C. It has a nominal resistance 100 Ω at 0◦ C, and a temperature coefficient α of 0.003926 Ω/◦ C.
Its self-heat provided in the data sheet is 0.08 ◦ C/mW. If a constant 0.1 V passing across the sensor,
calculate the expected error due to self-heat if the measured temperature is 0◦ C, 200◦ C, and 400◦ C.
What is your comment on these results.

9. A wire-wound RTD sensor is made of pure platinum wire, 0.01 mm in diameter, to have a resistance of
25 Ω at 0◦ C. Assume here that the temperature coefficient of resistance is constant with temperature.

(a) Find the wire length.

(b) Find the resistance of the RTD at 100◦ C.
(c) Find the sensitivity of the sensor (in Ω/◦ C).