Lecture 8

Temperature Measurements
Instrumentation and Measurements
 Temperature Measurements

SOURCE: http://www.eng.hmc.edu/NewE80/PDFs/VIshayThermDataSheet.pdf

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2
Temperature

What is ‘temperature’ ?

Feeling of hot and cold

Temperature is a physical property of a system that

underlies the common motions of hot and cold; something
that is hotter generally has the greater temperature
OR
Temperature is also defined as the average energy of
particles in the system.
 A SIMPLIFIED DESCRIPTION OF TEMPERATURE

SOURCE: http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/temper2.html#c1

"Temperature is a measure of the tendency of an object to immediately give up

energy to its surroundings. When two objects are in thermal contact, the one
that tends to lose its energy is at the higher temperature.“

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 4

 Temperature scales

Scales
– Fahrenheit (°F)
– Celsius (°C)
– Rankine (°R)
– Kelvin (K)
18.4 The Celsius and Fahrenheit Scales

TC =T - 273.15 
 Celsius Scale

• The Celsius temperature scale was previously known as the

centigrade scale.
• However, the unit “degree Celsius” and the Celsius scale are
currently, by international agreement, defined by two different
points:
• absolute zero, and the
• triple point .
• This definition also precisely relates the Celsius scale to the
Kelvin scale, which is the SI base unit of temperature (symbol:
K). Absolute zero—the temperature at which no energy
remains in a substance—is defined as being precisely 0 K and
−273.15 °C.
• The triple point of water is defined as being precisely 273.16 K
and 0.01 °C
 Celsius temperature conversion formulae

Fahrenheit [°F] = [°C] × 9⁄5 + 32 [°C] = ([°F] − 32) × 5⁄9

Kelvin [K] = [°C] + 273.15 [°C] = [K] − 273.15

Rankine [°R] = ([°C] + 273.15) × 9⁄5 [°C] = ([°R] − 491.67) × 5⁄9

 Fahrenheit Scale

Fahrenheit
• In this scale, the freezing point of water is 32 degrees
Fahrenheit (°F) and the boiling point 212 °F, placing the
boiling and freezing points of water exactly 180 degrees apart.

• On the Celsius scale, the freezing and boiling points of water

are exactly 100 degrees apart.

The Rankine temperature scale was created to use degrees the

same size as those of the Fahrenheit scale, such that a
temperature difference of one degree Rankine (1 °R) is the same
as a temperature difference of 1 °F.
Fahrenheit temperature conversion formulae

Celsius [°C] = ([°F] − 32) × 5⁄9 [°F] = [°C] × 9⁄  + 32

5

Kelvin [K] = ([°F] + 459.67) × 5⁄99
[°F] = [K] × 9⁄  − 459.67
5

Rankine [°R] = [°F] + 459.67 [°F] = [°R] − 459.67

 Kelvin temperature conversion formulae

Celsius [°C] = [K] − 273.15 [K] = [°C] + 273.15

Fahrenheit [°F] = [K] × 9⁄5 − 459.67 [K] = ([°F] + 459.67) × 5⁄9

Rankine [°R] = [K] × 9⁄5 [K] = [°R] × 5⁄9

Temperature relathionships

(°F) = 9/5*(°C) +32

(°C) = 5/9*[(°F) –32]

(°F) = (°R) – 459.67

(°C) = (K) – 273.15

 Example 1.  
A healthy person has an oral temperature of 98.6 °F. What would this
reading be on the Celsius scale?

Example 2

A time and temperature sign on a bank indicates that the outdoor temperature is –20.0
°C. Find the corresponding temperature on the Fahrenheit scale

13
 What is the difference between heat and temperature?

• Heat is the amount of thermal energy in an object because

of its moving molecules.

• Temperature is a measure of thermal energy or how fast

molecules are moving in an object. The more you heat
something, the faster the molecules move. This is what
causes temperature to rise.
 How does heat move from one place to another?

3 Types of Heat Transfer

Conduction
Radiation
Convection
Conduction is when heat moves from one place to another by direct
contact or touch.
Convection is the movement of heat in gases and liquids because of
differences in density.
Radiation is the movement of the heat through the radiations.
Radiation, Conduction, and Convection
 Types of Temperature Sensors
Thermocouples
Resistance Temperature
Detectors (RTDs)
Thermistors
Infrared Sensors
Liquid-in-glass thermometers
Bimetallic strips
Semiconductors
 Desirable Temperature Sensor Characteristics
FAST ACCURATE
RESPONSE REPEATABLE

EASY WIDE
CALIBRATION TEMPERATURE TEMPERATURE
SENSOR RANGE

COST

SIMPLE RELATIONSHIP
SENSOR OUTPUT  TEMPERATURE

ENGINEERING 80 18
 Thermistor
Thermistor – a resistor whose resistance changes with
temperature

ENGR 106 Lecture 3 Temperature Measurements 19

 Thermistor
Thermistor – a resistor whose resistance changes with
temperature. • Resistive element is generally a
metal-oxide ceramic containing Mn,
Cu, or Ni.
• Packaged in a thermally conductive
glass bead with two metal leads.

ENGR 106 Lecture 3 Temperature Measurements 20

 Thermistor
Thermistor – a resistor whose resistance changes with
temperature • Resistive element is generally a
metal-oxide ceramic containing Mn,
Cu, or Ni
• Packaged in a thermally conductive
glass bead with two metal leads
• Suppose we have 900Ω
thermistor”…
• What does this mean?

ENGR 106 Lecture 3 Temperature Measurements 21

 Negative Temperature Coefficient
• Most materials exhibit a negative temperature
coefficient (NTC)
• Resistance drops with temperature!

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 22

 Converting Resistance to Temperature

• The Steinhart Equation relates temperature to resistance

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 23

 Converting Resistance to Temperature
• The Steinhart-Hart Equation relates temperature to
resistance

• T is the temperature (in Kelvin)

• R is the resistance at T and Rref is resistance at Tref
• A1, B1, C1, and D1 are the Steinhart Coefficients

• HOW COULD WE DETERMINE THESE COEFFICIENTS?

• Take a look at the data sheet

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 24

 Thermocouple
• Thermocouple – a two-terminal element consisting of
two dissimilar metal wires joined at the end.

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 25

 Thermocouple Applications

Food processing equipment

Semiconductor processing
Heat treating
Medical equipment
Industrial heat treating
Packaging equipment
 Basic Working Principle
The principle of operation is on the See beck effect. A
temperature gradient along a conductor creates an EMF. If two
conductors of different materials are joined at one point, an EMF
is created between the open ends which is dependent upon the
temperature of the junction. As T1 increases, so does V. The EMF
also depends on the temperature of the open ends T2.

The junction is placed in the process, the other end is in iced water at
0C. This is called the reference junction.
 The See beck Effect
• Seebeck Effect – A conductor generates a voltage when it
is subjected to a temperature gradient
• Measuring this voltage requires the use of a second conductor
material
• The other material needs to be composed of a different metal
Nickel-Chromium Al
The
relationship The voltage difference of
between the two dissimilar metals
temperature can be measured and
difference and related to the corresponding
voltage varies temperature gradient
with materials
- Copper-Nickel Alloy
ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 28
Practical Thermocouple Construction
A thermocouple construction consist of two conductors, welded
together at the measuring point and insulated from each other
long the length. It will usually have an outer protection shell.
 Thermocouple Materials
The three most common thermocouple materials for
moderate temperatures are Iron-Constantan (Type J),
Copper-Constantan (Type T), and Chromel- Alumel (Type
K).
All three types (J, K, and T) are available as insulated
duplexed pairs from 0.001-inch diameter on up. For
accuracy, and minimum system disturbance, the smaller the
wire the better, but wire smaller than 0.003-inch diameter is
very fragile.
 Measuring Temperature
• The voltage measured by your system is proportional to the
temperature difference between the primary junction (hot
junction) and the junction where the voltage is being measured
(Ref junction)

You need to
To determine know the
the absolute temperature
temperature at at the Ref
the hot junction!
junction… How can we
determine the
temperature at the
Temperature Measurements reference junction?
31
 Major Specifications
Type J: Iron / Constantan: Useful range of temperature is
-300F to 1200F. Maximum temperature 1600F. Possible
problems: Oxidizes rapidly due to the iron wire. The use of
the stainless steel metal sheathed MgO style of construction
has overcome some of this problem and is much preferred
over the other types of thermocouple.
Type K: Chromel / Alumel Useful range of temperature is
-300F to 1800F. Maximum temperature 2300F.
Type E: Chromel / Constantan Useful range of temperature is
-300F to 1800F. Maximum temperature 1000F.
Type T: Copper / Constantan Useful range of temperature is
-300F to 700F. Maximum temperature 700F.
 Major Specifications……

Type R and S: Platinum / Platinum-Rhodium Useful range of

temperature is 40F to 3000F. Maximum temperature
2300F.Both the R and S thermocouples are used for very
high temperatures. These couples are relatively expensive
compared to other thermocouples since they are made of
platinum. Normally a ceramic protective tube and ceramic
beads are used for construction for both high temperature
reasons and to prevent contamination of the noble metal.
 Look-Up Table for a Type J Thermocouple
Voltage difference of the hot and cold junctions: V D = 3.409 mV
What is the temperature of the hot junction if the cold junction
is at is at 22 oC?

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 34

 Look-Up Table for a Type T Thermocouple
Voltage difference of the hot and cold junctions: V D = 3.409 mV
What is the temperature of the hot junction if the cold junction
is at 22 oC?

At 22 oC, the reference junction voltage is 0.870 mV

The hot junction voltage is therefore 3.409 mV + 0.870 mV =
4.279 mV
The temperature at the hot junction is therefore 100 oC
ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 35
 APPLYING WHAT WE’VE LEARNED
Voltage difference of the hot and cold junctions: V D = 4.472 mV
What is the temperature of the hot junction if the cold junction
is at –5 oC?

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 36

 APPLYING WHAT WE’VE LEARNED
Voltage difference of the hot and cold junctions: V D = 4.472 mV
What is the temperature of the hot junction if the cold junction
is at –5 oC?

At -5 oC, the cold junction voltage is –0.193 mV

The hot junction voltage is therefore 4.472 mV – 0.193 mV =
4.279 mV
The temperature at the hot junction is therefore 100 oC
ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 37
 Resistance Temperature Detectors (RTDs)

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
 Resistive Temperature Detector (RTD)
• Two terminal device
• Usually made out of platinum
• Positive temperature coefficient
• Tends to be linear
• They are best operated using a small
constant current source
• Accuracy of 0.01 oC
• EXPENSIVE!

SOURCE: http://www.omega.com/prodinfo/images/RTD_diag1.gif

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 39

 Infrared Sensors
• An infrared sensor intercepts a portion of the infrared energy radiated by
an object.
• Many types Optical Pyrometers, Radiation Pyrometers, Total Radiation
Pyrometers, Automatic Infrared Thermometers, Ear Thermometers, Fiber
optic Thermometers, Two-Color Pyrometers, Infra-Snakes, and many
more.
 Infrared Applications

• Manufacturing process like metals,

glass, cement, ceramics,
semiconductors, plastics, paper, textiles,
coatings.

• Improve safety in fire-fighting, rescues

and detection of criminal activities.

• Used to monitor and measure human

body temperatures with one second time
response.

• Reliability and maintenance needs from

building heating to electrical power
generation and distribution
Liquid-in-glass thermometers
- a bulb, a reservoir in which the working liquid can expand or contract in volume
a stem, a glass tube containing a tiny capillary connected to the bulb and
enlarged at the bottom into a bulb that is partially filled with a working
liquid. The tube's bore is extremely small - less than 0.5 mm in diameter

a temperature scale is fixed or engraved on the stem supporting the

capillary tube to indicate the range and the value of the temperature.
The liquid-in-glass thermometers is usually calibrated against a
- standard thermometer and at the melting point of water

a working liquid, usually mercury or alcohol

a reference point, a calibration point, the most common being the ice point
-
an inert gas is used for mercury intended to high temperature. The
- thermometer is filled with an inert gas such as argon or nitrogen above the
mercury to reduce its volatilization.

constriction may be used to measure maximal or minimal temperature

42
 bimetallic strip
• A bimetallic strip is made of two ribbons of dissimilar metals
bonded together.
• Assume that the strip is originally straight. As they are heated, the
metal with the greater average coefficient of expansion (2)
expands more than the other, forcing the strip into an arc, with the
outer radius having a greater circumference (as in the Fig).
•

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 43

• Find the angle (Q) through which the free end of the strip
turns when the temperature changes by 1°C for such bi-
metalic strip with the initial length L= 21.0 cm and the
separation of the centers of the strips (Dr = r2 - r1 = 0.410
mm). The two metals are bronze and invar.
• Q = (2 - 1 )L (dT/dr)
• Q = 1.06o

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 44

 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
 Temperature Measurement Devices

>
ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 47
 How Do I Know If These Are Working?

SOURCE: http://www.eng.hmc.edu/NewE80/PDFs/VIshayThermDataSheet.pdf

SOURCE: http://elcodis.com/photos/19/51/195143/to-92-
3_standardbody__to-226_straightlead.jpg

SOURCE: http://www.accuglassproducts.com/product.php?productid=17523

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 48

 Calibration
• How could we calibrate a temperature sensor?

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 49

 Calibration
• How could we calibrate a temperature sensor?

0 oC 25 oC 100 oC
ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 50
 Thermal System Step Response

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 51

 Thermal System Step Response

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 52

 Thermal System Step Response

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 53

 Thermal System Step Response

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 54

 Thermal System Step Response

The thermal time constant

can be measured as the
time it takes to get to (1/e)
of the final temperature
100 (1-(1/e)) = 63 oC

Thermal Time
ENGINEERING 80 Constant
Temperature Measurements 55
 Thermal System Step Response

The thermal time constant

can be measured as the
time it takes to get to (1/e)
of the final temperature
100 (1-(1/e)) = 63 oC

Thermal Time
ENGINEERING 80 Constant
Temperature Measurements 56
 Thermal System Step Response

http://www.eng.hmc.edu/NewE80/PDFs/TemperatureMeasurementLec
Notes.pdf
http://www.colorado.edu/MCEN/Measlab/background1storder.pdf

http://www.eng.hmc.edu/NewE80/PDFs/TemperatureMeasurementLec
Notes.pdf

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 57

 References
• Previous E80 Lectures and Lecture Notes
• http://www.eng.hmc.edu/NewE80/TemperatureLec.html
• Thermcouples White Paper
• http://www.ohio.edu/people/bayless/seniorlab/thermocouple.pdf (downloaded
02/04/2015)
• University of Cambridge Thermoelectric Materials for Thermocouples
• http://www.msm.cam.ac.uk/utc/thermocouple/pages/ThermocouplesOperatingPrincip
les.html
(viewed 02/04/2015)
• National Instruments Temperature Measurements with Thermocouples: How-
To Guide
• http://www.technologyreview.com/sites/default/files/legacy/temperature_measureme
nts_with_thermocouples.pdf
(downloaded 02/04/2015)
• Vishay NTCLE100E3104JB0 Data Sheet
• http://www.eng.hmc.edu/NewE80/PDFs/VIshayThermDataSheet.pdf (downloaded on
02/04/2015)

ENGINEERING 80 Temperature Measurements 58