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Pneumatic Instrumentation Overview

Pneumatic instrumentation uses compressed air and mechanical components instead of electronics to measure and control process variables. A common pneumatic transmitter uses a baffle and nozzle mechanism where motion of the baffle restricts air flow through the nozzle, creating a variable backpressure signal between 3-15 psi that is transmitted to a remote pressure gauge. Pneumatic relays amplify this signal by using the input air pressure to control the motion of a pilot valve which then directs a higher output air pressure. Popular applications included flow controllers and other industrial measurement and control devices due to their ruggedness, ease of calibration, and accuracy.

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Lester James Ugsod Agum
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311 views27 pages

Pneumatic Instrumentation Overview

Pneumatic instrumentation uses compressed air and mechanical components instead of electronics to measure and control process variables. A common pneumatic transmitter uses a baffle and nozzle mechanism where motion of the baffle restricts air flow through the nozzle, creating a variable backpressure signal between 3-15 psi that is transmitted to a remote pressure gauge. Pneumatic relays amplify this signal by using the input air pressure to control the motion of a pilot valve which then directs a higher output air pressure. Popular applications included flow controllers and other industrial measurement and control devices due to their ruggedness, ease of calibration, and accuracy.

Uploaded by

Lester James Ugsod Agum
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

PNEUMATIC INSTRUMENTATION

PREPARED BY: ENGR. LESTER JAMES U. AGUM


Lessons in industrial instrumentation chap 11

INSTEAD OF ELECTRONIC

WE CAN HAVE PNEUMATIC

Application

The indicator in this case would be a special pressure gauge, calibrated to read in units of process pressure although actuated by the pressure of clean compressed air from the transmitter instead of directly by process fluid. The most common range of air pressure for industrial pneumatic instruments is 3 to 15 PSI.

3 PSI - represents the low end of the process measurement scale 15 PSI - represents the high end of the measurement scale

APPLICATION

PNEUMATIC FLOW CONTROLLER

Pneumatic sensing elements

Most pneumatic instruments use a simple but highly sensitive mechanism for converting mechanical motion into variable air pressure: the baffleand-nozzle assembly (sometimes referred to as a flapper-and-nozzle assembly).

NOZZLE BACK PRESSURE

PRINCIPLE BEHIND BAFFLE AND NOZZLE

WIDER CLEARANCE, PRESSURE GAUGE WILL INDICATE A LOWER VALUE

Self-balancing pneumatic instrument principles

A great many precision instruments use the principle of balance to measure some quantity.

LOAD

=
LOAD

LOAD

INSTEAD OF PRESSURE IT WILL INDICATE MASS

Plain and baffle mechanism


it also limits the air flow rate available to fill the bellows, which makes the system slower to respond.

decreasing orifice size is a corresponding decrease in the nozzles ability to provide increasing backpressure to fill a bellows of significant volume.

sensitive by reducing the size of the orifice.

As the control rod is moved up and down by an outside force, the distance between the plug and the seat changes.

The combination of two restrictions changing in opposite direction results in a much more aggressive change in output pressure as registered by the gauge.

inverse relationship between control rod motion and pressure compare to the previous pilot valve

Pneumatic relay

To amplify the pneumatic signal, we must have some way of allowing an air pressure signal to control the motion of a pilot valves control rod. Equivalent to electronic transistor.

Direct acting relay

Reverse acting relay

Foxboro corporation designed a great many of their pneumatic instruments

ball-plug allowed supply air to go to the output port

cone-shaped stem valve plug vented excess air pressure to the vent port.

Fischer corporation design


non-bleeding type meaning it possessed the ability to close both supply and vent valves at the same time, allowing it to hold an output air pressure between saturation limits without bleeding a substantial amount of compressed air to atmosphere through the vent.

Analogy to Op-Amp Circuit

Gain = A = Output/Input

Analysis of a practical pneumatic instrument POPULARITY


RUGGED

EASY TO CALIBRATE

QUITE ACCURATE

FULCRUM

As the baffle approaches the nozzle, air flow through the nozzle becomes more restricted, accumulating backpressure in the nozzle. This backpressure increase is greatly amplified in the relay, which sends an increasing air pressure signal both to the output line and to the bellows at the bottom of the range bar. Increasing pneumatic pressure in the bellows causes it to push harder on the bottom of the range bar, counterbalancing the initial motion and returning the range bar (and force bar) to their near-original positions.

BAFFLE AND NOZZLE

DIAPHRAGM

PNEUMATIC INSTRUMENTATION PREPARED BY: ENGR. LESTER JAMES U. AGUM Lessons in industrial instrumentation – chap 11
INSTEAD OF ELECTRONIC WE CAN HAVE PNEUMATIC
Application
The indicator in this case would be a special pressure gauge, calibrated to read in units of process pressure although actu
PNEUMATIC FLOW CONTROLLER
Pneumatic sensing elements Most pneumatic instruments use a simple but highly sensitive mechanism for converting mechanica
NOZZLE BACK PRESSURE
PRINCIPLE BEHIND BAFFLE AND NOZZLE WIDER CLEARANCE, PRESSURE GAUGE WILL INDICATE A LOWER VALUE
Self-balancing pneumatic instrument principles A great many precision instruments use the principle of balance to measure so

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