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Chapter 5
TEMPERATURE MEASUREMENTS_____
Compiled and written by: Huy Hoang, Ph.D.
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Temperature measurements have countless applications in the world today. Typical
examples of application ranges from the thermostat controlled temperature for the air
conditioning inside the house during the summer season to the heat rejection of a spacecraft in
space.
Temperature of an object is defined as a measure of thermal potential of that object. It
cannot be measured by using basic standard methods for direct comparison. It can only be
determined through the some standardized form of calibrated devices. Various instruments have
been developed for different applications of temperature measurement. The basic operations of
these instruments are designed to accompany its primary effects of temperature change. The
effects include the changes in physical state, in chemical state, electrical properties, mechanical
properties, and optical properties of thermometers.
I. Liquid-in-Glass Thermometers
Mercury-in-glass thermometer is an example of liquid filled thermometer. The
thermometer consists of a relative large bulb at the lower end, a capillary tube with scale, and
mercury filling both the bulb and a portion of the capillary as shown in Figure 5.1. The volume
enclosed in the capillary above the liquid may contain a vacuum or be filled with air or inert gas.
As the temperature is raised, the expansion of the mercury causes it to rise in the capillary of the
thermometer. The height of the rise is used as a measure of the temperature. By calibrating the
expansion of the mercury at different temperature, the thermometer can provide accurate
temperature reading.
Figure 5.1. Mercury-in-glass thermometer
There are several desirable properties for liquid-in-glass thermometer. These properties
include:
1. The relationship between temperature and dimensional change should be linear.
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2. The liquid should have a coefficient of expansion as large as possible. Large
coefficient of expansion makes possible larger capillary bores and easier reading.
The coefficient of expansion for alcohol is larger than mercury.
3. The liquid should operate in a reasonable temperature range without change of state.
Mercury is limited at the low-temperature end by its freezing point, -39ºC, and at the
high-temperature end at its boiling point, 357ºC. Alcohol is limited at the low-
temperature end by its freezing point, -75ºC, and at the high-temperature end at its
boiling point, 127ºC.
4. The liquid should be safe to human health and environments. Mercury has very high
toxicity and chemical hazardous. For this reason, alcohol filled thermometer is the
preferable device.
II. Thermocouples
A thermocouple consists of two wires of dissimilar metals coupled at the probe tip
(sensing/or measuring junction) and extended to the reference junction of known temperature.
When the probe tip is heated, the temperature difference between the sensing junction and the
reference junction is measured the change in voltage at the reference junction. The change in
voltage is caused by the Seebeck effect named after Thomas Seebeck discovered this
phenomenon in1821. The temperature gradients along the conductors between the two junctions
generate a small voltage which is known as the Peltier electromotive force (e.m.f). The voltage
is usually measured in milivolts (1/1000th of Volt). The thermocouple wires are chosen
according to the maximum temperature measurement and linearity of its output (e.m.f) versus
temperature.
Figure 5.2. Thermocouple circuit and probe
Thermocouple Types
There are several thermocouple types available for a wide range of temperature from -
250ºC to 3000ºC. Each type has a useful temperature range and sensitivity for different
applications. American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), which is recognized in the
United States as the authority for temperature measurements, has established the guidelines for
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different thermocouple types. The ASTM E-230 guidelines cover the wire composition, color
codes, and manufacturing specifications.
Commercial thermometers are specified by Instrument Society of America (ISA) types.
The ISA types are recognized by the letter designations. Thermocouple with letter types E, J, K,
R, and T are common used. Type E, J, K, N and T are base metal thermocouples and can be
used up to 1000C. Base metal thermocouples compose of common and inexpensive metal wires
such as nickel, iron, and copper. Type S, R, and B are noble-metal thermometer and can be used
up to about 2000C. Noble metal thermocouples are manufactured with precious metal wires of
Platinum and Rhodium. Type C is refractory metal thermocouple and can be used up to 2320C.
Refractory metal thermocouples are very expensive, difficult to manufacture, and wires made
from the exotic and brittle metals like tungsten and Rhenium.
The following table summarizes the basic properties of different thermocouple types.
Each manufacturer has its own thermocouple’s specifications.
Table 5.1. Different thermocouple types.
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Conversion of Voltage to Temperature
The measured voltage that a thermocouple produces can be converted to temperature.
The voltage and temperature are not quite linear regression of the first-order. A polynomial
equation that best describes the relationship between the voltage (V) versus temperature (T) for a
wide range of temperature is:
n N
T a V
n 0
n
n
a0 a1V a2V 2 .. anV n
A typical 𝑎𝑛 coefficient for thermocouple types E, J, K, R, S and T is listed the
Table 5. 2.
Table 5.2. Coefficients of polynomial equation for voltage to temperature conversion.
Measuring Junction Types
Figure 3 shows the layout of measuring junction types. The choice of measuring junction
types depends on the application. Generally, the grounded junction offers the best compromise
between performance and reliability.
Bare wire (exposed) junction provides the fastest response time but leaves the
thermocouple wires unprotected against corrosion or mechanical damage.
Insulated (ungrounded) junction provides the protection for thermocouple junction and
avoids the ground loops between instruments, power supplies, and sensors. The lead wire is
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fully insulated from the shield. The insulated junction is excellent for applications where stray
electromotive forces would affect the reading and for rapid temperature cycling. Response time
is slow due to insulation.
Grounded junction provides very fast response time approach of the bare wire junction.
The shield and the lead wires are welded together, forming a complete shield and integrated
junction. The grounded junction is recommended for applications with the presence of liquids,
moisture, gas, or high pressure.
Figure 5.3. Layout of measuring junction types
III. Thermistors
A thermistor is a thermally sensitive variable resistor which is made from semi-
conducting material. It has a very fast non-linear response to the temperature change and the
majority of the thermistors has negative response coefficients due to their resistances decrease
with increasing temperature. It is used widely in the laser diode and detector cooling
applications because of their high sensitivity, small size, fast response times, and low cost. A
thermistor is usually restricted to a temperature range of -100°C to 250° C. Figure 5.4 shows
typical thermistor sensors and probes.
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Figure 5.4. Typical thermistor sensors and probes.
The resistance-temperature characteristics for most thermistors are described by the
Steinhart-Hart equation:
1
A B * (ln R) C * (ln R)3
T
where T is the absolute temperature (in Kelvin), R is the resistance in Ohm, and A, B,
and C are constants which can be determined from measured values of resistance and
temperature. Typical resistance-temperature response curves are shown in Figure 5.5. For
good calibration data, the Steinhart-Hart equation introduces errors of less than 0.1°C over a
temperature range of -30°C to 150°C.
.
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Figure 5.5. Resistance-Temperature response curves
IV. Resistance Thermometers
Resistance temperature detector (RTD) contains a resistor that changes the resistance
value as its temperature change. Unlike the thermistor uses ceramic semiconducting materials
which response inversely with temperature, the RTD probe has the resistance increase with
temperature. RTD is available in a tube and wire and mineral construction. The platinum
resistance thermometer is a common device of the RTD. It consists of a length of platinum
which has been trimmed in length to give an accurate resistance of 100 at 0 C. The wire is
wounded and protected with insulation. It is then further protected with a metallic shell. The
resistance changes with a change in temperature. It provides a nearly linear temperature
resistance relationship which is stable over a long time period. Its thermal response suffers due
to degree of mechanical protection. Platinum resistance thermometer is typically used for
temperature sensitivity and laboratory applications.
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Figure 5.6. Platinum resistance thermometer
V. Bi-metal Thermometer
The bi-metal thermometer consists of two thin metal strips with different coefficient of
linear expansions that are fastened together. The result is a strip that bends significantly when
heated. One end of the strip is fixed and the other end is connected to a pointer on a calibrated
dial that deflects with changes in temperature. When the strip is formed into a coil, its sensitivity
is increased.
Figure 5.7. Bi-metal Thermometer
Bi-metal thermometers are used in industrial process, food processing and waste water.
A typical bi-metal thermometer has maximum pressure of 125 psi (861 KPa) and the ambient
operating conditions from -50°C to 120°C. The selection of bi-metal thermometer is based on
the media and the ambient operation conditions. The bimetal should not expose continuously to
process temperature over 425°C.
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VI. Pyrometers
Pyrometer is a non-contacting thermometer device to measure temperature in
the form of thermal radiation. Figure 8 shows a typical pyrometer instrument. There are three
different instruments referred to as pyrometers: total radiation, the optical, and the infrared
pyrometers.
Figure 5.8. A typical pyrometer instrument
The total radiation pyrometer has a thermal sensor that infers the temperature of an object
by detecting its naturally emitted thermal radiation. The optical pyrometer collects the visible
and infrared energy from an object and focuses through lenses on a detector. The infrared
pyrometer is similar to the total radiation except that the measurements are restricted to the
infrared spectrum from 0.7 to 1000m wavelengths. The detectors of pyrometers convert the
collected radiation energy into an electrical signal to drive a temperature display as shown in
Figure 5.9.
Figure 5.9. Infrared measuring system pyrometer.
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The pyrometers offer the following advantages:
1. It is very fast and time savings.
2. Measurements can be taken for very high temperature or high voltage objects without
in contact with them. Typical applications are the temperature measurements for the
molten glass or molten metal during the smelting and forming operations.
3. Measurements can be taken for moving target or object.
4. There is no energy lost or interference between the instrument and the object.
5. There is no hazardous risk or contamination on the surface of the object.
THERMAL RESPONSE
The most important characteristic for selecting a thermometer for a particular application is its
thermal response. The thermal response is defined by the time it takes to change 63.2% of the
step change. This is defined as the “time constant” and is irrespective of the step change in
temperature. Figure 5.10 shows a temperature-time plot for a thermometer with two different
step changes. The time constant remains the same, irrespective of the difference in temperature
step changes.
Figure 5.10. Time constant
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10. Principles of Non-contact Temperature Measurement
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radiation-pyrometers
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