Most likely you’ve heard about “RTDs”, “Thermocouples”, “Thermistors”, “Semiconductor” type elements and so on, which will be addressed here. Before I go into details of this subject, let’s see what a “Temperature Sensor” (Temperature Transducer) is and what does a “Temperature Transmitter” mean.

Generally, a sensor or transducer is a physical device which is capable of transforming one type of process variable to my favorite signal type. To elaborate on this generalized sentence, let me give you an example. Temperature, pressure, flow, etc, are some process variables and actually, they are physical characteristics of our real world. With modern technology and because of tremendous advances in Electrical Engineering in the past century, we like to transform every measurable process value into an electrical signal and a temperature sensor is a device which will transform the temperature into an electrical signal, no matter how tiny the amount of this signal might be!

So far I took a big “First Step” which was the transformation of “Temperature” into “Electrical Signal”. Based on different sensor technologies, this signal may have different ranges and for industrial applications, I need to have my signals limited to some universally accepted electrical “signal-ranges”. Today some of these globally accepted electrical signal-ranges are 4-20 mA , 1-5 V , 0-10 V , etc.

A “Temperature Transmitter” is a device which transforms the tiny output of a “Temperature Transducer” to one of these standard signal ranges. Now let’s get back to different “Temperature Transducer” technologies. RTD or “Resistance Temperature Detector” is a device the resistance of which varies with the temperature. Since it is a passive device, an external electrical current should be applied to it and then the voltage drop across it can be measured. This voltage is a good indication of the temperature. When referring to such a device as “passive”, it means that the device needs external current (or voltage) source. To state the obvious, a big amount of external current can cause power dissipation in the resistor of RTD and lead to excess heat, so to avoid this type of error, the current should be kept at a minimum level.

There is 2 wire, 3 wire and 4 wire wiring configuration for RTD. More accurate reading calls for 3-wire or 4-wire configurations. In reality, the distance between the temperature sensing point and measuring system calls for wiring and since the real wiring has its own resistance, some measurement error sneaks in hereby! 3-wire and 4-wire solutions are developed to remove this error. One of the most common RTDs is “PT100” which consists of a thin film of Platinum on a plastic film and shows a resistance of 100Ω at 32°F. Its resistance varies with temperature and it can typically measure temperatures from -330 to 1560°F. The relationship between resistance and temperature of PT100 is relatively linear. PT100 is just an example of platinum RTDs and in the industry you may find different RTD types suitable for various applications, e.g.: Copper, Nickel, Nickel-Iron, etc.

Thermistors are temperature-dependent resistors and are widely used in industrial purposes, such as over-current protection, self-regulating heating elements, inrush current limiters and so on. Thermistors can be NTC or PTC. In NTC (Negative Temperature Coefficient) thermistors, resistance decreases as temperature rises. NTC’s are commonly used as “inrush” current limiters. And with PTC (Positive Temperature Coefficient) thermistors, resistance increases as temperature increases. PTC thermistors are commonly used as “overcurrent protection” and in resettable fuses.

A thermocouple or simply “TC” is comprised of a couple of specific dissimilar wires joined together, forming the “sensing point” or “junction”. Based on physical characteristics called “Thermoelectric Effect”, when this junction is placed at different temperatures, different millivolt signals are generated which can be interpreted as an indication of the temperature. In comparison with RTDs, Thermocouples are self-powered and require no external excitation current source. Thermocouples are commonly used for furnaces, Gas Turbine combustion chamber, high-temperature exhaust ducts, etc. The main restriction of Thermocouples is the “accuracy” which doesn’t make it the best solution for precise applications. Also, Thermocouples need a reference measurement point called “Cold Junction”. The thermocouple junction is often exposed to extreme environments, while the cold junction is often mounted near the instrument location. Based on “range” of temperature measurement, “sensitivity” and some other factors in each application, different types of Thermocouples are available, for example E, J, K, M, N, T and so on. For instance, Type “J” is made up  of “Iron-Constantan” combination with a range of −40°F to +1380°F and sensitivity of about 27.8 µV/°F while Type “K” (Chromel-Alumel) is one of the most common general-purpose thermocouples with a sensitivity of approximately 22.8 µV/°F. Type K is inexpensive and a wide variety of probes are available in its −330°F to +2460°F operating range. Since the functionality of thermocouple sis based on Thermoelectric Effect in different types of conductors, when the location of a thermocouple is far from the “measuring instrument” (e.g. electronic transmitter), the proper type of conductors should be used for extension purpose. Otherwise, the tiny signal generated by thermocouple will be added with some error at the point where thermocouple wires are connected to the extension wire! “Semiconductor Temperature Sensor” is based on the fact that the junction voltage across ap-n combination of semiconductors, like a diode junction or “base-emitter” junction of regular transistors, is a function of temperature. This technology is vastly used in electronic devices and IC technologies. Linear characteristic, small size, and low cost are advantages of this technology, but it should be noted that the limited range of around -40°F to 248°F makes it suitable for specific applications. To wrap up this video, the comparison between different types of temperature sensor technologies is a multi-facet task. For example, if “accuracy” is considered as the key performance indicator, usually RTD’s are better than Thermocouples; approximately 10 times more accurate. From the “sensitivity” point of view, while both RTDs and Thermocouples respond quickly to temperature changes, at similar costs, thermocouples are often faster. If I have to measure electronic PCB and/or IC temperature, silicon-based types are the best choices.

Today you will learn all about P&D drawings. You may be thinking, “What is a P&D diagram in the world? In the industry, these are the drawings of piercing and the use of metal. P & ID for short.

Most production facilities have suppressed air, smoke, cold water, and other processes that require the use of a pipe. All of these types of power and processes require self-regulating equipment that is usually in the form of valves and scales, as well as pumps and accumulators.

A P&D diagram will contain all of this so that the maintenance person, operator, engineer, or other employee can learn and do their job. At first glance, a P&D drawing may look very scary. There can be several processes in one P&D.

What I like to do is categorize it to make it easier to understand. For example, let’s look at the pneumatic P& ID system. First, you must start with the air compressor, which will find the appropriate signal in the Legend of all the signals used. After that you will follow the line representing the pipe in the next item.

In most cases it will be a type of musical instrument, such as a pressure switch or a readable air pressure indicator, or a valve that allows air to pass to the next object or prevents air from passing through.
There are so many types of valves, be sure to compare the symbols in your P&D with the myth. The P&D will then show a leak that leads to the next thing which in the case of our pneumatic system is an accumulator. A connector is simply a tank or a device for storing air or liquid. Most P&D drawings will have an arrow marked with some of the other equipment in the facility or even just in the Process. This will indicate that if you need to keep track of the system continuously, you will need drawings for that particular tool.

I hope you now feel like you are following the P&D diagram. Just remember to break the overall sketch into smaller, more straightforward sections, and simply follow the process that requires more information on it. Always refer to the Legend to make sure you know that the signs are pointing to the drawing.