Thermometry

The main point of this experiment was to become familiarised with the different types of thermometers we will encounter in industry as Mechanical Engineers.

Apparatus:
Liquid Expansion Mercury in Glass Thermometer Alcohol in Glass Tube Thermometer Wet and Dry Bulb Capillary Thermometer Gas Capillary Thermometer

Solid Expansion 1) Bimetallic Thermometer

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Experiment One: Measure Humidity with a Hygrometer Method:

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Results:
Hygrometer Readings:

Wet and Dry Bulb Temperatures Wet Bulb Dry Bulb 19c 21c
Psychometric Chart Readings:

Psychometric Chart Readings Moisture Content (Dry Air) Dew Point Specific Volume Percentage Saturation/ Relative Humidity Specific Enthalpy

0.013kg/kg 15.5c 0.8505m/kg 54.1KJ/kg

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Psychometric Chart Experiment Two: Compare Various Types of Thermometers

Method:
1) 2) 3) 4) 5) 6) 7) 8) Make sure that the fan is powered off. Make sure that all thermometers are in front of the fan Switch on the fan to high heat Use stop watch to determine time between reading: One minute apart Take six readings with heat; in six minutes Switch off heating element cooling only Take a further set of four readings during cooling Plot all the values obtained on a graph : i. Y axes : Temperature (C) ii. X axes : Time (S)

Results:

Time (Min) Mercury 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 79 86.9 89 89 89 90.1 37 24 23 23

Thermometers Alcohol Bimetallic 85 60 95 71 97 79 98.5 80 99 80.5 99 80.5 37 49 25 32 22.5 29 22 29

Gas Capillary 62 82 92 97.8 99.5 100 62 42 33 29

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Temp Vs Time
120 100 Temperature C 80 60 40 20 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Time (Min) Mercury Alcohol Bimetallic Gas Capillary

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Discussion Identification and uses of different types of thermometer

Liquid Expansion
1. Mercury in Glass This temperature measuring device is one of the most common forms of thermometers. It consists of a long narrow glass tube formed by thick walls at the top and thin walls at the bottom. At the bottom of the thermometer a bulb filled with mercury is found. The bulb is placed in the fluid or any area that to measure its temperature. The mercury in the bulb expands, forcing it to rise up the tube; this allows us to take a reading of the temperature. 2. Alcohol In glass This type of measuring device is similar to the mercury thermometer. The difference between the two thermometers is that alcohol is the working fluid. Due to alcohol being colourless it is normally dyed a red or blue hue to make for easier readings. Alcohol has a low freezing point this enables us to measure very low temperatures (between -120C and 60C). This thermometer is more sensitive than the other. 3. Wet Bulb Capillary Thermometer A wet bulb thermometer is very similar to a dry bulb thermometer just that the bulb of the wet bulb thermometer is kept moist. Unlike dry bulb temperature, this reading indicates the moisture content in the air. 4. Dry Bulb Capillary Thermometer This thermometer is in reality, mercury in glass thermometer having a round bulb at one end and the length of tube being graduated in C. The reading of this thermometer gives the temperature of air by being freely exposed to air but protected from radiation and moisture.

5. Gas Capillary Thermometer

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This type of thermometer measures temperature by the difference in volume or pressure of a gas. The principle of function is volumetric thermal expansion of a gas or liquid. It is generally used when the calibration of other thermometers are needed. A common example of this is a constant volume thermometer which is made up of a bulb connected by a capillary tube to a manometer.

Solid Expansion
1. Bimetallic Thermometer This thermometer is a temperature measuring device that makes use of a bimetal strip that detects a temperature change by means of an arm that moves over a specific scale. The bimetal strip is, as the name suggests, made up of more than one metal that are bonded together and coiled into a helix or spiral. The longer the strip, the more sensitive the thermometer is to small temperature changes.

Time Errors in Reaching Equilibrium Conditions

The graph of temperature vs. time for both mercury and alcohol in glass did not resemble a graph that would have error free results. Some of the errors with regard to time to reach equilibrium could be attributed to a number of factors such as: Time is taken for the system to replace heat lost in heating the thermometers. Time is also taken for the thermometers to settle to the temperature of the system.

If insufficient time is allocated for these processes to occur there would be errors in the recording of the temperatures, this is why a certain time is given so that the thermometers have time to rest

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