Pyrometer

Thermal radiation
Every

atom and molecule exists in

perpetual motion
A moving charge is associated with
an electric field and thus becomes
a radiator
This radiation can be used to
determine object's temperature

Thermal radiation
Waves

can be characterized by
their intensities and wavelengths
The hotter the object:
the shorter the wavelength
the more emitted light

Wien's

law:

max T 0.2896cmK

Planck's law
1 2hc 2
F ( ) 5 hc
kT
e 1
Magnitude of radiation at
particular
wavelength () and particular
temperature
(T).
h is Plancks constant and c speed
of light.

Blackbody
An

ideal emitter of
electromagnetic radiation
opaque
non-reflective
for practical blackbodies = 0.9

Cavity

effect

em-radiation measured from a cavity

of an object

Cavity effect
Emissivity

of the cavity increases

and approaches unity
According to Stefan-Boltzmanns
law, the ideal emitters photon
flux from area a is
4
0 aT
In

practice:

r 0

Cavity effect
For

a single reflection, effective

emissivity is
r

Every

(1 b ) b
0

reflection increases the

emissivity by a factor (1-)

Cavity effect

Classification of
Pyrometer

Disappearing Filament
Pyrometers

The brightness of a lamp filament is changed by adjusting

the lamp current until the filament disappears against the
background of the target.
Eye of the observer is the detector. lower limit of
temperature range 700C

Disappearing Filament
Pyrometers

Disappearing Filament
Pyrometers Red Filter

Comparison occurs at one wavelength .The effective

wavelength, e =0.65m e is nearly constant at all
measured temperatures. (1300K3600K, : .003m)
Comparison occurs at one color subjective estimation of
color cannot influence the measurement results.

Reasons for the application of a

red filter
Comparison

takes place only at one

wavelength eliminating the influence of
subjective color estimation by different
observers
At e = 0.65m, the lowest possible
temperature can be measured.
At e = 0.65m, pyrometer sensitivity is
higher than for the total radiation.
Easy to produce good filters of e = 0.65m
which are stable in time
The smallest color changes as a function of
wavelength are observed.

Disappearing Filament
Pyrometers Grey Filter

Two color Pyrometer

Ratio pyrometer
The ratio of spectral radiances at 2 wavelengths is
estimated by the human eye
The observer adjusts the filter position so that the
target appears to be grey.
Target temperature increases the percentage of
green , red

Automatic pyrometers
Lenses should be.
High transmission factor over a wide
wavelength range
High mechanical strength
High working temperature
Good resistance to atmospheric and
chemical influences
Good resistance to abrasion
Good resistance to rapid temperature
variation

Light Guides
When

the objects are too small

When pyrometer would be
endangered by excessive
temperatures
Light guides replace lenses.
Absorption along the rod, imperfect
reflection from the rod walls and
reflection losses some of the
transmitted energy is lost.
the angle of incidence > the
critical angle
Materials:
Artificial sapphire(Al2O3) or
quartz(SiO2)
Solid

rod or flexible stranded

fibreoptic cable of thin fibres

Detector
High

sensitivity (output signal / incident

radiation power)
Time stable properties
High resistance to shocks and vibrations
Low thermal inertia
Output signal independent of the
pyrometer position
High output signal-to-noise ratio
High emissivity
Sensitivity independent of wavelength

Detectors
Thermopile:
most

commonly used, the reference

junctions at the pyrometer housing
temperature
Thermistor and metal bolometers:
used in AC bridge circuits easy
amplification of the output signals
Pyroelectric detectors:
low temperature radiation pyrometers,
high sensitivity but complicated
construction of pyrometer

Detectors
Photoconductors:

incident radiation captured incident photons

photoelectrons current
Photodiodes:

conductivity s proportional to the intensity of

the radiation
Photovoltaic

cells:

generated voltage is a logarithmic function of

the incident radiation
Vacuum

photocells:

incident radiation emission of electrons from

a metallic photocathode in a vacuum glass

Sensitivity