Thermocouple and RTD

Seebeck effect: When two dissimilar materials are brought into contact, a potential develops as a result of an effect
known as the “Seebeck effect”.

Thermocouple: A Thermocouple is a very simple temperature sensor operates based on the Seebeck effect, which
results in the generation of a thermoelectric potential when two dissimilar metals are joined together to a junction.

The electric characteristics of both materials will be different at

the junction which will give rise an electric field at the junction.

When this electric field becomes sufficient to balance the

diffusion forces, a state of equilibrium with respect to electron
migration is established.

Since the magnitude of the diffusion force is controlled by the

temperature of the thermocouple junction, the electric
potential developed at the junction provides a measure of the
temperature.

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 Thermocouple and RTD
The correct use of thermocouple is shown in figure. The thermal emf is measured with a potentiometer, which as a
rule, must be placed at some distance from the system whose temperature is to be measured.

The reference junction, therefore, is placed near the test junction and consists of two connection with copper wire,
maintained at the temperature of melting ice.

The binding posts of the potentiometer are usually made of brass and therefore at the potentiometer there are two
copper-brass thermocouples.

If the two binding posts are at the same temperature, these two copper-brass thermocouple introduce no error.
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 Thermocouple and RTD
Types of thermocouples:

Type Positive wire Negative wire

B 70% Platinum 94% Platinum
30% Rhodium 06% Rhodium
E Chroamel Constantan
J Iron Constantan
K Chromal Alumel
N Nicrosil Nisil
R 87% Platinum Platinum
13% Rhodium
R 90% Platinum Platinum
10% Rhodium
T Copper Constantan

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 Thermocouple and RTD
  thermocouple is calibrated by measuring the thermal emf at various known temperatures, the reference junction being
A
kept at . The result of such measurements on most thermocouples can usually be represented by a cubic equation

Where is the thermal emf and the constants are different for different thermocouples.

Within a restricted range of temperature, a quadratic equation is often sufficient. The range of thermocouple depends
upon the materials of which it is composed. A platinum-rhodium thermocouple has a range of

Advantages of thermocouples:
Temperature range: Most practical temperature ranges. Depending on the metal wires used, a thermocouple is capable
of measuring temperature in the range – 200°C to +2500°C.
Robust: Thermocouples are rugged devices that are immune to shock and vibration and are suitable for use in hazardous
environments.
Rapid response: Because they are small and have low thermal capacity, thermocouples respond rapidly to temperature
changes.

No self heating: Because thermocouples require no excitation power, they are not prone to self heating and are
intrinsically safe.
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 Thermocouple and RTD
Disadvantages of thermocouples:
Complex signal conditioning: Substantial signal conditioning is necessary to convert the thermocouple voltage into a
usable temperature reading. Traditionally, signal conditioning has required a large investment in design time to avoid
introducing errors that degrade accuracy.
Accuracy: In addition to the inherent inaccuracies in thermocouples due to their metallurgical properties, a
thermocouple measurement is only as accurate as the reference junction temperature can be measured, traditionally
within 1°C to 2°C.
Susceptibility to corrosion: Because thermocouples consist of two dissimilar metals, in some environments corrosion
over time may result in deteriorating accuracy. Hence, they may need protection; and care and maintenance are
essential.
Susceptibility to noise: When measuring microvolt-level signal changes, noise from stray electrical and magnetic fields
can be a problem.

Twisting the thermocouple wire pair can greatly reduce magnetic field pickup. Using a shielded cable or running wires in
metal conduit and guarding can reduce electric field pickup. The measuring device should provide signal filtering, either
in hardware or by software, with strong rejection of the line frequency (50 Hz/60 Hz) and its harmonics.

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 Thermocouple and RTD
RTDs or Resistance Temperature Detectors, are electrical resistors that change resistance as temperature changes, with
all common types of RTD, the resistance increases as temperature increases, this is referred to as Positive Temperature
coefficient PTC.

RTD’s are manufactured using several different materials as the sensing element. The most common by far is the
Platinum RTD. Platinum is used for several different reasons including high temperature rating, very stable, and very
repeatable.

Other materials used to make RTD’s are nickel, copper, and nickel-iron. These materials are becoming less common
now, because the cost of platinum RTD’s is coming down.

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 Thermocouple and RTD
RTDs are constructed using one of two different manufacturing configurations. Wire-wound RTDs are created by
winding a thin wire into a coil.

A more common configuration is the thin-film element, which consists of a very thin layer of metal laid out on a plastic
or ceramic substrate.

Thin-film elements are cheaper and more widely available because they can achieve higher nominal resistances with
less platinum. To protect the RTD, a metal sheath encloses the RTD element and the lead wires connected to it.

They are popular because of their stability; RTDs exhibit the

most linear signal with respect to temperature of any electronic
temperature sensor.

However, they are generally more expensive than alternatives

because of the careful construction and use of platinum.

RTDs are also characterized by a slow response time and low sensitivity, and, because they require current excitation,
they can be prone to self-heating.

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 Thermocouple and RTD
 
The relationship between platinum RTD resistance and temperature is described by the Callendar-Van Dusen (CVD)
equation. Equation 1 shows the resistance for temperatures below 0°C and Equation 2 shows the resistance for
temperatures above 0°C for a PT100 RTD.

The coefficients in the Callendar-Van Dusen equations are defined by the IEC-60751 standard. is the resistance of the
RTD at . For a PT100 RTD, is .

For IEC 60751 standard PT100 RTDs, the

coefficients are:

The change in resistance of a PT100 RTD from –200°C to 850°C is displayed in Figure.
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 Thermocouple and RTD
RTD Wiring Configurations

RTDs are made in three different wiring configurations described in this application note. Each wiring configuration
requires a different excitation and circuit topology to reduce the measurement error. The three different wiring
configurations are shown in figure.

In the two-wire configuration, the RTD is

connected through two wires connected to either
end of the RTD.

In this configuration, the lead wire resistances

cannot be separated from the RTD resistance,
adding an error that cannot be separated from the
RTD measurement.

Two-wire RTDs yield the least accurate RTD measurements and are used when accuracy is not critical or when lead
lengths are short. Two-wire RTDs are the least expensive RTD configuration.

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 Thermocouple and RTD
In the three-wire configuration, the RTD is connected to a single lead wire on one end and two lead wires on the
opposite end. Using different circuit topologies and measurements, lead resistance effects can effectively be cancelled,
reducing the error in three-wire RTD measurements. Compensation for lead wire resistance assumes that the lead
resistances match.

In the four-wire configuration, two lead wires are connected to either end of the RTD. In this configuration, the RTD
resistance may be measured with a four-wire resistive measurement with superior accuracy.
The RTD excitation is driven through one lead on either end, while the RTD resistance is measured with the other lead
on either end. In this measurement, the RTD resistance is sensed without error contributed from the lead wire reacting
with the sensor excitation.
Four-wire RTDs yield the most accurate measurements, but are the most expensive RTD configuration.
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 Thermocouple and RTD
Aim of the experiment:

To study the variation of thermo emf across two junctions of a

thermocouple with temperature. Calibration of thermocouple, to draw

heating and cooling curve for thermocouple and Platinum

thermometer using RTD

Apparatus used:

Thermocouple RTD Probe, Platinum RTD probe, Glass thermometer,

RTD kit, Heater, Heating oil.

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 Thermocouple and RTD
Observations:
S. No. Voltage (mV) Temperature (0C) Temperature (0C)
During heating: (Glass thermometer) (Thermocouple)
Thermocouple

S. No. Voltage (mV) Temperature (0C) Temperature (0C)

During cooling: (Glass thermometer) (Thermocouple)
Thermocouple

S. No. Voltage (mV) Temperature (0C) Temperature (0C)

During heating: (Glass thermometer) (RTD)
RTD

S. No. Voltage (mV) Temperature (0C) Temperature (0C)

During cooling: (Glass thermometer) (RTD)
RTD

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 Thermocouple and RTD
Graphs:

During heating (experiment with thermocouple):

Graph between Glass temperature and thermocouple temperature (calibration curve)
Graph between Thermocouple temperature and voltage in RTD kit

During cooling (experiment with thermocouple):

Graph between Glass temperature and thermocouple temperature (calibration curve)
Graph between Thermocouple temperature and voltage in RTD kit

During heating (experiment with RTD Probe):

Graph between Glass temperature and RTD temperature (calibration curve)
Graph between RTD temperature and voltage in RTD kit

During cooling (experiment with RTD Probe):

Graph between Glass temperature and RTD temperature (calibration curve)
Graph between RTD temperature and voltage in RTD kit

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