Fundamentals of Industrial Measurement
Instrumentation Skills
Course 1 – Pressure Measurement
Prerequisites: This lesson is designed for participants familiar with basic mathematical operations including algebra.
Description: This lesson presents the basic principles of pressure measurement and applications of direct and inferred pressure measurement methods. Various pressure instruments are presented including manometers, mechanical pressure sensors, and transducers.
Objectives:
- Recognize the importance of the measurement and control of pressure
- Define pressure and determine the pressure exerted by a liquid
- Recognize the importance of sensor location in pressure measurement, calculate the force exerted by liquids
- Identify the effects of temperature change on the force exerted by a liquid
- Identify the factors which determine the force exerted by a gas
- Convert various units of pressure measurement to psig, psia, InH2O, and InHg using a conversion table
- Calculate differential pressure
- Recognize the effect of atmospheric pressure on pressure measurement
- State the principle of operation of closed and open manometers
- Identify the types of manometers and the considerations for their safe and effective use
- Describe the principle of operation for elastic elements
- Explain how the movement of a sensing element can be used to produce a pneumatic and electrical signal
- Describe the operation of mechanical to electrical transducers
Course 2 – Flow Measurement
Prerequisites: This lesson is designed for participants familiar with basic mathematical operations including algebra.
Description: This lesson describes the properties of fluids that are a factor in the measurement of their flow. In addition, the lesson explains how differential pressure measurements can be used to determine flow rate. Various types of flow measurement devices and their principles of operation are also discussed.
Objectives:
- Recognize the effect of temperature and pressure on the density and volume of a liquid and a gas
- Describe the effects of temperature on viscosity and how viscosity affects flow
- Describe laminar flow, turbulent flow, and transitional flow
- Describe the application of the Reynolds Number to flow measurement
- Identify variables that affect mass flow rate
- Describe how static pressure is converted to kinetic energy
- Explain Bernoulli’s law as it applies to differential pressure flow measurements
- Explain the necessity of an expansion factor in differential pressure flow measurements of a gas
- Describe how an orifice-type differential pressure flow device measures flow
- Explain how a beta ratio is determined and its application to flow measurements
- Identify the location of high and low pressure taps in an orifice run
- Describe the design and operation of Venturi tube, flow nozzle, and Pitot tube differential pressure flow devices
- Explain the difference between closed and open systems
- Describe the design and operation of weir and flume head-type differential pressure flow devices
- Describe the design and operation of vortex shedding, magnetic, ultrasonic, rotary vane, turbine, and Coriolis mass flowmeters
- Describe the operational principles of positive displacement flowmeters
- Describe how an inferential mass flow measurement differs from a true mass flow measurement
Course 3 – Temperature Measurement
Prerequisites: This lesson is designed for participants familiar with basic mathematical operations including algebra.
Description: This lesson presents the basic principles of temperature measurement and the application of temperature measuring instruments. Various temperature measuring instruments are discussed including thermometers, pyrometers, thermocouples, resistance temperature detectors, and thermistors.
Objectives:
- Recognize the importance of temperature measurement and control
- Identify the principle of kinetic energy with a graph of molecular movement
- Identify four scales used to indicate temperature
- Define heat transfer in terms of conversion, conduction, and radiation
- Define response time, stem loss, and radiation error
- Identify the effect that inserting a sensor in a thermowell will have on the sensor’s temperature measurement and its response time
- Identify the effect that thermal shunting will have on temperature measurement
- Describe the principles of operation for a liquid in glass thermometer
- Thermal bulb, and a bimetallic thermometer
- Describe the principle of operation for an optical and ratio pyrometer
- Identify the reference and measuring junctions in a drawing representing a thermocouple
- Identify the negative wire in a type J thermocouple
- Identify the components of a thermocouple assembly when a thermocouple is inserted in a thermowell
- Explain how a thermopile is used to produce greater output in response to smaller temperature change
- Identify the use and application of thermocouples joined in parallel
- State the principle of operation for a resistance temperature detector
- Identify the bridge circuit’s operation in an RTD to measure temperature
- Identify the effect strain will have on a resistance temperature detector
- Identify the type, design considerations, and strain on various types of RTDs
- Identify a voltage divider circuit’s operation in a thermistor circuit to measure temperature
- State the principle of operation for a thermistor
Course 4 – Level Measurement
Prerequisites: This lesson is designed for participants familiar with basic mathematical operations including algebra.
Description: This lesson describes the fundamentals of level measurement and the sensors employed. Applications for both direct and indirect level measurement are covered including float-type devices, hydrostatic head and differential pressure measurements, as well as electrical, ultrasonic, and radiation instruments.
Objectives:
- Recognize the importance of measuring and controlling level
- Describe what an interface is and list some of the types of interfaces that may be measured for level indication
- List common measurement units of level
- Define direct and indirect level measurement and some types and applications of these methods
- Define continuous level and point level measurement
- Describe how sight glasses operate to measure liquid level
- Describe how dipsticks, weighted lines, and float-type instruments can be used to gage level
- Define hydrostatic head pressure and explain how it can be used to measure the height of liquid
- Calculate the height of the liquid in inches with a head pressure and specific gravity
- Describe configurations using hydrostatic head to measure level in open tanks
- Describe how differential pressure can be used to measure level in closed-tank applications using a dry or wet leg
- Explain how level can be measured using electrical capacitance or resistance
- Describe two ways the level of granular solids and powders can be measured
- Describe some non-invasive level measurement methods that use ultrasonic and radiation detectors
- Describe the basic operation of one type of fiber optic level measurement instrument for point level measurement