Pressure Measurement

Importance of Measurement
• No matter how good your process measurement is, if you do not have
any means to collect it and use it, the data is useless.
• No matter how good your DCS, PLC, SCADA, or cloud-based data
collection is, if you do not have accurate reliable process data, it does
not matter.
Why Pressure Measurement is Important
• Pressure, temperature, level and flow are the four common plant
measurements.
• Of the four, pressure is the most fundamental and common.
• The three remaining measurements can be inferred from pressure
• Flow (orifice plates, pitot tube, venturi)
• Level (hydrostatic ‘Head’ pressure)
• Temperature (pressure thermometer).
• It can even be used to infer density (pressure for a given volume) and weight
(load cells).
• If you cannot measure it, you cannot control it.
Pressure References
In industries, there are four commonly used references
1. Gauge Pressure
2. Absolute Pressure
3. Differential Pressure
4. Vacuum Pressure
Pressure References
1. Gauge Pressure
• Use ambient atmospheric pressure as the
reference
• Reading can be positive or negative
• Indicated by the letter “g” in the unit (i.e. in
H 2O (g) or psig)
• Example of industrial applications: open
tank level, line pressure, blanket pressure in
a tank
Pressure References
2. Absolute Pressure
• Use perfect vacuum pressure (absolute zero) as
the reference
• Reading can only be positive.
• Indicated by the letter “a” or “abs” in the unit
(i.e. psia or inH2O(abs))
• Example of industrial applications: open tank
level, line pressure, blanket pressure in a
wet/dry tank, plant atmospheric reference.
Pressure References
3. Differential Pressure
• Difference between two pressures
• Reading can be positive or negative.
• Reference point is low-side pressure and
compared to high-side pressure.
• Example of industrial applications: closed
tank level, density, filter health, flow!
Comparison of aforementioned modes
Capacitance Pressure Sensor
• One fixed and one movable plate linked to mechanical output of a
diaphragm (via fill fluid)
• When the capacitor is energized, the distance between the plates
changes because of the change in pressure at the process diaphragm
that is hydraulically transferred to the moveable plate.
• The capacitance detection circuit detects the change in capacitance
which is calibrated accordingly
• The output signal is small and analog (A major disadvantage of such
sensors). Which needs to be converted to a digital signal as the
transmitters circuit needs a digital signal as an input.
Capacitance Sensor Characteristics
• Good Low Pressure
performance
• Good Vacuum range
performance
• Electronically complex
• Doesn’t handle
overpressure events well
• Passive sensor
• Requires A/D converter
Piezoresistive Pressure Sensor
• Four Piezoresistors are used to form a Wheatstone Bridge.
• The Piezoresistive effect states that the resistance of a semiconductor
changes as the mechanical stress changes.
• The sensor is exposed to process pressure through a fill fluid. The
change in process pressure causes a change in resistance. Which is
characterized accordingly to measure the pressure.
• The output from the sensor is analog which must be converted to a
digital signal through A/D converter so that it could be an input to a
Transmitter’s process circuitry.
Piezoresistor Sensor Characteristics
• Good response time
• Easy to manufacture
• Negatively affected by
high temperatures
• Requires A/D converter
• Does not handle
overpressure events
well
• Passive sensor
Silicon Resonant Sensor
• Two “H” shaped resonators are patterned on a single crystal silicon,
each operating a high frequency.
• The Resonant frequency directly proportional to process pressure is
fed into a microprocessor, no A/D conversion is needed.
• In Differential Pressure Application, the microprocessor can use two
frequencies to determine the static Pressure.
• So a single sensor can measure two different process attributes.
Silicon Resonant Sensor Characteristics
• Digital output
• Highly accurate output
• Active Sensor
• Relatively Expensive
• Cannot be used on ‘hot’
side of nuclear plants.
Transmitters
Transmitters
The job of a transmitter is to:
• Take the sensor output
• Convert it to a strong standardized signal
• And transmit it

The mark of a good transmitter is to:

• Do this quickly
• Do this accurately
• Do this Reliably
Transmitters
• All Transmitters perform the same
task, but all transmitters are not the
same.
• What separates them is how quickly,
accurately and reliably they perform
this task.
Essential Terms to Know
• Lower Range Limit (LRL)
• Lowest value of the measured variable that a transmitter can be configured to
measure. This is different from Lower Range Value (LRV)
• Lower Range Value (LRV)
• Lowest Value of the measured variable that the analog output of a
transmitter is currently configured to measure
• Upper Range Limit (URL)
• Highest value of the measure variable that a transmitter can be configured to
measure. This is different from Upper Range Value (URV)
Essential Terms to Know
• Upper Range Value (URV)
• Highest value of the measured variable that the analog output of a
transmitter is currently configured to measure
• Transmitter Re-ranging
• Configuration function that changes a transmitter 4mA and 20mA settings
• Span
• It is the algebraic difference between the URV and LRV values
Calibration Range
• The region between the limits within which a quantity is measured,
received or transmitted, expressed by stating the lower and upper
range values
• The limits are defined by the zero and span values
• The zero value is the lower end of the range.
• For example, a DP transmitter being used to measure pressures of
0 – 500 psig has a calibration range of 0 – 500 psig.
Instrument Range
• It refers to transmitter capability of measurement
• It is defined by the manufacturer
• The calibration range may be different from the instrument range
• For example, the instrument range is 0 to 700psig. But is found out
we only have to measure 0 to 300 psig. So, 0 to 300 psig is calibration
range which is different from 0 to 700 psig
Maximum Working Pressure (MWP)
• It refers to amount of gauge pressure common to each port (High or
Low), not the differential pressure between ports, that the DP
transmitter can safely handle without being damaged.
• Transmitter Damping
• Output function that increases the response time of a
transmitter to smooth the output when there are rapid
input variations
• Zero Trim
• A zero-based, one point adjustment used in different
pressure applications to compensate for mounting
position effects or zero shifts caused by static pressure.
Remote Diaphragm Seals
• The diaphragm seals are used to isolate a transmitter from the
potentially harmful conditions of the process
• A capillary with a fill fluid is used to connect the transmitter to the
isolation diaphragm connected directly to process
• The pressure variance sensed by the isolation diaphragm is sensed by
the internal diaphragm through the fluid in the capillary.
Remote Diaphragm Seals