1-11 CELCIUS TEMPERATURE SCALE

The Celcius temperature scale employs a degree of the same magnitude as that of the ideal-gas
scale, but its zero point is shifted so that the Celcius temperature of the triple point of water is
0,01 degree Celcius, abbreviated 0,01 . Thus, if denotes the Celcius temperature,

Thus, the temperature , at which steam condenses at standard atmospheric pressure is

And reading

from Figure 1-8,

Similar measurement for the ice point (the temperature at which ice and liquid water
saturated with air standard atmospheric pressure are in equilibrium) show this temperature on the
Celcius scale to be

. It should be noted, however, that this two temperatures are subject to

the experimental uncertainty attending the determination of intercepts by exploration, as

iliustrated in Fig. 1-8. The only Celcius temperature which is fixed by definition is that of triple
point.

He

1-12 ELECTRIC RESISTANCE THERMOMETRY

When the resistance thermometer is in the form of a long, fine wire, it is usually wound around a
thin frame constructed so as to avoid excessive strains when the wire contracts upon cooling. In
special circumstances the wire may be wound on or embedded in the material whose temperature
is to be measured. In the very-low-temperature range, resistance thermometers often consist of
small carbon-composition radio resistors or germanium crystal doped with arsenic and sealed in
helium-filled capsule. These may be bonded to the surface of the substance whose temperature
is to be measured or placed in a hole drilled for that purpose.
It is customary to measure the resistance by maintaining a known constant current in the
thermometer and measuring the potential difference across it with the aid of a very sensitive
potentiometer. A typical circuit is shown in fig. 1-9. The current is held constant by adjusting a
rheostat so that the potential difference across a standard resistor in series with the thermometer,
as observed with a monitoring potentiometer, remain constant.
The platinum resistance thermometer may be used for very accurate work within the
range

to

. The calibration of the instrument involves the measurement of

at

various known temperature and the representation of the result by an empirical formula. In a
restricted range, the following quadratic equation is often used:

Where
and

is the resistance of the platinum wire when is surrounded by water at the triple point,
are constant, and is the empirical Celcius temperature.

Battery
Rheostat

Standard
resistor
Current
leads

Poten
tial
leads

m
A

To monitoring
potentiometer
To main
potentiometer

Resistance
thermomet
er

1-13 THERMOCOUPLE
The correct use of thermocouple is shown in fig. 1-10. The thermal electromotive force (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 consist of two connections with copper wire, maintained at the temperature of
melting ice. This arrangement allows the use of copper wire for connection to the potentiometer.
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.

Figure 1-10 thermocouple of wires A and B with reference junction consisting of two junctions with copper,
connected to a potentiometer.

A thermocouple are calibrated by measuring the thermal

reference junction being kept at

at various temperature, the

. The result such measurement on most thermocouple can

usually be represented by the cubic equation as follow:

Where

is the thermal emf and the constant

and

are difference for each thermocouple.

Within a restricted range of temperature, a quadratic equation is often sufficient. The range of the
thermocouple depends upon the material which it is composed. A platinum -10% rhodium/
platinum thermocouple has a range of 0 to 1600 . The advantage of a thermocouple is that it
comes to thermal equilibrium quite rapidly with the system whose is to be measured, because its
mass is small. It therefore follows temperature charge easily, but it is not accurate as a platinum
resistance thermometer.
1-14 INTERNATIONAL PRACTICAL TEMPERATURE SCALE
a. International Practical Temperature Scale of 1968 (IPTS-68)

To use of an ideal-gas thermometer for routine calibration or for the usual measurement
of thermodynamics temperature is impractical.at the Seventh General Conference of Weight and
Measures in 1927, an international practical temperature scale was adopted to provide the means
for easy and rapid calibration of scientific and industrial instruments.the temperature scale was
revised in 1948 and amended 1960.
The International Practical Temperature Scale of 1968 (IPTS-68), as amended in 1975,
consist of a set of fixed point measured with a constant volume gas thermometer and a set of
procedures for the interpolation between the fixed point. Although IPTS-68 is not intended to
supplant the ideal gas or Celcius scales, it is constructed so as to provide a very close
approximation to them; the differences between the scale are within the limits of accuracy of
measurement attained in1975.
The accurate measurement of temperature with a gas thermometer requires months of
painstaking laboratory work and mathematical computation and when completed becomes an
international event. Such work in published in a physical journal and eventually is listed in table
of constants. The temperatures of the normal boiling points (NBP), normal melting point (NMP),
and equilibrium state of a number materials have been measured, and the result are tabulated in
Table 1-3.
The lower temperature limit of IPTS-68 is 13,81 K, the triple point of equilibrium
hydrogen. Below the temperature the scale is undefined. Above the freezing point of gold
(1337,58 K) an optical method is used in conjunction with the Plank radiation formula. The
interval between 13,81 and 1337,58 K is divided into three main parts, as follows:
1. From

. A strain-free annealed platinum resistance thermometer is

used. The temperature range is divided into four subinterval, and within each interval the
resistance is measured at specific fixed points selected from table 1-3. The differences
between the measured resistances and tabulated reference function are fitted to
polynomial equation in

or

; these equation serve as interpolation formula for

conversion of measured value of

to temperature.

2. From 273,15 K to 903,89 K. The same platinum resistance thermometer is used as in part
1. A polynomial equation for

as a funcion of

is employed, with the constants in the

equation determined from resistance measurements at the triple point of water, normal
boiling point of water, and the normal freezing point of zinc.
3. From 903,89 K to 1337.58 K. A thermocouple, one wire of which is made of platinum of
a specified purity and the other of alloy of 90 percent platinum and 10 percent rhodium,

has one junction maintained at

. The electromotive force

is represented by the

formula
Where

and

are calculated from measurements of

at 903,89 0,2 K, as determined

by a platinum resistance thermometer, and at the normal freezing point of silver and gold.

Table 1-3.1 Temperatures of fixed points of IPTS-68

Fixed points
Standard
TP of water
Defining fixed TP of equilibrium hydrogen
points
BP of equilibrium hydrogen
at 33 330,6 Pa
NBP of equilibrium hydrogen
NBP of neon
TP of oxygen
TP of argon
NBP of oxygen
NBP of water
NMP of tin
NMP of zinc
NMP of silver
NMP of gold
Secondary
TP of normal hydrogen
reference
NBP of normal hydrogen
point
TP of neon
TP of nitrogen
NBP of nitrogen
NBP of argon
NSP of carbon dioxide
NMP of mercury
Equilibrium of ice and
air-saturated water
TP of phenoxybenzene
TP of benzoic acid
NMP of indium
NMP of bismuth
NMP of cadmium
NMP of lead
NBP of mercury
NBP of sulfur
NMP of antimony

273,16
13,81

0,01
-259,34

17,042
20,28
27,102
54,361
83,798
90,188
373,125
505,074
692,664
1235,08
1337,58
13,695
20,397
24,561
63,146
77,344
87,294
194,674
234,341

-256,108
-252,87
-246,048
-218,789
-189,352
-182,962
99,975
231,924
419,514
961,93
1064, 43
-259,194
-252,753
-248,589
-210,004
-195.,806
-185,856
-78,476
-38,836

273,15
300,02
395,52
429,784
544,592
594,258
600,652
629,81
717,824
903,905

0
26,87
122,37
156,634
271,422
321,108
327,502
356,66
444,674
630,755

NMP of aluminum
NMP of copper
NMP of nickel
NMP of cobalt
NMP of palladium
NMP of platinum
NMP of rhodium
NMP of indium
NMP of niobium
NMP of molybdenum
NMP of tungsten

933,61
1358,03
1728
1768
1827
2042
2236
2720
2750
2896
3695

660,46
1084,88
1455
1495
1554
1769
1963
2447
2477
2623
3422

Metrologia, 12:7 (1976)

Metrologia, 13:177 (1977)
The normal boiling points (NBP) and normal melting point (NMP) occur at pressure of 101 325 pa (1
standard atmosphere)

b. International Temperature Scale of 1990 (ITS-90)

The International Committee of Weights and Measures is concerned with two
temperature scales: the first is the theoretical thermodynamic scale; the second is, at any given
time, the current practical temperature scale. The use of a constant-volume gas thermometer for
routine calibrations or for the usual measurement of thermodynamic temperature is impractical.
In 1927, the first international practical temperature scale was adopted to provide the means for
easy and rapid calibration of scientific and industrial instruments. The practical temperature scale
was revised or amended in 1948, 1960, 1968, 1976, and 1990.
The International Temperature Scale of 1990 (ITS-90) consists of a set of defining fixed
points measured with the primary gas thermometer, and a set of procedures for interpolation
between the fixed points using secondary thermometers. Although ITS-90 is not intended to
supplant the Kelvin thermodynamic scale, it is constructed so as to provide a very close
approximation to it; the differences between the practical temperature scale T 90 and the Kelvin
thermodynamic temperature scale T are within the limits of accuracy of measurement attained in
1990.
The accurate measurement of temperature with a gas thermometer requires years of
painstaking laboratory work and mathematical computation and, when completed, becomes an
international event. Such work is published in the journal Metrologia and eventually is listed in
tables of physical constants. The temperatures of the equilibrium states of a number of materials
have been measured, and the results are tabulated in Table 1.3.2.
The lower temperature limit of ITS-90 is 0.65 K. Below this temperature, the scale is
undefined in terms of a standardized thermometer, but research continues in order to select a
reference thermometer from competing instruments. Various intervals of temperature on ITS-90
and secondary thermometers are established, as follows:

1. From 0.65 to 5.0 K. Between 0.65 and 3.2 K, the ITS-90 is defined by the vapor pressure
temperature relations of 3He, and between 1.25 and 2.1768 K (the A-point) and between
2.1768 and 5.0 K by the vapor pressure temperature relations of 4He.
2. From 3.0 to 24.5561 K. Between 3.0 and 24.5561 K, the ITS-90 is defined by the 3He or
4 He constant-volume gas thermometer.
3. From 13.8033 to 1234.93 K. Between 13.8033 and 1234.93 K ( 259.3467 to 961.78C),
the ITS-90 is defined by resistance ratios W T of platinum resistance thermometers using
the specified fixed points given in Table 1.3 and by reference functions and deviation
functions of resistance ratios between the fixed points. Eleven subranges have been
established to accommodate a variety of necessary measurements.
4. Above 1234.93 K. At temperatures above 1234.93 K (961.78C), ITS-90 is defined by an
optical pyrometer using the ratio of spectral concentrations of the radiance of a blackbody
as calculated using Planck's radiation law. Only one reference temperature is required for
the pyrometer: the freezing point of gold, the freezing point of silver, or the freezing point
of copper. Before ITS-90 was adopted, the thermocouple was the standardized
thermometer for the upper temperatures. It was removed due to insufficient accuracy. The
range of the platinum resistance thermometer has been extended upward to its present
limit, and the optical pyrometer is the new standardized thermometer for the highest
temperatures.
TABLE 1.3.2
Defining fixed points of ITS-90
Material

Equilibrium state

3He and 4He

e-H 2
e-H 2 (or He)
e-H 2 (or He)
Ne
O2
Ar
Hg
H20
Ga
In
Sn
Zn
Al
Ag
Au
Cu

VP
TP
VP (or CVGT)
VP (or CVGT)
TP
TP
TP
TP
TP
NMP
NFP
NFP
NFP
NFP
NFP
NFP
NFP

He Preston-Thomas: Metrologia, vol. 27, pp. 3-10, 1990.

Temperature
3 to 5
13.8033
17
20.3
24.5561
54.3584
83.8058
234.3156
273.16
302.9146
429.7485
505.078
692.677
933.473
1234.93
1337.33
1357.77

270.15 to 268.15
-259.3467
256.15
252.85
-248.5939
218.7916
189.3442
38.8344
0.01
29.7646
156.5985
231.928
419.527
660.323
961. 78
1064.18
1084.62

e-H 2 indicates equilibrium hydrogen, that is, hydrogen with the equilibrium distribution of its ortho and
para states. Normal hydrogen at room temperature contains 25 percent para-hydrogen and 75 percent
ortho-hydrogen.
VP indicates vapor pressure point; CVGT indicates constant-volume gas thermometer point; TP
indicates triple point (equilibrium temperature at which the solid, liquid, and vapor phases coexist); NFP
indicates normal freezing point, and NMP indicates normal melting point (the NFP and NMP are
equilibrium temperatures at which the solid and liquid phases coexist under a pressure of 101,325 Pa, 1
standard atmosphere). The isotopic composition is that naturally occurring.