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Thermometer
A REVIEW OF ITS CONSTRUCTION AND APPLICATIONS
By liodney Price
The platinum resistance thermometer is a versatile instrument for
temperature measurement i n the range from - 200" to 1000C. It is
used both for precision measurements of the highest accuracy and for
routine industrial work. This article discusses the development and
construction of resistance thermometers and their uses in a wide range
of industries.
The platinum resistance thermometer-in ment, and where there are several measuring
which the principle of measurement is the points and readings are required at one central
variation in the resistance of a platinum wire instrument panel. In addition to the measure-
as a function of temperature-is generally ment of elevated temperatures, the platinum
accepted as the most accurate temperature resistance thermometer is also finding a
measuring instrument available. Its sensitivity number of applications where the accurate
and reliability are evident from the fact that determination or control of sub-zero tem-
it was first used in 1928 to define the Inter- peratures is needed.
national Temperature Scale from -190" to The operation of the resistance ther-
660C and has thus been the primary inter- mometer depends upon two characteristics of
national standard for over thirty years. But platinum-first the simple relationship be-
it has other advantages that find many and tween its resistance and its temperature, and
increasing applications in industry. It is secondly the high purity, stability and
particularly suitable where measurements are reproducibility of the specially prepared
to be made over a relatively narrow range of platinum employed for this purpose. The
temperature, where the point of measurement requirements of the International Tempera-
is some distance from the recording instru- ture Scale of 1948 for the purity and physical
T h e central control panel in J . Lyons & Company's new ice-rream factory at Greenford
indicates continuous measurements of temperature, weight and sterilisation control.
By automatic scanning and digital display, the blnrk panels in the centre of the
pirture show temperature and weight. Temperatures f r o m 0' to 60'C are measured
with platinum resistance thermometers by Elliott Brothers (London) Ltd.. who ulso
supplied this part of the control panel.
values greater than 1.3923 for the ratio the instrument increased continuously and
R,,,/R, and provides a sound basis for the that the platinum wire underwent rapid
design and construction of accurate and deterioration.
reliable thermometers. Callendar became interested in the subject
and found that the platinum wires he used
Early History did not undergo such changes even when
The late Professor H. L. Callendar may subjected to much more severe tests than
fairly be regarded as the father of platinum those applied by the committee. He was able,
resistance thermometry; the fundamentals of however, to reproduce the effects they had
the thermometers in use today are unchanged observed and to show that they were not
from those he described in 1887, when as a
young research worker of only 23 at the
Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge, he pub-
lished a paper On the Practical Measure-
ment of Temperature (I). This was
followed by several other papers which he
contributed on the samc subject during the
next few years.
The resistance thermometer had in fact
been introduced by C. W. (later Sir William)
Siemens. In a Bakerian lecture to the Royal
Society in 1871 (2) Siemens had explained
the theory of the method and described
instruments capable of indicating tempera-
tures up to 1000C.The advantages of this
device were quickly appreciated, and a
distinguished committee of the British Asso-
ciation was appointed to test the instruments Professor H. L. Callendar
and report upon them. Their report (3), The platinum resistance thermometer was develop-
published in 1874, disclosed that on heating to ed into a successful and accurate instrument by
Callendar. A biographical note by his son appears
temperatures of about SooC the resistance of on h e facing page.
tures to be measured, the accuracy and life thermometers should be annealed in air at a
required, and the corrosive nature of the temperature higher than the highest temper-
surroundings. Some elements are sealed into ature at which they are to be used, and in any
glass sheaths; others are protected by mild- case at not less than 450C. R. J. Corruccini
steel, brass, copper, stainless-steel or platinum (IO), of the National Bureau of Standards,
sheaths. For some work, such as refrigerated suggests that rapid cooling after annealing is
cargo ships, when speed of response must be undesirable bccause it may decrease the value
sacrificed to protection against corrosion, of the temperature coefficient of resistance.
metal sheaths are completely covered with Silk-covered or synthetic-enamelled wire is
vulcanised rubber. used to make commercial thermometers to
T o ensure stability it is important to measure low temperatures, but silk covering
anneal the platinum coil after it has becn produces strain in platinum wire, the effect
formed. The International Temperature of which upon its resistance characteristics
Scale recommends that standard resistance cannot be entirely removed owing to the
impossibility of heating the wire to a suf- used in construction, but a typical method is
ficiently high temperature. British Standard to wash all parts in benzene, boil in dilute
1904:195zstates that the ratio R,,,/R, for nitric acid and wash several times in distilled
silk-covered wire should be not less than water. Finally, after assembly and just
1.385. The use of a synthetic epoxy-base before annealing, the platinum coil is washed
enamel developed by Johnson Matthey and in benzene.
known as Diamel similarly limits the annealing British Standard I904 recommends that to
temperature, but very little strain is caused by avoid significant heating of platinum wire
the enamelling process and Diamel-covered being tested in air for use in commercial
wire may be used up to 130C.Values greater thermometers, the measuring current should
than 1.3910for the ratio R,,,'R, for Diamel- not exceed z milliamperes per 0.001 inch of
covered Thermopure platinum wire are wire diameter. The heating effect of the
obtainable. measuring current depends on the heat con-
Although platinum is resistant to a wide duction of the materials of the thermometer
range of acids and other reagents, it is and of its surroundings, and is proportional
desirable to be familiar with the conditions to the square of the current.
in which the metal is attacked. It rapidly
becomes brittle if it is heated in contact with Measurement of Resistance
phosphorus, arsenic, antimony, selenium or For very accurate temperature measure-
tellurium. A combination of traces of sulphur ment, say to o.ooz0C, special precaution must
and silica or silicates will attack platinum in naturally be taken to remove every source of
the presence of carbon, hydrogen or other possible error. An excellent account of the
reducing agent. Platinum is attacked by laboratory procedure involved in this class of
nearly all molten metals and by their vapours. work has been given by J. A. Hall (11) and
T o prevent contamination of the platinum this will not be discussed further here. For
wire, therefore, all parts of the thermome- a normal commercial accuracy of approxi-
ter should be clean. The selection of a mately &I"C throughout the range of the
suitable process depends on the materials instrument there is a choice between de-
B = -5.85 x 10-7
c = -4.35 x 10-12
It was first suggested by Callendar that the
arithmetical computation could be greatly
reduced by rewriting ( I ) for the range
c-~oo"C in the form
where 8 is a constant.
The first term in this expression is the
"platinum temperature", derived by con-
t-tpt = s (A -I)
t
(4)
illustrated here.
In a modern passenger aircraft there may
be up to fourteen resistance thermometers.
The correction from degrees platinum to These are required to measure the tempera-
degrees C is most simply ascertained by the tures of the oil, the fuel, the cabin air, the
use of the tables compiled by Callendar and outside air-for air-speed correction-and the
Hoare (12). de-icing mats. Base metal thermocouples
Equation (3) may also be written could be used to measure such temperatures,
but would require either control of, or
adjustment for, the cold junction tempera-
ture, while their low output would necessitate
where cc is the mean temperature coefficient
a very sensitive measuring device or some
of resistance from oo to IOOOC, i.e. form of amplification. Platinum resistance
R,ou --Ru thermometers fitted with stainless steel
IOO& sheaths and used in conjunction with ratio-
meter indicators are therefore preferred.
The relation between the coefficients in
In power stations resistance thermometers
equations (5) and (I) is
are used, generally with Wheatstone bridges
and multi-point indicators, to measure steam,
gas and water temperatures.
B = - - as 104B
8 - -__ _ Two of the illustrations give examples of
104 A + IOOB the wide use of platinum resistance ther-
For temperatures below 0C the equation (2) mometers in the storage, processing and trans-
References
I H. L. Callendar .. .. .. On the Practical Mcasurcmcnt of Temperature,
Phil. Trans., 1887, 178, 160
2 C. W. Siemens . . __ .. .. On the Increase of Electrical Resistance in Con-
ductors with Rise of Temperature, R o c . Roy. SOC.,
1871, 19, 351
3 Report of Committee of the British Association on
the New Pyrometer of Mr. Siemens. B.A. Reports,
1874, 242
4 J. A. Harker and P. Chappuis .. Comparison of Platinum and Gas Thermometers,
Phil. Trans., 1900, 194, 37
5 T. S. Sligh, Jr. ., .. .. .. Recent Modifications in the Construction of Platinum
Resistance Thermometers, Bur. Standards Sci.
Papers, 1922, 17, 49
6 C . H. Meyers .. .. .. .. Coiled Filament Resistance Thermometers Bur.
Standards J . Res., 1932, 9, 807-813
7 J. A. Hall .. .. .. .. A Design for Precision Platinum Resistance Ther-
mometers, J . Sci. Instruments, 1933, 10,4-10
8 C . R. Barber .. .. .. .. Platinum Resistance Thermometer of Small Dimen-
sions, J . Sci. Instruments, 1950,27, 47-49
9 C. R. Barber .. .. .. .. A Platinum Resistance Thermometer for Use at Low
Temperatures, J . Sci. Instruments, 1955, 32,
416-417
10 R. J. Corruccini .. .. .. Annealing of Platinum for Thermometry, Bur.
Standards J . Res., 1951, 47, 94-103
11 J. A. Hall .. .. .. .. The Accurate Measurement of Temperature, Re-
search, 1958, 11, 147-151
12 Platinum for Resistance Thermometry, Johnson,
Matthey & Co. Ltd., London, 1958