Tag Archives: applications
Benefits of Using RTD Sensors in Industrial Applications
RTDs (resistance temperature detectors) are one of the most common temperature sensor types used in industrial applications. Thermocouples and thermistors are popular temperature sensors as well, but RTD sensors are more accurate over a wide temperature range and more stable over time, making them an excellent choice for many applications.
An RTD sensor is essentially a resistor whose resistance value increases with temperature. Due to the predictable change in resistance of certain materials as temperature changes, it is possible to acquire highly accurate and consistent temperature measurements. Most RTD sensors have a response time between 0.5 to 5 seconds or more. RTD sensors can be constructed with pure platinum, nickel or copper. RTDs made with platinum are also known as PRTs (platinum resistance thermometer) and are the most frequently used given their higher temperature capabilities, stability and repeatability.
Specifications for RTD sensors include a base resistance value and a temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) value. Typical base resistance values can range from 10 to several thousands of Ohms (& 937;) depending on material and type. The base resistance value indicates the nominal resistance of the sensor at 0°C (nickel and platinum) or 25°C (copper), with 100& 937; being the most common.
The temperature coefficient of resistance does not affect a sensor’s accuracy, but is important to the measuring device that calculates changes in temperature based on the base resistance. PRTs have two standards of TCRs; the European standard (IEC 751) requires a TCR of 0.00385& 937;/& 937;/°C; and the American standard requires a TCR of 0.00392& 937;/& 937;/°C. Assuming a TCR of 0.00385& 937;/& 937;/°C meaning that for every degree change in temperature, the resistance increases by 0.385& 937; a 100& 937; PRT’s resistance will be 138.5& 937; at 100°C. Likewise, assuming a TCR of 0.00392 & 937;/& 937;/°C will result in a resistance of 139.2& 937; at 100°C. Thus, the measuring device used needs to be attuned to the TCR of an RTD sensor in order to accurately report changes in temperature, but the difference in TCR value has no impact on the sensor itself.
Thermocouples and thermistors are some of the other popular temperature sensors used in industrial applications. Thermocouples basically convert thermal energy into electrical energy, and use that to measure the temperature. While thermocouples measure the highest temperatures, respond quickly to temperature changeswithin fractions of a secondand are easily obtainable at low cost, they are the least stable and repeatable, and suffer from poor accuracy. Thermistors are semiconductors that present a non-linear change in resistance as temperature changes; unlike an RTD, the resistance in a thermistor decreases as temperature increases. In comparison, thermistors feature high sensitivity to small temperature changes and become more stable with use, but are fragile, have a limited temperature range and currently lack standardization.
Between the three types of temperature sensors, RTD sensors are the most accurate and stable over time, and are resistant to contamination under 660°C. They also boast high repeatability, which means that RTDs can accurately measure identical temperatures even when exposed to repeated heating and cooling cycles with minimal discrepancies. This means that an RTD sensor will consistently measure 100°C after being put into an oven and subsequently a freezer multiple times. In contrast, a thermocouple is more likely to measure 100°C, then 98°C, then 103°C and so on when placed in the same situation. Since most applications do not require immediate responses (less than 0.5 to 5 seconds) to temperature changes, RTDs are an ideal solution for many industrial applications, which Network Technologies Inc (NTI) includes in its product line of ENVIROMUX® Enterprise Environment Monitoring Systems and Accessories.
NTI offers a line of platinum 100& 937; RTD sensors that can be used in conjunction with one of three available transmitters to accurately monitor temperatures in many industrial applications. The temperature ranges of the available RTDs are: -67 to 240°F (-55 to 115°C), accurate to within ±0.27°F (±0.15°C); 35°F to 140°F (2°C to 60°C), accurate to within ±0.6°F (±0.33°C); and -30°F to 230°F (-34°C to 110°C), accurate to within ±0.6°F (±0.33°C). Rugged, waterproof RTD sensors are available for harsh environments. Some of the common installations for the RTD sensors include: plenum mounting, duct mounting, immersion wells, direct mounting onto sheet metal duct systems, remote temperature sensing for building automation systems and mechanical equipment room instrumentation.
Transmitters are necessary to convert the resistor values into temperature values, and can be connected to NTI’s Enterprise Environment Monitoring Systems for a variety of alert and logging functions. The ENVIROMUX-RTDT-x 100& 937; Platinum RTD Transmitter is available in two ranges, -20 to 140°F (-28 to 60°C) and 30 to 240°F (-1 to 115°C), and is accurate to within ±0.8°F (±0.45°C). Both units support 2-wire connections and can be calibrated for higher accuracy. With a wider temperature range of -328 to 1562°F (-200 to 850°C), the ENVIROMUX-RTDT-1562 High-Accuracy Platinum RTD Transmitter is accurate to within ±0.2°F (±0.1°C). It supports 2, 3, or 4-wire connections and is configurable to support 100& 937; platinum, 120& 937; nickel or 10& 937; copper RTD sensors. With RS485 signal output, the transmitter boasts precise temperature measurements.
When combining the RTD sensors and transmitters with NTI’s ENVIROMUX Enterprise Environment Monitoring Systems, companies not only can accurately monitor temperature, but they also can monitor a wide range of other environmental threats such as humidity, liquid water presence, power, intrusion and smoke, and receive alert notifications when a sensor goes out of a configurable threshold an ideal preventive measure for many industrial applications.
Benefits of Using RTD Sensors in Industrial Applications
RTDs (resistance temperature detectors) are one of the most common temperature sensor types used in industrial applications. Thermocouples and thermistors are popular temperature sensors as well, but RTD sensors are more accurate over a wide temperature range and more stable over time, making them an excellent choice for many applications.
An RTD sensor is essentially a resistor whose resistance value increases with temperature. Due to the predictable change in resistance of certain materials as temperature changes, it is possible to acquire highly accurate and consistent temperature measurements. Most RTD sensors have a response time between 0.5 to 5 seconds or more. RTD sensors can be constructed with pure platinum, nickel or copper. RTDs made with platinum are also known as PRTs (platinum resistance thermometer) and are the most frequently used given their higher temperature capabilities, stability and repeatability.
Specifications for RTD sensors include a base resistance value and a temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) value. Typical base resistance values can range from 10 to several thousands of Ohms (& 937;) depending on material and type. The base resistance value indicates the nominal resistance of the sensor at 0°C (nickel and platinum) or 25°C (copper), with 100& 937; being the most common.
The temperature coefficient of resistance does not affect a sensor’s accuracy, but is important to the measuring device that calculates changes in temperature based on the base resistance. PRTs have two standards of TCRs; the European standard (IEC 751) requires a TCR of 0.00385& 937;/& 937;/°C; and the American standard requires a TCR of 0.00392& 937;/& 937;/°C. Assuming a TCR of 0.00385& 937;/& 937;/°C meaning that for every degree change in temperature, the resistance increases by 0.385& 937; a 100& 937; PRT’s resistance will be 138.5& 937; at 100°C. Likewise, assuming a TCR of 0.00392 & 937;/& 937;/°C will result in a resistance of 139.2& 937; at 100°C. Thus, the measuring device used needs to be attuned to the TCR of an RTD sensor in order to accurately report changes in temperature, but the difference in TCR value has no impact on the sensor itself.
Thermocouples and thermistors are some of the other popular temperature sensors used in industrial applications. Thermocouples basically convert thermal energy into electrical energy, and use that to measure the temperature. While thermocouples measure the highest temperatures, respond quickly to temperature changeswithin fractions of a secondand are easily obtainable at low cost, they are the least stable and repeatable, and suffer from poor accuracy. Thermistors are semiconductors that present a non-linear change in resistance as temperature changes; unlike an RTD, the resistance in a thermistor decreases as temperature increases. In comparison, thermistors feature high sensitivity to small temperature changes and become more stable with use, but are fragile, have a limited temperature range and currently lack standardization.
Between the three types of temperature sensors, RTD sensors are the most accurate and stable over time, and are resistant to contamination under 660°C. They also boast high repeatability, which means that RTDs can accurately measure identical temperatures even when exposed to repeated heating and cooling cycles with minimal discrepancies. This means that an RTD sensor will consistently measure 100°C after being put into an oven and subsequently a freezer multiple times. In contrast, a thermocouple is more likely to measure 100°C, then 98°C, then 103°C and so on when placed in the same situation. Since most applications do not require immediate responses (less than 0.5 to 5 seconds) to temperature changes, RTDs are an ideal solution for many industrial applications, which Network Technologies Inc (NTI) includes in its product line of ENVIROMUX® Enterprise Environment Monitoring Systems and Accessories.
NTI offers a line of platinum 100& 937; RTD sensors that can be used in conjunction with one of three available transmitters to accurately monitor temperatures in many industrial applications. The temperature ranges of the available RTDs are: -67 to 240°F (-55 to 115°C), accurate to within ±0.27°F (±0.15°C); 35°F to 140°F (2°C to 60°C), accurate to within ±0.6°F (±0.33°C); and -30°F to 230°F (-34°C to 110°C), accurate to within ±0.6°F (±0.33°C). Rugged, waterproof RTD sensors are available for harsh environments. Some of the common installations for the RTD sensors include: plenum mounting, duct mounting, immersion wells, direct mounting onto sheet metal duct systems, remote temperature sensing for building automation systems and mechanical equipment room instrumentation.
Transmitters are necessary to convert the resistor values into temperature values, and can be connected to NTI’s Enterprise Environment Monitoring Systems for a variety of alert and logging functions. The ENVIROMUX-RTDT-x 100& 937; Platinum RTD Transmitter is available in two ranges, -20 to 140°F (-28 to 60°C) and 30 to 240°F (-1 to 115°C), and is accurate to within ±0.8°F (±0.45°C). Both units support 2-wire connections and can be calibrated for higher accuracy. With a wider temperature range of -328 to 1562°F (-200 to 850°C), the ENVIROMUX-RTDT-1562 High-Accuracy Platinum RTD Transmitter is accurate to within ±0.2°F (±0.1°C). It supports 2, 3, or 4-wire connections and is configurable to support 100& 937; platinum, 120& 937; nickel or 10& 937; copper RTD sensors. With RS485 signal output, the transmitter boasts precise temperature measurements.
When combining the RTD sensors and transmitters with NTI’s ENVIROMUX Enterprise Environment Monitoring Systems, companies not only can accurately monitor temperature, but they also can monitor a wide range of other environmental threats such as humidity, liquid water presence, power, intrusion and smoke, and receive alert notifications when a sensor goes out of a configurable threshold an ideal preventive measure for many industrial applications.
Guarding both Web Applications and Databases Security Attacks
With companies better protecting their computer network perimeters against malicious intruders, a growing number of attacks have begun taking place at the website application and database layers instead. A recent survey shows that more than 80 percent of attacks against corporate networks these days involve Web applications. The survey suggests that a vast majority of Web applications deployed in enterprises contain vulnerabilities that can be exploited by intruders, allowing them to gain access to underlying systems and data. Despite the prevalence of such vulnerabilities, most companies are not addressing the problem due to a lack of awareness or because their budgets do not permit additional expenditures on Web application security, according to the study.
Fortunately for enterprises, a growing number of relatively inexpensive, automated Web application security tools are becoming available to help them probe their applications for exploitable security flaws. The products are designed to help companies examine application code for common errors that result in security vulnerabilities. Using such tools, companies can quickly identify issues such as SQL Injection errors, Cross-Site Scripting flaws and input validation errors, much faster than they would have been able to manually.
Most of the reputable application security testing tools that are currently available can be used to test both custom-developed Web applications and common off-the-shelf software packages. Companies typically run the tools first against their live production applications to identify and mitigate vulnerabilities that could disrupt their operations. Application security tools typically only help identify vulnerabilities. They do not automatically remedy the flaws. In addition to testing production applications, tools can also be used to test code during the application development and the quality assurance stage. Security analysts in fact, recommend that such tools be used during the development life cycle because finding and fixing flaws can be a whole lot easier and less expensive compared to doing it after an application has been deployed. A growing number of such security testing products also support features that allow companies to conduct penetration testing exercises against their application and database layer. Using such products, companies can probe their networks for flaws in much the same way that a malicious attacker would probe their networks.
Until recently, the use of such tools has been considered a security best practice, but that could start changing soon. Already, the Payment Card Industry Security Council, a body that governs security standards in the payment card space, has a rule mandating the use of application security software by all companies of a certain size that accept debit and credit card transactions. Under the rules, covered entities are required to use such tools to identify and remediate security flaws in any applications that handle payment card data. Similar rules mandating the use of such software could start becoming more commonplace as awareness of the issue grows.