Guide to Instrumentation and Process Control

Table of Contents

1. Introduction and Review

2. Basic Electrical Components

3. AC Electricity

4. Electronics

5. Pressure

6. Level

7. Flow

8. Temperature and Heat

9. Humidity, Density, Viscosity, and pH

10. Other Sensors

11. Actuators and Control

12. Signal Conditioning

13. Signal Transmission

14. Process Control

15. Documentation and Symbols

Glossary

Instrumentation and process control can be traced back many millennia. Some of the early examples are the process of making fire and instruments using the sun and stars, such as Stonehenge. The evolution of instrumentation and process control has undergone several industrial revolutions leading to the complexities of modern day microprocessor-controlled processing. Today's technological evolution has made it possible to measure parameters deemed impossible only a few years ago. Improvements in accuracy, tighter control, and waste reduction have also been achieved.

This guide was specifically written as an introduction to modern day industrial instrumentation and process control for the two-year technical, vocational, or degree student, and as a reference manual for managers, engineers, and technicians working in the field of instrumentation and process control.

It is anticipated that the prospective student will have a basic understanding of mathematics, electricity, and physics. This course should adequately pre pare a prospective technician, or serve as an introduction for a prospective engineer wishing to get a solid basic understanding of instrumentation and process control.

Instrumentation and process control involve a wide range of technologies and sciences, and they are used in an unprecedented number of applications.

Examples range from the control of heating, cooling, and hot water systems in homes and offices to chemical and automotive instrumentation and process control. This guide is designed to cover all aspects of industrial instrumentation, such as sensing a wide range of variables, the transmission and recording of the sensed signal, controllers for signal evaluation, and the control of the manufacturing process for a quality and uniform product.

Section 1 gives an introduction to industrial instrumentation. Sections 2 through 4 refresh the student's knowledge of basic electricity and introduce electrical circuits for use in instrumentation. Sensors and their use in the measurement of a wide variety of physical variables-such as level, pressure, flow, temperature, humidity, and mechanical measurements-are discussed in Sections 5 through 10. The use of regulators and actuators for controlling pres sure, flow, and the control of the input variables to a process are discussed in Section 11. Electronics is the medium for sensor signal amplification, conditioning, transmission, and control. These functions are presented as they apply to process control in Sections 12 through 14. Finally, in Section 15, documentation as applied to instrumentation and control is introduced, together with standard symbols recommended by the Instrument Society of America (ISA) for use in instrumentation control diagrams.

The primary reason for writing this guide was that the author felt that there was no clear, concise, and up-to-date guide for prospective technicians and engineers which could help them understand the basics of instrumentation and process control. Every effort has been made to ensure that the guide is accurate, easily readable, and understandable.

Both engineering and scientific units are discussed in the guide. Each section contains worked examples for clarification, with exercise problems at the end of each section. A glossary and answers to the odd-numbered questions are given at the end of the guide.

PREV. | NEXT

Related Articles -- Top of Page -- Home