Automation Technology
Pressure Instruments
Automation Technology are able to supply a variety of pressure devices to suit commercial and industrial applications, including pumps, machinery and related systems; steam boilers or other pressurized vessels; compressors; chemical processing; oil, gas and petrochemical systems; oil and gas pipeline monitoring; power plant equipment; and pulp and paper mills.
Pressure instruments use many different sensing technologies. Mechanical deflection devices such as diaphragms, Bourdon tubes or bellows consist of an elastic or flexible element that is deflected mechanically by a change in pressure. Sealed pistons or cylinders are also available. Strain gauges are bonded to a larger structure that deforms as pressure changes. Piezoresistive devices sense shifts of electrical charges within a resistor. Piezoelectric pressure instruments measure dynamic and quasi-static pressures.
Their common modes of operation are charge mode, which generates a high-impedance charge output; and voltage mode, which uses an amplifier to convert the high-impedance charge into a low-impedance output voltage. Thin film devices consist of an extremely thin layer of material, usually titanium nitride or polysilicon, deposited on a substrate. Pressure instruments that use microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), variable capacitance, and vibrating elements are commonly available.