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Using Sound To Measure Temperature
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 3]
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CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
A temperature is an objective comparative
measure of hot or cold. It is measured by a thermometer, which may work
through the bulk behaviour of a thermometric material, detection of
thermal radiation , or particle kinetic energy Several scales and units
exist for measuring temperature, the most common being Celsius (denoted
°C; formerly called centigrade), Fahrenheit (denoted °F), and,
especially in science, Kelvin (denoted K).
The coldest theoretical
temperature is absolute zero, at which the thermal motion in matter
would be zero. However, an actual physical system or object can never
attain a temperature of absolute zero. Absolute zero is denoted as 0 K
on the Kelvin scale, −273.15 °C on the Celsius scale, and −459.67 °F on
the Fahrenheit scale.
The kinetic theory offers a valuable but
limited account of the behaviour of the materials of macroscopic
systems, especially of fluids. It indicates the absolute temperature as
proportional to the average kinetic energy of the random microscopic
motions of their constituent microscopic particles such as electrons,
atoms, and molecules.
Temperature is important in all fields of
natural science, including physics, geology, chemistry, atmospheric
sciences, medicine , and biology—as well as most aspects of daily life.
Many physical processes are affected by temperature, such as physical
properties of materials including the phase ( solid , liquid , gaseous
or plasma), density , solubility, vapour pressure , electrical
conductivity rate and extent to which chemical reactions occur the
amount and properties of thermal radiation emitted from the surface of
an object speed of sound is a function of the square root of the
absolute temperature.
Temperature scales differ in two ways: the
point chosen as zero degrees, and the magnitudes of incremental units or
degrees on the scale.
The Celsius scale (°C) is used for common
temperature measurements in most of the world. It is an empirical scale.
It developed by a historical progress, which led to its zero point 0 °C
being defined by the freezing point of water, with additional degrees
defined so that 100 °C was the boiling point of water, both at sea-level
atmospheric pressure. Because of the 100 degree interval, it is called a
centigrade scale. [1] Since the standardization of the kelvin in the
International System of Units, it has subsequently been redefined in
terms of the equivalent fixing points on the Kelvin scale, and so that a
temperature increment of one degree Celsius is the same as an increment
of one kelvin, though they differ by an additive offset of 273.15.
The
United States commonly uses the Fahrenheit scale, on which water
freezes at 32 °F and boils at 212 °F at sea-level atmospheric pressure.
Many
scientific measurements use the kelvin temperature scale (unit symbol
K), named in honour of the Scottish physicist who first defined it. It
is a thermodynamic or absolute temperature scale. Its zero point, 0 K,
is defined to coincide with coldest physically-possible temperature
(called absolute zero). Its degrees are defined through thermodynamics.
The temperature of absolute zero occurs at 0 K = -273.15 °C (or −459.67
°F), and the freezing point of water at sea-level atmospheric pressure
occurs at 273.15 K = 0 °C.
The International System of Units (SI)
defines a scale and unit for the kelvin or thermodynamic temperature by
using the reliably reproducible temperature of the triple point of water
as a second reference point (the first reference point being 0 K at
absolute zero). The triple point is a singular state with its own unique
and invariant temperature and pressure, along with, for a fixed mass of
water in a vessel of fixed volume, an autonomically and stably
self-determining partition into three mutually contacting phases,
vapour, liquid, and solid, dynamically depending only on the total
internal energy of the mass of water. For historical reasons, the triple
point temperature of water is fixed at 273.16 units of the measurement
increment.
In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as a
typically audible mechanical wave of pressure and displacement, through a
medium such as air or water. In physiology and psychology, sound is the
reception of such waves and their perception by the brain.
Sound can
propagate through compressible media such as air, water and solids as
longitudinal waves and also as a transverse waves in solids (see
Longitudinal and transverse waves, below). The sound waves are generated
by a sound source, such as the vibrating diaphragm of a stereo speaker.
The sound source creates vibrations in the surrounding medium. As the
source continues to vibrate the medium, the vibrations propagate away
from the source at the speed of sound, thus forming the sound wave. At a
fixed distance from the source, the pressure, velocity, and
displacement of the medium vary in time. At an instant in time, the
pressure, velocity, and displacement vary in space. Note that the
particles of the medium do not travel with the sound wave. This is
intuitively obvious for a solid, and the same is true for liquids and
gases (that is, the vibrations of particles in the gas or liquid
transport the vibrations, while the average position of the particles
over time does not change). During propagation, waves can be reflected,
refracted, or attenuated by the medium.
The behaviour of sound propagation is generally affected by three things:
A
relationship between density and pressure this relationship, affected
by temperature, determines the speed of sound within the medium.
The
propagation is also affected by the motion of the medium itself. For
example, sound moving through wind. Independent of the motion of sound
through the medium, if the medium is moving, the sound is further
transported.
The viscosity of the medium also affects the motion of
sound waves. It determines the rate at which sound is attenuated. For
many media, such as air or water, attenuation due to viscosity is
negligible.
When sound is moving through a medium that does not have
constant physical properties, it may be refracted (either dispersed or
focused).
CHAPTER ONE -- [Total Page(s) 3]
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ABSRACT - [ Total Page(s): 1 ]A method to measure the real time temperature distribution along an interferometer path based on the propagation of acoustic waves is presented. It exploits the high sensitivity of the speed of sound in air to the air temperature. In particular, it takes advantage of a special set-up where the generation of the acoustic waves is synchronous with the amplitude modulation of a laser source. A photodetector converts the laser light to an electronic signal considered as reference, while the incoming ... Continue reading---
