CH-6 Thermometers

Thermal energy (Heat)and Temperature

• The sum of the kinetic and potential energies of the atoms/molecules
in a body. Thermal energy is also referred to as INTERNAL ENERGY.
• Temperature is a measurement of hot or cold.
• Specifically ,temperature gives us a measure of the average kinetic
energy of particles in a sample.
• Heat represents the total kinetic energy of particles in a sample.
Thermometer
A thermometer is an instrument which is used to measure
temperature.
The thermometer needs a scale to be used effectively.
There are several types of thermometers
The choice of which to use depends upon
• The range of temperature to be measured.
• The accuracy required
• The physical conditions in which the thermometer will be used
Thermometers
Thermometers- range
Thermometers-range
Thermometric properties
• Sensitivity – Change in length or volume per degree change in temperature.
• Some of the factors which increase sensitivity are:
• Using a narrow tube, as a small change in volume results in the liquid moving
a larger distance along the tube
• Using a glass bulb with a thinner wall, as heat can be transferred to the bulb
more easily and a small change in temperature can be more easily detected.
• Using a thermometer with a bigger glass bulb, as more liquid will be forced
into the capillary .
• Responsiveness or quick-acting – How long it takes for the thermometer to react
to change in temperature .It should have a bulb made of thin glass so that the
heat can get through easily.
• Mercury reacts quickly to the temperature changes whereas alcohol reacts slowly
Thermometric properties
• Range-It is the difference between the maximum and minimum
temperatures that the thermometer can read . A common
range for liquid-in-glass thermometer is from -10 °C to 110°C.
• The range is limited by the freezing and boiling points of liquid.
For mercury thermometer: -39 °C to 357°C
For alcohol-in-glass thermometer: -115 °C to 78°C
• In colder countries, most of its liquid-in-glass thermometers use
alcohol and not mercury.
• The range can be increased by lengthening the bore.
Thermometric properties
• Linear: It is linear if the liquids expands by the same amount for every degree Celsius
rise in temperature. It means scale will be marked in degrees of equal size.
• Non-linear : If the liquid did not expand uniformly, the scale would be non-linear. It
would be marked with degrees of differing sizes. It would be very difficult to calibrate
and use.
• The walls of the long tube ( capillary) above the bulb are made thick :
This acts as a magnifying glass for easy reading of the mercury thread in the stem.
• The size of the thermometer is relatively small- portable and cheap.
• The bore of the capillary tube is fine and uniform: The fine tube allows a noticeable
movement of the liquid column for a small change in temperature.
• Uniform tube ensures even expansion of liquid
Properties of a good thermometric liquid

• It should expand uniformly throughout the measuring temperature range.

• It should be good conductor of heat.
• It should be opaque for clear visibility.
• It should not stick to the walls of the thermometer.
• It should be easily available in pure form.
• It should be in the liquid state throughout the range of measurement.
 Laboratory Thermometers-liquid in glass

• Capillary tube: a glass tube with thick walls and a

narrow interior hollow tube (bore).It has bulb at one
end.
Work:
• When the glass bulb is heated ,the liquid in the bulb
starts to expand up the capillary tube
• Commonly Mercury and Alcohol (colored) are used
because mercury boils at 357°C and freezes at -39 °C.
Alcohol boils at 78°C and freezes at -115°C. Therefore,
alcohol is more suited at low temperatures and
mercury is suited for high temperatures.
• Mercury freezes as solid if used in very cold places.
Alochol cannot be used at very hot places because it
boils at a lower temperature than mercury.
Laboratory Thermometers-liquid in glass
• The liquids used in liquid-in-glass thermometers are chosen for their
thermal expansion properties:
• They expand linearly with temperature
• They expand significantly, giving them greater sensitivity
• They have low freezing points and high boiling points, allowing them to be
used over a greater range of temperatures
Clinical Thermometers-
liquid-in-glass
• Clinical thermometers are used by doctors and
nurses to measure patients body temperature.
They are mercury-in -glass thermometer.
• It is smaller in size than the laboratory
thermometer.
• It has a constriction in the fine capillary tube.
This prevents the mercury from contracting
and flowing back when it is removed from
human body (temperature of surroundings
being lower).
• The scale ranges between 35 °C to 43 °C. This
enables the scale to be divided into smaller
intervals for greater accuracy.
• It has thin wall glass bulb, very fine and
narrow capillary bore, small range, narrow
constriction, pear shape stem which acts as a
magnifying glass
 Clinical Thermometers-
liquid-in-glass - Working

• The capillary tube has constriction just

above bulb. The thermometer is placed
under the tongue and kept there for 1
minute, the mercury expands it heats up
and forces past the constriction .once the
thermometer is removed from the
mouth ,the mercury in the bulb cools and
contracts ,breaking off from the mercury
thread at the constriction ,but the mercury
that’s beyond the constriction stays in the
tube ,showing the body temperature is at.
• By flicking your wrist, the mercury returns
to the bulb again.
Clinical Thermometers-
Digital
• Mercury thermometers ( for clinical
use) are now being replaced by
digital thermometers because
mercury is toxic.
• A modern clinical thermometer has
a thermistor in the probe and a
digital readout to display the result.
Thermocouple Thermometer

A thermocouple consists of two dissimilar wires connected

together
Thermocouple Thermometer-working
• It consists of two wires made of different metals such as iron and copper .The
ends of wires are joined together to form junction.
• When the joint between the two wires is heated, a potential difference (voltage)
is created between the two wires
• The greater the temperature, the greater the potential difference
Thermocouple Thermometer- Advantages
• Thermocouples are not as sensitive as liquid-in-glass thermometers, but because
the metals have high melting points, they can be used to measure very high
temperatures (-200°C to 1700°C )
• Thermocouples are also very responsive to rapidly changing temperatures.
• Output is electrical signal therefore can be connected to a suitable electrical
equipment for checking rapid of sudden temperature changes.
Absolute zero
• The lowest temperature that is theoretically possible at which molecules vibrate
less and less until they have their lowest possible energy.
• It corresponds to -273 °C on the Celsius scale.
• 0K at kelvin scale
• ° C=K-273
• K= ° C +273
Scale of temperature –Absolute zero