Importance of Pressure Gauges and Its Classifications

The pressure rating of systems will vary based on the type, utilized industry, and application. The pressure requirements for aircraft will be entirely different from the pressure required for a car engine. If any unintended pressure variation occurs, then it can create the worst situations. Then, how to maintain this system pressure? 

          It is a pressure gauge that can be set to the desired pressure rating for that range. It is a common instrument used in different industries like automotive, agriculture, defense, etc. It is primarily used for monitoring and troubleshooting the system. The pressure gauges located in the system circuit will analyze the pressure through the circuit and display readings on it for the technician or engineer. 

           If considering the hydraulics industry, pressure gauges can be considered as fluid intensity measurement devices. As you know, hydraulics deals with pressurized fluids and every hydraulic component implemented in the circuit will have the desired pressure rating. So, it is important to measure the system pressure for evaluating performance. To measure the hydraulic system pressure, pressure gauges are normally installed near the pump’s pressure port. It can also be installed at any other part of the hydraulic system for measuring the pressure. The hydraulic pressure gauges are rated on the basis of their pressure range. The commonly used pressure gauges have a rating of 3000 PSI to 5000 PSI and the maximum pressure range is 10,000 PSI.

Benefits of Using Pressure Gauges

         If the system pressure is not controlled based on the circuit component requirements, the outcome will be unpredictable and unreliable. The main benefit of a pressure gauge is, that it can be installed anywhere in the system circuit to measure the pressure at that point. Also, the corresponding reading will be displayed in a simple format that can easily be interpreted. Other than this, pressure gauges can be used for troubleshooting. I.e; if leaks or blocks occur in the circuit, the system pressure will reduce. In such cases, the technicians can effectively identify the reason for that pressure drop and can repair it immediately.

Common Reasons for Pressure Gauge Failures

          The accuracy of pressure gauges is necessary for critical applications. A wrong pressure reading can create workplace hazards. So, the major reasons for pressure gauge failure are listed below.

• Vibration & Pulsation
• Extreme temperature
• Moisture content
• Overpressure and pressure spikes
• Clogging
• Corrosion
• Inappropriate usage

About Bourdon Tube pressure gauge

           This is one of the classical and popularly used pressure gauges invented by Frenchman Eugene Bourdon in 1849. The steel or bronze tube located in this pressure gauge is known as the pressure-responsive element. The tube is closed at one end and the other end is connected to the pressure inlet. Initially, the shape of the tube will be elliptical, and under pressure, the freely moving closed end will change this shape to circular. On the basis of this movement, the pressure is calculated with the Bourdon Tube Pressure Gauge. Some key advantages of Bourdon Tube pressure gauges are safe operation, low cost, accuracy, simple construction, etc…

Categories of Pressure Gauges

There are different varieties of pressure measuring devices available. Let’s discuss some of those important types.

• Liquid Filled Vs Dry Pressure Gauges: Dry pressure gauges are commonly used for industrial applications and it prevents corrosion to a greater extent. Dry gauges are ideal for environments without mechanical vibration and moisture presence. In liquid-filled pressure gauges, a specific liquid-like glycerine(commonly used) is filled inside the casing. This liquid will coat the internal parts and reduce damages caused by pulsation and pressure spikes. Liquid-filled pressure gauges are used in circuits having fast and frequent loads, pressure peaks, and mechanical vibrations. Comparatively, dry gauges are less expensive than liquid-filled gauges.

• Manometer: Manometer is a type of pressure gauge that uses a column of liquid to measure pressure. This instrument can measure only low pressure close to the atmospheric pressure or vacuum. Toluene, CCl4, mercury, alcohol, etc… are the liquids used in the limp of the manometer.  The working principle of the manometer is it uses the same or another column of liquid for balancing. The two categories of the manometer are simple manometer and differential manometer.

• Mechanical Pressure Gauges: Mechanical pressure gauges are used for measuring high-pressure ranges. In this gauge, the rack and pinion arrangement magnifies the deformation caused by the application of pressure on the elastic element. This magnified value is displayed on the pointer scale for pressure measurement. The mechanical gauges will provide quick and rapid response compared to manometers.

• Digital Pressure Gauges: Digital pressure gauges are commonly used with temporary industry applications that require highly accurate pressure readings.  The reading on the digital display can be interpreted without operator assistance. Also, this pressure gauge eliminates chances for parallax error and it can be re-ranged easily. This pressure gauge requires external energy like battery power, loop power, or solar power for operation.

• Wireless Pressure Gauge: The wireless pressure gauges are the modern edition of pressure gauges that can transfer the pressure reading directly to other devices. This pressure gauge will provide stable and accurate pressure readings compared to mechanical gauges. The important advantage of this pressure gauge is that the data can be collected remotely. For this remote data collection, a wireless sensor networking technology called WirelessHART is utilized. This technology is based on the Highway Addressable Remote Transducer Protocol(HART Protocol).