Manometer, mercury gauge

The pressure on the high-vacuum side may be given by mercury manometers, McLeod gauges, or Pirani gauges according to the rate at which the pressure rises on this side. At Kg. 48. Apparatus for mea-high pressures robust methods of through... 

In operation, the pressure was held constant at the desired value by using the signal from either an ion, thermocouple, or mercury manometer vacuum gauge to admit air through a controlled leak. Readings were then taken after thermal equi-... 

Industrial and Control Instruments. Mercury is used in many industrial and medical instmments to measure or control reactions and equipment functions, including thermometers, manometers (flow meters), barometers and other pressure-sensing devices, gauges, valves, seals, and navigational devices (see Pressure measurements Process control Temperature measurement). Whereas mercury fever thermometers are being replaced by... 

Pressure reducing valves should be of steel constmction, designed for minimum and maximum operation conditions. Pressure gauges should be of ak-kon constmction. Pressure rehef valves should be of the spring-loaded type. Rupture disks may be used only as auxkiary equipment. Differential pressure measurements using mercury manometers should be avoided in ammonia service. 

If the pump is a filter pump off a high-pressure water supply, its performance will be limited by the temperature of the water because the vapour pressure of water at 10°, 15°, 20° and 25° is 9.2, 12.8, 17.5 and 23.8 mm Hg respectively. The pressure can be measured with an ordinary manometer. For vacuums in the range lO" mm Hg to 10 mm Hg, rotary mechanical pumps (oil pumps) are used and the pressure can be measured with a Vacustat McLeod type gauge. If still higher vacuums are required, for example for high vacuum sublimations, a mercury diffusion pump is suitable. Such a pump can provide a vacuum up to 10" mm Hg. For better efficiencies, the pump can be backed up by a mechanical pump. In all cases, the mercury pump is connected to the distillation apparatus through several traps to remove mercury vapours. These traps may operate by chemical action, for example the use of sodium hydroxide pellets to react with acids, or by condensation, in which case empty tubes cooled in solid carbon dioxide-ethanol or liquid nitrogen (contained in wide-mouthed Dewar flasks) are used. 

Although a pressure gauge is more commonly used to measure the pressure inside a laboratory vessel, a manometer is sometimes used (Fig. 4.5). It consists of a U-shaped tube connected to the experimental system. The other end of the tube may be either open to the atmosphere or sealed. For an open-tube manometer (like that shown in Fig. 4.5a), the pressure in the system is equal to that of the atmosphere when the levels of the liquid in each arm of the U-tube are the same. If the level of mercury on the system side of an open manometer is above that of the atmosphere side, the pressure in the system is lower than the atmospheric pressure. In a closed-tube manometer (like that shown in Fig. 4.5b), one side is connected to a closed flask (the system) and the other side is vacuum. The difference in heights of the two columns is proportional to the pressure in the system. 

G. Bourdon Gauges. As an alternative to mercury manometers there is a variety of gauges based on mechanical or electrical pressure transducers. This section presents a description of purely mechanical gauges which still find use in this electronic age.4 The metal Bourdon gauge (Fig. 7.5) is fashioned around a semicircular thin-walled metal tube with mechanical linkage to a pointer. Fused-quartz spiral gauges are also available. In this case, a thin spiral is sensitive to a pressure differential, and the deflection is balanced with air pressure in the surrounding envelope. The air pressure is then measured with a manometer. 

Figure 1. Schematic of apparatus A, calibrated variable-volume mercury burette B, reference volume C, main chamber D, mixing pump E, adsorption chamber F, reference chamber G, constant temperature baths H, mercury manometer J, cold-cathode gauge P, Pirani vacuum gauge R, mercury reservoir...

Notice that a positive AP means the system has a pressure higher than atmospheric pressure, whereas a negative AP means the object has a pressure lower than atmospheric pressure. Manometers become inconvenient for measuring gauge pressures of greater than about 1 atm because of the large column of mercury that must be contained. Less dense liquids, such as water, can be used in a manometer to measure smaller pressure differences. 

Cold traps must be used if mercury is used in your system (such as manometers, diffusion pumps, bubblers, or McLeod gauges) and if your mechanical pump has cast aluminum parts. Mercury will amalgamate with aluminum and destroy a pump. Even if your mechanical pump does not have aluminum parts, the mercury may form a reservoir in the bottom of the mechanical pump, which may cause a noticeable decrease in pumping speed and effectiveness. Aside from a cold trap between the McLeod gauge and the system, place a film of low vapor pressure oil in the McLeod gauge storage bulb. This oil will limit the amount of mercury vapor entering the system that makes its way to the mechanical pump. In addition, an oil layer should be placed on the mercury surface in bubblers and other mercury-filled components. 

Save any mercury taken from McLeod gauges, manometers, and diffusion pumps because it can be sold to your mercury supplier for purification and reuse. One company that provides this service is Bethlehem Apparatus Co., Inc., 890 Front St., Hellertown, PA 18055. 

The beauty of liquid traps is that once in place they require no further oversight, care, or maintenance. Once you have seen the damages caused by a manometer or a McLeod gauge that has burped, you understand the value of liquid traps. However, the value of liquid traps can be overemphasized, and they should not be used as panaceas for clumsy vacuum work. They will not stop all the mercury (or other fluids) that are being battered around within a system, so do not depend on liquid traps to make up for carelessness. 

Second only to the mechanical gauge as the easiest device to measure and read a vacuum (and decidedly easiest in construction) is the liquid manometer (see Fig. 7.37). A well-made mercury manometer, kept very clean, can measure vacuums of up to 10 3 torr. This sensitivity can be increased by up to 15 times if a liquid with less density, such as diffusion pump oil, is used. However, diffusion pump oil is far more difficult to keep clean and can require either (a) a very tall (and thereby impractical) column or (b) a manometer of very limited range. In addition, because of the strong surface tension between diffusion pump oil and glass, long waiting periods between readings are required as the oil settles into place. 

A second 3-1. three-necked flask (flask B) is fitted with a gas-tight modified Hershberg stirrer (Note 1), a gas inlet tube, and an appropriately designed gas outlet tube bearing a thermometer and connections leading to a soda-lime tube and an open-end mercury manometer. All rubber stoppers and connections are wired in place with 16-gauge copper wire. 

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