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Atomic Theory and Chemical Symbols

Atomic Theory and Chemical Symbols

The three “elementary” particles of matter comprising all atoms are electrons, protons, and…


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Safety Instrumented Functions and Systems

Safety Instrumented Functions and Systems

A Safety Instrumented Function, or SIF, is one or more components designed to execute a specific…


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Elementary Thermodynamics

Elementary Thermodynamics

Thermodynamics is the study of heat, temperature, and their related effects in physical systems. As a subject,…


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Chemical Reactor Temperature Control Example

Chemical Reactor Temperature Control Example

Sometimes we encounter a diversity of instrument signal standards in one control system. Such is the case with…


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Self-regulating, Integrating, and Runaway Process Characteristics

Self-regulating, Integrating, and Runaway Process Characteristics

Perhaps the most important rule of controller tuning is to know the process before attempting to adjust the…


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Indicators, Recorders, Process Switches and Alarms

Indicators, Recorders, Process Switches and Alarms

So far we have just looked at instruments that sense, control, and influence process variables. Transmitters,…


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The Stuxnet Virus

The Stuxnet Virus

In November of 2007 a new computer virus was submitted to a virus scanning service. The purpose of this new…


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Radiation Level Measurement

Radiation Level Measurement

Certain types of nuclear radiation easily penetrates the walls of industrial vessels, but is attenuated by…


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Velocity-based Flowmeters

Velocity-based Flowmeters

The Law of Continuity for fluids states that the product of mass density (\(\rho\)), cross-sectional pipe area…


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Atomic Theory and Chemical Symbols

Atomic Theory and Chemical Symbols

The three “elementary” particles of matter comprising all atoms are electrons, protons, and…


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Interconnected Generators

Interconnected Generators

Any power grid large enough to meet the demand of an entire nation must have multiple generators drawing from…


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Conservation Laws

Conservation Laws

The Law of Mass Conservation states that matter can neither be created nor destroyed. The Law of Energy…


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Introduction to Capacitors and Capacitance

Introduction to Capacitors and Capacitance

Capacitance Any two electrical conductors separated by an insulating medium possess the characteristic called…


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Introduction to Power System Automation

Introduction to Power System Automation

Those familiar with industrial instrumentation will find much within the electric power industry remarkably…


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Circuit Breakers and Disconnects

Circuit Breakers and Disconnects

Disconnect Switches Disconnects are switches designed to isolate sections of a power system in case of damage…


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Distance (21) Protection

Distance (21) Protection

A form of protection against faults on long-distance power lines is called distance relaying, so named because…


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Material Volume Measurement

Material Volume Measurement

A variety of technologies exist to measure the quantity of stored material in a vessel. For liquid…


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Radio-energy Pulse in Guided-wave Radar Level Measurement

Radio-energy Pulse in Guided-wave Radar Level Measurement

The following animation shows how a radio-energy pulse travels down and then up the waveguide of a guided-wave…


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FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1 Protocol Segment Troubleshooting

FOUNDATION Fieldbus H1 Protocol Segment Troubleshooting

Feedback obtained from industrial users of FF reveal a common pattern: Fieldbus is a powerful and reliable…


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Tube and Tube Fittings

Tube and Tube Fittings

Tube, like pipe, is a hollow structure designed to provide an enclosed pathway for fluids to flow. In the case…


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Rotary-stem Valves

Rotary-stem Valves

A different strategy for controlling the flow of fluid is to insert a rotary element into the flow path.…


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Derivative (Rate) Control

Derivative (Rate) Control

The final element of PID control is the “D” term, which stands for derivative. This is a calculus…


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Electrical Sources and Electronic Load

Electrical Sources and Electronic Load

By definition, a source is a device delivering energy into a system, while a load is a device extracting…


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On/off Electric Motor Control Circuits

On/off Electric Motor Control Circuits

An electric motor is often used as a discrete control element in a control system if driving a pump, conveyor…


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Teaching Technical Theory

Teaching Technical Theory

Learning is not merely a process of information transfer. It is first and foremost a transformation of…


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Proximity Switches

Proximity Switches

A proximity switch is one detecting the proximity (closeness) of some object. By definition, these switches…


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Diagnosing Feedback Control Problems

Diagnosing Feedback Control Problems

Negative feedback systems, in general, tend to cause confusion for those first learning their fundamental…


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Concepts and Laws of Probability

Concepts and Laws of Probability

While the term “probability” may evoke images of imprecision, probability is in fact an exact…


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What is Hydrostatic Pressure?

What is Hydrostatic Pressure?

A vertical column of fluid generates a pressure at the bottom of the column owing to the action of gravity on…


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Feedforward with Dynamic Compensation

Feedforward with Dynamic Compensation

As we have seen, feedforward control is a way to improve the stability of a feedback control system in the…


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