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Classified Areas and Electrical Safety Measures

Classified Areas and Electrical Safety Measures

Any physical location in an industrial facility harboring the potential of explosion due to the presence of…


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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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Safety Gas Analyzers

Safety Gas Analyzers

Process analyzers measure the concentration of specific substances for the purpose of measuring and/or…


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Transformer Basics and Principles of Operation

Transformer Basics and Principles of Operation

The transformer is one of the most important components in all of AC circuitry. Principally used to…


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Integral (Reset) Control

Integral (Reset) Control

Imagine a liquid-level control system for a vessel, where the position of a level-sensing float sets the…


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A Comparison of PID Controller Tuning Techniques

A Comparison of PID Controller Tuning Techniques

In this section I will show screenshots from a process loop simulation program illustrating the effectiveness…


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Electromagnetism Basics

Electromagnetism Basics

The fundamental principle of electromagnetism is that an electric current will create a magnetic field at…


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Digital Representation of Text

Digital Representation of Text

Binary patterns are not just able to represent numerical values. Given a standardized code, they may represent…


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Thermocouple Types, Junctions, Connector and Tip Styles

Thermocouple Types, Junctions, Connector and Tip Styles

RTDs are completely passive sensing elements, requiring the application of an externally-sourced electric…


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Electrical Signal and Control Wiring

Electrical Signal and Control Wiring

There is much to be said for neatness of assembly in electrical signal wiring. Even though the electrons…


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LRV and URV Settings, Digital Trim (Digital Transmitters)

LRV and URV Settings, Digital Trim (Digital Transmitters)

The advent of “smart” field instruments containing microprocessors has been a great advance for…


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Introduction to Modbus

Introduction to Modbus

Developed by the Modicon company (the original manufacturer of the Programmable Logic Controller, or PLC) in…


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Metric Prefixes and Prefix Scale

Metric Prefixes and Prefix Scale


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On/off Shut-off Valves

On/off Shut-off Valves

An on/off valve is the fluid equivalent of an electrical switch: a device that either allows unimpeded flow or…


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Mathematical Problem-solving Techniques

Mathematical Problem-solving Techniques

Some problem-solving techniques are unique to quantitative problems, involving mathematical calculations. In…


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Chemiluminescence Measurement

Chemiluminescence Measurement

Recall that an exothermic chemical reaction is one that releases a net sum of energy, as opposed to an…


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Process/Instrument Suitability

Process/Instrument Suitability

Every flow-measuring instrument exploits a physical principle to measure the flow rate of fluid stream.…


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Relation Control

Relation Control

A control strategy similar to ratio control is relation control. This is similar to ratio control in that a…


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Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP)

Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP)

At the next OSI Reference Model layer (layer 4) is a set of protocols specifying how reliable communication…


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Level Sensor Accessories

Level Sensor Accessories

Disturbances in the liquid tend to complicate liquid level measurement. These disturbances may result from…


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Fluid Mechanics

Fluid Mechanics

A fluid is any substance having the ability to flow: to freely change shape and move under the influence of a…


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Mechanical Pressure Elements

Mechanical Pressure Elements

Mechanical pressure-sensing elements include the bellows, the diaphragm, and the bourdon tube. Each of these…


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Actuator Bench-set

Actuator Bench-set

Valve actuators provide force to move control valve trim. For precise positioning of a control valve, there…


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National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Traceability

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Traceability

As defined previously, calibration means the comparison and adjustment (if necessary) of an instrument’s…


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Zero and Span Adjustments (Analog Instruments)

Zero and Span Adjustments (Analog Instruments)

Linearity of Measurement Instruments The purpose of calibration is to ensure the input and output of an…


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Limit, Selector, and Override Controls

Limit, Selector, and Override Controls

Another category of control strategies involves the use of signal relays or function blocks with the ability…


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Structured Text (ST) Programming

Structured Text (ST) Programming

(Will be addressed in future versions of this book)


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Feedforward Control

Feedforward Control

“Feedforward” is a rather under-used control strategy capable of managing a great many types of…


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Relay Circuits and Ladder Diagrams

Relay Circuits and Ladder Diagrams

Electromechanical relays may be connected together to perform logic and control functions, acting as logic…


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Root Mean Square (RMS) Quantities

Root Mean Square (RMS) Quantities

It is often useful to express the amplitude of an alternating quantity such as voltage or current in terms…


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Sequential Function Chart (SFC) Programming

Sequential Function Chart (SFC) Programming

(Will be addressed in future versions of this book)


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PID Control Terminology

PID Control Terminology

PID control can be a confusing concept to understand. Here, a brief summary of each term within PID (P. I, and…


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Ladder Diagram (LD) Structure Commands

Ladder Diagram (LD) Structure Commands

The simple PLC ladder diagram (LD) commands consist of contacts and coils, arranged in sequences that mimic…


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Colorimetric and Potentiometric pH Measurement

Colorimetric and Potentiometric pH Measurement

pH is the measurement of the hydrogen ion activity in a liquid solution. It is one of the most common forms of…


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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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Numerical Integration

Numerical Integration

As we have seen, the concept of integration is finding the accumulation of one variable multiplied by another…


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Control Valve Sizing

Control Valve Sizing

When control valves operate between fully open and fully shut, they serve much the same purpose in process…


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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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Instruction List (IL) Programming

Instruction List (IL) Programming

(Will be addressed in future versions of this book)


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Heuristic PID Tuning Procedures

Heuristic PID Tuning Procedures

In contrast to quantitative tuning procedures where definite numerical values for P, I, and D controller…


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Basics of pH Measurement in Industrial Control

Basics of pH Measurement in Industrial Control

Hydrogen ion activity in aqueous (water-solvent) solutions is a very important parameter for a wide variety of…


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Teaching Diagnostic Principles and Practices

Teaching Diagnostic Principles and Practices

Diagnostic ability is arguably the most difficult skill to develop within a student, and also the most…


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Understanding Area, Volume and Common Geometry

Understanding Area, Volume and Common Geometry

Area refers to the size of two-dimensional surface. Volume refers to the size of a three-dimensional space. To…


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