Determination of PRT Hysteresis in the Temperature Range from −50 °C to 300 °C

This paper discusses the contribution of hysteresis to the measurement uncertainty of industrial platinum resistance thermometers (IPRTs). Hysteresis is one of the sources of uncertainty that has so far not been sufficiently researched and documented. The term hysteresis applies to any system that is path dependent; the output depends on the history of the input. In our case, thermal hysteresis results in different resistance values at the same temperature point, depending on whether the temperature was increasing or decreasing. The reason for such behavior is related to the construction of the thermometer (strain due to thermal expansion and contraction) and also to possible moisture inside the encapsulation. In the process of evaluation of the calibration and measurement capabilities (CMCs) of IPRTs within Working Group 8, the Consultative Committee for Thermometry (CCT WG8) concluded that the uncertainty due to hysteresis is not uniformly defined and not always added to the total uncertainty of the resistance thermometer under calibration. In order to estimate the uncertainty contribution due to the hysteresis and compare different procedures, resistance measurements were carried out on a number of IPRTs of different qualities and tolerance classes. The temperature span was between −50 °C and 300 °C, which is the most frequent temperature range in the practical use of IPRTs. The hysteresis was then determined in different ways (change of resistance at the ice point and at the midpoint temperature according to the ASTM International Standard E644 and according to the new version of IEC Standard 60751), and a comparison of results was made.