PRESSURE MEASUREMENT

Pressure and Pressure head of a liquid –

Pascal’s Law – Absolute and Gauge Pressure
– Measurement of Pressure, Manometers,
Simple Manometers, Differential
Manometers – Advantages and Limitation
of Manometers – Mechanical gauges –
Bourdan tube gauge

Prepared by: Mr. R. Sathyanathan, Asst. Prof., Dept. of Civil Engg.

 PASCAL’S LAW
Intensity of pressure at any point in a liquid at rest, is the same in all directions
Pascal, states that the pressure on a fluid is equal in all directions and
in all parts of the container. As liquid flows into the large container at
the bottom of this illustration, pressure pushes the liquid equally up
into the tubes above the container. The liquid rises to the same level
in all of the tubes, regardless of the shape or angle of the tube.
 APPLICATIONS OF PASCAL’S LAW

Pascal’s Law may be applied when the velocity of flow is constant

When the man jumps on the small piston, he induces a pressure in the system. This
pressure also works on the large piston: because of the large area of this piston, the
force induced by the pressure is capable to lift the car.
By stepping the brake pedal down 3-cm applying 10-kg force, a
whopping 1,000-kg force or more acting on the brake disc at the
wheels!
 F1/A1 =F2/A2
 The pressure input at one end is
the same as the pressure output at
the other.
 You apply a small force over a small
area, and the output force at the end
with the larger area will be greater.
 The work done on one end is the
same as the work output at the other.
 REAL TIME PROBLEM

Ram

Plunger

Problem: The diameter of ram and plunger of an hydraulic press are 200 mm
and 30mm respectively. Find the weight lifted by the hydraulic press when
the force applied at the plunger is 400 N.

Answers: (a) Intensity of pressure due to plunger = 5.66 E+5 N/m2

(b) Weight lifted by the hydraulic press = 17.77 kN.
 MEASUREMENT OF PRESSURE

Manometers Mechanical Gauges

Simple Differential
Manometers Manometers

Piezometer U-tube differential manometer

U-tube Manometer Inverted U-tube differential

manometer
Single Column Manometer
Manometers are the devices used for
measuring the pressure at a point in a
fluid by balancing the column of fluid
by the same or another column of
liquid. Suitable for measuring low
pressure and low differential pressure

Mechanical gauges are the devices in

which the pressure is measured by
balancing the fluid column by spring
(elastic element) or dead weight.
Used for measuring high pressures
 PIEZOMETER
Simplest form of manometer
Used for measuring moderate
pressures of liquids
Consists of a glass tube inserted in the
wall of a vessel or a pipe
The pressure is indicated by the
height of the liquid in the tube above a
given point
Pressure intensity at A : pa = w h

Not suitable for measuring negative

pressure
Cannot be employed to measure high
pressures
Cannot be used for measuring gas
pressures
 U – tube manometer
Consists of a glass tube bent in U-
shape, one end is connected to a
point at which pressure is to be
measured and other end remains
open to the atmosphere
The tube contains a liquid of
specific gravity greater than that of a
the fluid of which pressure is to be
measured
Manometric liquids: Mercury,
Carbon di sulphide, carbon tetra
chloride, alcohol, water etc.
 Differential Manometer
Used to measure the difference in pressures between two points in a pipe, or in
two different pipes

Upright U - tube Inverted U - tube

Used for measuring high pressure

Used for measuring low
differences
pressure differences
Density of manometric fluid is more
Density of manometric fluid is
than the metered fluid
less than the metered fluid
 BOURDAN TUBE PRESSURE GAUGE

Consists of an elastic element which

deflects under the action of applied
pressure
When the gauge is connected to the
gauge point, fluid under pressure enters
the tube
Elliptical c/s of the tube tends to
become circular and this movement is
mechanically magnified
Operates a pointer moving against a
graduated circumferential scale
Used for measuring high pressures,
where high precision is not required
 ADVANTAGES OF MANOMETERS
 Easy to fabricate and relatively
inexpensive
 Good accuracy
 Require little maintenance
 Not affected by vibrations
 Suitable for measuring low pressure and
low differential pressures
 LIMITATIONS OF MANOMETERS
 Large in size
 Being fragile, get broken easily
 Readings are affected by changes in
temperatures, altitude and gravity
 Not suitable for measuring high pressures