AutoQuiz is edited by Joel Don, ISA's social media community manager.
This automation industry quiz question comes from the ISA Certified Control Systems Technician (CCST) program. Certified Control System Technicians calibrate, document, troubleshoot, and repair/replace instrumentation for systems that measure and control level, temperature, pressure, flow, and other process variables. Click this link for more information about the CCST program.
a) decade box
b) squeeze bulb
c) function generator
d) dead-weight tester
e) none of the above
A squeeze bulb can only be used to generate pressures for calibration in the range of 0–500 inH2O (~18 psig).
A decade box is used to calibrate temperature transmitters and instruments and cannot be used for pressure calibration.
A function generator is a piece of electronic test equipment or software used to generate different types of electrical waveforms over a wide range of frequencies, and therefore cannot be used for pressure calibration.
The correct answer is D, dead-weight tester. A dead-weight tester apparatus uses known traceable weights to apply pressure to a fluid for checking the accuracy of readings from a pressure gauge or pressure transmitter. Due to the force-multiplying properties of a dead-weight tester, these primary calibration instruments can typically be used to generate accurate test pressures from 15–10,000 psig.
Reference: Goettsche, L.D. (Editor), Maintenance of Instruments and Systems, 2nd Edition
About the Editor
Joel Don is the community manager for ISA and is an independent content marketing, social media and public relations consultant. Prior to his work in marketing and PR, Joel served as an editor for regional newspapers and national magazines throughout the U.S. He earned a master's degree from the Medill School at Northwestern University with a focus on science, engineering and biomedical marketing communications, and a bachelor of science degree from UC San Diego.