Title :
A vapor pressure thermometer for use in muscle microcalorimetry
Author :
Johnston, Callum M. ; Nielsen, Poul M F ; Hunter, Ian W. ; Taberner, Andrew J.
Author_Institution :
Auckland Bioengineering Institute at The University of Auckland
fDate :
Aug. 30 2011-Sept. 3 2011
Abstract :
Measurement of the energy consumption of isolated cardiac trabeculae requires highly sensitive temperature sensors. In this paper we describe and characterize an initial prototype of a vapor pressure thermometer being designed and built for application to muscle microcalorimetry. The device exploits the change in vapor pressure with temperature of a solvent and the change in pressure with volume of a gas. The sensor achieves a sensitivity of 86 μm/K and a resolution of 3.6 μK. Predictions from a finite element model of the expected displacement compare favorably with the tests performed.
Keywords :
Electron tubes; Finite element methods; Heating; Muscles; Temperature measurement; Temperature sensors; Calorimetry; Computer Simulation; Computer-Aided Design; Equipment Design; Equipment Failure Analysis; Heart; Models, Cardiovascular; Myocardial Contraction; Pilot Projects; Reproducibility of Results; Sensitivity and Specificity; Thermometers; Transducers; Vapor Pressure;
Conference_Titel :
Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, EMBC, 2011 Annual International Conference of the IEEE
Conference_Location :
Boston, MA
Print_ISBN :
978-1-4244-4121-1
Electronic_ISBN :
1557-170X
DOI :
10.1109/IEMBS.2011.6090094
