I have level data from a non-vented transducer in a water body and barometric pressure data from the same location. My elevation is 500 meters, how do I determine the true depth?
The true depth can be calculated by subtracting the actual atmospheric air pressure from absolute referenced level data.
Typically a non-vented depth transducer will have an absolute range, but this should be verified by checking the reading at zero depth, which should be around 10 mH20 or 1 bar, which would signify that the transducer does indeed have an absolute reference.
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IMSL IP68 Stainless Steel 316L Hydrostatic Pressure Sensor - Water resistant pressure sensor for measuring hydrostatic pressures in the range of 0-0.5 mWC up to 0-100 mWC.- BMS water tank 6mH2Og range 0-10V out submersible level sensor for commercial buildings - This submersible level sensor provides accurate and reliable water level measurement in BMS applications in commercial office buildings, with a 0 to 6 mH2O gauge pressure range and a 0 to 10V output signal.
If the reading is close to zero, it will most likely be a sealed gauge reference type instead, this means that it will have a fixed zero offset that will typically correspond 1 bar, which will need to be determined precisely by subtracting the zero depth reading from the actual atmospheric air pressure and then adding the result to all non-vented depth readings, e.g. if Zero depth = -50 mbar, Atmospheric pressure = 980 mbar, then 1030 mbar should be added to all the depth data to convert it to absolute readings.
If the barometric pressure is the actual pressure at that location without any meteorological adjustment for elevation you can simply subtract that reading from the absolute referenced level reading, but be careful to ensure all calculations are carried out in the same pressure units.
If the barometric pressure was obtained from a meteorological service or barometer it is most likely to be referenced to sea level and you will need to compensate it for the 500m elevation by using a barometric formula to calculate corrected pressure for elevation.
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Related Help Guides
- Difference between vented and non-vented water level measurement
- Atmospheric pressure compensation for hydrostatic level sensors
- Using absolute pressure sensors to measure hydrostatic level
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Related Technical Terms
- at – Technical Atmosphere Pressure Unit
- atm – Standard Atmosphere Pressure Unit
- inHg – Inches of Mercury at 0 degrees C Pressure Unit
- MSL – Mean Sea Level
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- Gauge + Barometric to Absolute Pressure Calculator
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- US Standard Atmosphere Altitude and Pressure Calculator
- ICAO Standard Atmosphere Altitude and Pressure Calculator
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