Portable Conductivity Simulator

Portable Conductivity Simulator Available, Certified To National Standards

The ACS1 portable Conductivity simulator is designed for the electrical calibration of Conductivity Instruments using precision electronics, corresponding to the ideal signal from a conductivity cell.

The ACS1 is supplied with tagged connections so that it can be easily connected to the input of a two wire conductivity cell. We do not recommend using a conductivity simulater for the calibration of Toroidal or Inductive Conductivity Cells.  These should be calibrated using a Conductivity Calibration solution of known value.

When the instrument is powered up, a conductivity value can be replicated by the conductivity simulator and displayed on the conductivity instrument. This is ideal if a process is conductivity controlled as it allows the control equipment to be tested and any faults to be found.

Using a conductivity simulator like the ACS1 is an excellent way of testing the serviceability of the instrument as well as the cell connections.  It can also be used to test the wiring within a conductivity system itself.  

The ACS1 is a precision instrument like all the devices within our AWE Instruments range. As such, it can be traceably calibrated and certified to national standards. When ordering the ACS1 portable Redox simulator, just ask for a certificate, tracing the instrument serial number to a UK government agency certificate number. This provides the assurance of an external auditing agency for instruments to become certified devices.

Portable Conductivity Simulator Operation

The ACS1 is designed to be simple to operate in the field, laboratory or during testing of control equipment, with a potentiometer for adjusting the simulated value and a zero toggle switch to allow for zeroing down the instrument.

For use with a standard 2 wire conductivity cell, the simulator simply connects to the back of the instrument. For devices using a conductivity cell with temperature compensation, it's important to ensure that the temperature is set to the base temperature of the instrument, (normally 20°C or 25°C). This is achieved either within the instrument software or by using a suitable resistor, (normally a PT100 / 10KΩ sensor), across the temperature input of the instrument. (Please let the sales office know if you require any assistance.)

• Prior to connecting the conductivity simulator to an instrument, or using the zero toggle switchof the conductivity simulator, check that the instrument is reading a conductivity value of zero. At this stage we can change the zero setting on the instrument to reflect zero, if it does not already indicate this value. 
• When the conductivity simulator is connected to the instrument, by simply turning the position of the potentiometer, the conductivity value should change. The change in the conductivity value should be broadly reflected on the instrument display.  Any minor discrepancies between the simulated conductivity value and the instrument value can be disregarded initially. 
• We recommend finding a point on the conductivity simulator which reflects either 50% or 100% of the measuring range of the nstrument.  Then adjust the span setting to reflect the simulated value.
• When the zero point and span settings have been set, check across the measured range to ensure that the instrument is now accurately reflecting the value indicated on the conductivity simulator. 

Portable Conductivity Simulator and Cell Constants

Please note that the simulated conductivity values from the ACS1 portable conductivity simulator reflect a conductivity cell with a constant of K=1.0

When simulating conductivity cells with a different cell constant, multiply the conductivity value by the cell constant. So for instance, with the IN2-100 with a cell constant K=10.0, when a simulated value of 5000µS is on the conductivity instrument, the reflected value should be 50'000µS (50.00mS) - 5000µS x K=10.0 =  50'000µS.

For clean water probes like the PSE-01 with a cell constant of K=0.1 when a value of 5000µS is selected, the reflected value on the instrument should be 500µS - 5000µS x K=0.1 = 500µS.

Portable Conductivity Simulator Features and Benefits

The ACS1 Portable Conductivity simulator is an exceptionally useful time saving instrument for calibrating and testing conductivity instruments.

If control equipment is being called for from a Conductivity Controller then by simply simulating the corresponding conductivity value, it's easy to ensure that a pump or solenoid valve is receiving the correct signal. When commissioning new equipment, the ACS1 is excellent for isolating any errors that might occur.  Simulating the conductivity value can help diagnose whether the fault lies with the conductivity cell, the connecting cable, or the instrument itself.

For process, water treatment and effluent engineers, the device can be used to test existing instrumentation to ensure  that it is acting in the desired manner. Simply remove the existing process conductivity sensor and connect the simulator so that the device is able to run through a calibration procedure, when given the corresponding conductivity values (Each instrument should have the conductivity calibration procedure listed within the supplied documentation.)

For system builders, working with control panels or PLC's, the ACS1 conductivity simulator is a great time saving device. Where a complex system is inoperation, based on a number of conditions, the conductivity value can be simulated to ensure the device is working as intended.