Hey, Please Protect Your Strain Gage Sensor

Summary

In this video by Micro-Measurements VPG, viewers are introduced to various environmental protections for strain gauge sensors, essential for ensuring their longevity and effectiveness. The discussion covers different types of coatings and barriers, such as polyurethane, acrylic, and neoprene, each suited to specific conditions such as laboratory, outdoor, or high-temperature environments. Highlights include the use of M Coat, a polyurethane that cures with air moisture, and W1 Wax, noted for its excellent vapor barrier properties. These protective measures are crucial for maintaining sensor accuracy and durability across diverse applications.

Highlights

• Discover how M Coat provides laboratory-grade protection and cures with air moisture! 💨
• Learn about different coatings that resist wear and tear in harsh conditions like a pro! 💪
• Get insights into neoprene and butyl rubber combinations that save your sensors' lives! 🔧
• Hear about the amazing W1 Wax, the superhero of vapor barriers! 🦸‍♂️
• Explore our collection of protective solutions tailored to your specific needs! 🧰

Key Takeaways

• M Coat is a polyurethane material ideal for short-term exposure. 🌧️
• M Coat C offers high-temperature endurance, up to 500°F. 🌡️
• W1 Wax serves as a top-tier vapor barrier. 🚫💧
• Butyl rubber provides immediate protection and cures quickly. ⏱️
• The video showcases protective solutions for various conditions, from labs to severe outdoor environments. 🏭

Overview

In today’s video from Micro-Measurements VPG, we dive into the fascinating world of strain gauge sensors and the essential protective measures needed to keep them functioning optimally. With detailed explanations and demonstrations, the video introduces us to a variety of coatings and barriers, each designed to serve specific environmental needs. Whether it's polyurethane for lab conditions or butyl rubber for rapid application, every option is covered with its own set of strengths and applications.

Viewers will learn about how these protective measures can be layered and combined to enhance their efficiency. For example, pairing M Coat B with a butyl rubber sheet can significantly bolster a sensor's defenses against moisture, while RTV coatings modified for temperature extremes assure long-lasting resilience under challenging conditions. This attention to detail ensures that regardless of where your sensors are deployed, they remain shielded from potentially damaging elements.

The array of products presented not only strengthens sensor longevity but also maintains their precision and reliability. With options ranging from simple acrylic coatings to more complex epoxy systems filled with fiberglass for mechanical support, it's clear that every environmental protection strategy has been thoughtfully formulated. The video underscores the importance of selecting the right environmental protection based on specific conditions, thus guaranteeing that sensors are ready to face any environmental challenge thrown their way.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 00:30: Introduction to Environmental Protections The chapter provides an overview of various environmental protection measures used in conjunction with stress analysis gauges and transducers. It highlights two specific substances: M Cote, a polyurethane material that cures with air moisture and offers good protection for laboratory and short-term outdoor conditions, and M Coat C, an RTV based on Dow Corning's 31:40, which has been thinned with naphtha.
• 00:30 - 01:00: M Cote and M coat C Description The chapter 'M Cote and M coat C Description' discusses thin coatings capable of withstanding high temperatures up to 500°F, used for environmental protection and reinforcement. It highlights the use of M code B, a nitrile rubber material, as an effective vapor barrier. The chapter also mentions that RTVs use ambient moisture for curing, and covering them with M code B enhances the barrier properties. Finally, M Cody is briefly mentioned as an acrylic material.
• 01:00 - 01:30: M Code B and Acrylic Description The chapter titled 'M Code B and Acrylic Description' discusses materials commonly used in laboratory conditions or for short-term external exposure. The material is preferred for its white color, indicating completion of a strain gauge installation when no brown remains visible. Additionally, the 'M code F' system is described, which includes layers of aluminum foil tape, neoprene rubber, and butyl rubber for environmental moisture protection.
• 01:30 - 02:00: System with M code F Description The chapter titled "System with M code F Description" discusses materials and techniques for mechanical protection and environmental sealing in outdoor applications, such as transmission towers. The process includes applying fa2 aluminum foil tape and enhancing it with M coat around the edges to seal it effectively. This method is particularly useful when immediate environmental protection is required, as the butyl rubber used cures in a few hours, ensuring readiness for use. The chapter also briefly mentions a material termed as FD T.
• 02:00 - 02:30: FD T Material Description This chapter discusses a material called thin butyl rubber, which is compared to toothpaste in consistency and is applied with a spatula. It's noted for being an excellent vapor barrier, favoring transducer manufacturers, but providing minimal reinforcement meaning it won't alter the characteristics of high precision load cells. The material tends to collect dirt, which is a consideration for its application.
• 02:30 - 03:00: Polysulfides Epoxy Material This chapter discusses a two-part polysulfide epoxy material known as M Coat JA. Originally developed for sealing jet fuel tanks, it is also utilized for protecting gauges by providing environmental protection. The material is compared to having the hardness of a hard street tire, being flexible yet serving as an excellent vapor barrier. A notable drawback is its poor resistance to ground for the first 30 days.
• 03:00 - 03:30: W1 Wax Description W1 Wax is described as the best vapor barrier, made from micro crystalline wax. It serves as a reference point when testing new environmental protections. If a new product is nearly half as effective as W1 Wax, it is considered a good environmental protection. However, a drawback of W1 Wax is that it's easily damaged mechanically, such as being punctured by a fingernail.
• 03:30 - 04:00: 31 40 and 31 45 Description Chapter 31 40 and 31 45 Description provides an overview of the characteristics of Dow Corning products 31 40 and 31 45. Both materials exhibit high temperature resistance and flexibility; however, 31 40 is self-leveling and liquid-like, while 31 45 contains a filler, allowing it to be applied on vertical surfaces.
• 04:00 - 04:30: AE Ten and AE Fifteen Description This chapter discusses the unique characteristics and applications of two adhesive systems, AE Ten and AE Fifteen. The AE Ten adhesive is notable for its ability to act as an environmental protective layer, although it darkens over time due to moisture absorption. A demonstration that has lasted for over 30 years shows the adhesive's long-lasting properties. Meanwhile, AE Fifteen requires an elevated temperature cure and is closely related to AE Ten. The passage highlights the longevity and durability of these adhesive systems.
• 04:30 - 05:00: 43B and Its Applications The chapter discusses the adhesive system 43B, which is an epoxy phenolic adhesive with a filler, including colloidal clay. This system is primarily used in deep cryogenic applications due to its ability to provide thin environmental protection without cracking at extremely low temperatures.
• 05:00 - 05:30: GA 61 and Its Usage in Automobile The chapter discusses GA 61, an elevated temperature curing epoxy used in the automotive industry. It includes fiberglass cloth to stabilize it during the curing process as it expands at about 50 parts per million. Without the cloth, it would fracture upon cooling similar to dried mud cracking. This material is favored by automobile manufacturers for use inside engine parts like the crankcase.
• 05:30 - 06:00: Conclusion and Additional Resources The final chapter focuses on material compatibility, specifically the resistance of certain substances to gear oils, gasoline, glycol, and similar. It also touches on the reinforcement effects of glass cloth, noting that while it increases stiffness, it is unsuitable for use on thin sections or low modulus materials. Additionally, it directs the reader to catalogs for further details and specifications regarding various Environmental Protections available.

Hey, Please Protect Your Strain Gage Sensor Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 okay this is just a demonstration panel of a number of our environmental protections that you might use when using general-purpose stress analysis gauges and/or transducers the first one here is M Cote that's a polyurethane material it cures with the moisture in the air and forms a fairly good environmental protection for laboratory conditions and short-term exposure outside the second one is M coat C this is an RTV it's basically 31:40 by Dow Corning that we've thinned with naphtha
• 00:30 - 01:00 to make it so you can make very thin coatings it's capable of high-temperature up to five hundred degrees Fahrenheit and it's the lowest reinforcing or environmental protection we offer now if you look carefully you'll see there's M code B over half of it a lot of times you'll use the M code B the nitrile rubber material as a vapor barrier the our TV's use moisture in the air to cure them and so they will absorb moisture with times so having the M code B over the top of it makes it a better vapor barrier I'm Cody it's an acrylic
• 01:00 - 01:30 material typically used for laboratory conditions and or short-term exposure outside I like it because it's white and when you've finished a strain gauge installation you know for sure if it's still brown it's not finished if it's white you're done the next one is a system this is M code F underneath this aluminum foil tape there's some neoprene rubber and underneath that there's a butyl rubber sheet and that butyl rubber sheet is the environmental protection for moisture then the neoprene rubber is
• 01:30 - 02:00 for mechanical protection and then finally you put the fa2 aluminum foil tape over top of it and finally enhance that with the M coat be around the edges to seal it up this material is good for outdoor applications like transmission towers and things that are going to be out there for a while and you need to have the environmental protection be immediately working when you finish the butyl rubber in here tends to cure in a couple of hours and be ready for use immediately the one next to it is FD T
• 02:00 - 02:30 now this material if you can hear it's still sticky this material is a the thin butyl rubber it comes in a tooth payable the consistency of toothpaste in a tube and you take a spatula and you smear it out this is a favor to the transducer manufacturers because it's a very good vapor barrier but our offers almost zero reinforcement so it's not going to change the characteristics of your high precision load cell however it does collect dirt so you typically would put
• 02:30 - 03:00 it in a load cell with a can the next one is a two-part polysulfides poxy material it's our M coat J a it was originally designed for sealing jet fuel tanks but they've we used it for protecting them gauges for environmental protection it forms a durometer of a hard street tire it's still flexible but it's an excellent vapor barrier the one drawback is its resistance to ground characteristics are poor for the first 30 days so you want might want to be
• 03:00 - 03:30 sure and understand the instability that might occur then the next one is W on wax W one wax is our very best vapor barrier it's a micro crystalline wax and we use it as a reference when we're checking out new environmental protections use the W one wax as the reference and then use the Tet the questionable environmental protection with it if it's nearly half as good as W one wax it's a pretty good environmental protection the one drawback to the wax is it's very easily mechanically you can stick your finger nail through it and it
• 03:30 - 04:00 melts at 150 degrees Fahrenheit so if you had to have a hot temperature test it's not gonna last remembering the M coat see this is the 31 40 that it's originally made from it's a Dow Corning product that is self levelling it's it's a liquid material almost the next one beside it is 31 45 these two have essentially the same characteristics in terms of high temperature resistance and flexibility but the 31 45 has a filler in it so you can put it onto a vertical surface if
• 04:00 - 04:30 you put the 31 40 on a vertical surface it would run off it's unusual but we do have environmental protections that are actually adhesive systems also this is AE ten it can be used as an environmental protection you'll notice that it's quite dark over time it does absorb moisture and that's the color turning darker this particular demonstration is over 30 years old so that's why it's a little dark it's sister adhesive a e15 requires an elevated temperature cure but you can see from the fact that it's a little
• 04:30 - 05:00 less dark it absorbs moisture it's more slowly the next one is 43b this isn't an epoxy phenolic adhesive system that has a filler in it a little bit of colloidal clay and this is used typically in deep cryogenic applications where you have a deep cryogenic test you want to have a fairly thin environmental protection that's not going to disrupt or crack when you go to those temperatures last one is our GA 61 and you can't really tell it well from this picture but it
• 05:00 - 05:30 has fiberglass cloth inside of it to stabilize it the reason for that is this is an elevated temperature curing epoxy and as it cures curing it expands at about 50 parts per million and as it cooled off if you didn't have the fiberglass cloth in there would fracture similar to what like a mud puddle when it's drying up in the summer and you see the clay on the bottom of fracture into little plates the same thing would occur here this is the favorite of the automobile manufacturers inside the head of an engine the crankcase the
• 05:30 - 06:00 transmission the differential its resists gear oils and gasoline and glycol and those things the one negative is reinforcement because it's so the power glass cloth tends to make it stiffer you wouldn't want to use it on a thin section or a low modulus material now this is just a short distance um of our Environmental Protection's we have others that are in our catalogs and you can go there for the specifications you pick the Environmental Protection based
• 06:00 - 06:30 on the environment you're going to expose it to going all the way from air condition room temperature to in the inside of an engine or differential exposed to high temperature water and/or grease there's our environmental protections