Since the IRt/c sensor elements are positioned in a non-contact mode, outside of the heated area, and kept at a low temperature, the entire temperature sensing system can be designed to survive for a much, much longer period of time than conventional thermocouples or RTD’s. The only part requiring maintenance is the thermowell itself, an inexpensive and easily replaced part. Users enjoy savings because there are no replacement thermocouple parts, no replacement labor, and no production losses from downtime for sensor replacement.

Even worse than sensor failure is a sensor that reads incorrectly, feeding inconsistent or inaccurate information to your control systems. Sensor stability and drift can be significant problems with standard thermocouples when measuring high temperatures, due to chemical and metallurgical changes that long exposure to high temperatures causes. The IRt/c, however, is essentially immune to those effects, since the sensor remains at a low temperature – far below that of the contact device, and below the levels which are the major sources of drift.

With its 0.1 to 0.2 second response time, the IRt/c is far faster than any conventional thermocouple or RTD placed inside a well. Accordingly, for all practical purposes, the temperature measurement speed is the same as that of the well itself.