File: Multi-point Thermistor to Band-Gap (Digital) Sensor Comparison in Arctic Geotech Application
In cold regions, ground temperature measurements are essential for engineering design and monitoring of capital projects throughout their life. Ground temperatures indicate the presence of permafrost and the depth of the seasonal active layer in permafrost and non-permafrost locations. Extrapolation of ground temperature data from one area to another is not advisable due to variations in local air temperatures, snow cover, vegetation, drainage, topography, and soil properties (Smith, 1996). Actual site measurements of ground temperatures are essential to determine the parameters for engineering design of foundations and buried utilities. Monitoring of ground temperatures once a project is constructed is advisable to determine if any changes occur to the thermal regime over the project’s life. Monitoring also allows early detection of any changes that occur outside of the design parameters so that retrofits can be installed to salvage the project before early failure.
Recently, the introduction of bandgap-based digital temperature sensors have simplified the acquisition of ground temperature measurements. The use of microprocessors to acquire and store the data from the sensors reduces the chance of human induced error during data acquisition. The potential for inexpensive and energy efficient digital data loggers that this technology facilitates also allows for long term measurements in remote locations.
