The design and performance of an ultrasonic acoustic proof hydrometer

Key Points

• The aim is to develop a device that measures temperature and sound speed to quantify ethanol in water mixtures.
• Designed a hydrometer using ultrasonic technology to measure temperature and speed of sound simultaneously.
• Utilized a time-of-flight technique to calculate percent ethanol based on sound speed.
• Tested the device with mixtures containing at least 40% ethanol to validate measurements.
• Demonstrated that speed of sound varies linearly with percent ethanol in ethanol/water mixtures.
• Confirmed precision and resolution of the device through data collected during testing.
• Provided evidence that temperature shifts affect the y-intercept of sound speed measurements.