SENSOR FOR DETECTING BUBBLES IN A LIQUID FLOWING THROUGH A FLOW PATH

摘要

The invention relates to a sensor (102, 202, 402, 502) for detecting bubbles in gas phase present in a liquid (208, 408, 527) flowing through a flow path (204, 406, 508). The sensor comprises a heating element (106, 210) for heating the liquid, which heating element is provided with a predetermined level of power at least during detecting, and a transducer arrangement (108, 112, 212) arranged for generating a measurement signal (114) indicative for the temperature of the heating element. The sensor furthermore comprises a comparator arrangement (116) for comparing a measurement value of the measurement signal with a predetermined threshold level, which predetermined threshold level corresponds to a reference temperature attainable by the heating element in response to said predetermined level of power and a minimum velocity attainable by the liquid in the flow path. Based on the latter comparison, the comparator arrangement generates an output signal (118) indicative for a possible presence of bubbles in gas phase.