drukniveau

Drukniveau is a Dutch term that translates to pressure level. It is used to describe the magnitude of pressure within a closed or open system or in the surrounding environment. Pressure can be categorized as absolute, gauge, or differential. Absolute pressure is measured relative to a perfect vacuum; gauge pressure is measured relative to ambient atmospheric pressure; differential pressure is the difference between two pressures. Common units are pascal (Pa), kilopascal (kPa), bar and atmosphere (atm). Standard sea-level atmospheric pressure is about 1013 hPa (101.3 kPa, 1.013 bar).

Measurement and instrumentation: Pressure is measured with devices such as barometers and manometers for basic use, and with electronic pressure sensors (piezoresistive, capacitive, or optical transducers) in modern systems. Bourdon tubes and diaphragms convert pressure into mechanical movement or signals. In process control, pressure readings are used in feedback loops to maintain a prescribed drukniveau, with safety devices like relief valves to prevent overpressure or vacuum.

Applications and significance: Drukniveau is important in meteorology for forecasting, in chemical and oil and gas industries to maintain product quality and process safety, in HVAC systems, water and wastewater infrastructure, pneumatics and hydraulics, and aviation instrumentation. The choice between absolute and gauge pressure depends on the measurement context, since some applications require a true vacuum reference while others rely on the ambient reference. Understanding drukniveau helps engineers design control systems, ensure safety, and interpret atmospheric data.