David wrote:
So please how best to proceed from here?
The Fluke 732A is by far the most accurate and most stable voltage reference you have. There are only a few cal labs worldwide that can calibrate it to an uncertainty that does it justice (1/10 ppm). Most good to excellent cal labs have 10v DC uncertainties from 1-10 ppm.
SO: First, have the 732A calibrated by one of those few labs. I strongly favor the Fluke US cal facility (Fluke Park Laboratory, Everett, WA, USA, NVLAP Lab Code 105016-0), with an accredited DC calibration uncertainty of 100nV at 10v. However, it may be an issue getting it back to you still under power from there (IIRC, you are in the UK). I maintain three 732As and calibrate each one annually on a rotating schedule, one every 4 months. I built a shipping container with internal batteries that will keep the 732A powered for three days, if necessary, and an internal charger so all Fluke has to do is plug the shipping container in to recharge them.
If the choice comes down to a lab that can calibrate the 732A with full accuracy (1/10 ppm), but it will arrive back to you "cold," and a lab that cannot calibrate it to that standard in the first place, I'd choose the former. In my experience, 732As generally retrace within 0.25 ppm if re-powered within a few days. IOW, I recommend the Fluke US cal lab unless you have a trustworthy cal lab with 1/10 ppm uncertainty local to you. (But although experience suggests that you can rely on the re-powered standard to be within 0.25 ppm of the calibrated value, you will have lost NIST traceability.)
So whatever you do, have the 732A calibrated *properly* before you do anything else.
Also, put the 732A on its own dedicated 2-3 kW "online"-type UPS. If the UPS runs nothing but the 732A, it should carry you through all but the longest power outages. Adding external batteries is a good plan (industrial "online" UPSs support this). I have a backup generator, but even so my UPS system will run the 732As, my primary frequency references, and transfer DMM for more than a week if necessary.
Note that "calibrating" the 10v output of a 732A generally does not involve adjusting it. Rather, the cal lab will tell you its actual voltage to 1/10 ppm, and you will calculate from that value when you use it. I usually have a new-to-me standard adjusted the first time I have it calibrated, unless I obtained it with its full calibration history from an unimpeachable source. I obtained two of my 732As this way, one I repaired. I had that one adjusted at its first two calibrations.
Finally, note that proper calibration of a 732A is not cheap. Mine are on a calibration contract, and I still pay over $1000 (plus overnight shipping two ways on 40+ pounds). That said, the real value of a 732A is its calibration history. Without a proper calibration and the calibration history, it is just another voltage reference that needs characterization before it can be relied on.
Best regards, Charles _______________________________________________ volt-nuts mailing list -- volt-nuts@febo.com To unsubscribe, go to https://www.febo.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/volt-nuts and follow the instructions there.
