Electronic Temperature Controlled Relay

This temperature controlled relay circuit is a simple yet highly accurate thermal control circuit which can be used in applications where automatic temperature control is needed. The circuit switches a miniature relay ON or OFF according to the temperature detected by the single chip temperature sensor LM35DZ.

When the LM35DZ detects a temperature higher than the preset level (set by VR1), the relay is actuated. When the temperature falls below the preset temperature, relay is de-energized. The circuit can be powered by any DC 12V supply or battery (100mA min.)

Electronic Temperature-Controlled Relay Schematic

How it works?
The heart of the circuit is the LM35DZ temperature sensor which is factory-calibrated in the Celsius (or Centigrade) scale with a linear Degree->Volt conversion function. The output voltage (at pin 2) changes linearly with temperature from 0V (0oC) to 1000mV (100oC).

The preset (VR1) & resistor (R3) from a variable voltage divider which sets a reference voltage (Vref) form 0V ~ 1.62V. The op-amp (A2) buffers the reference voltage so as to avoid loading the divider network (VR1 & R3). The comparator (A1) compares the reference voltage Vref (set by VR1) with the output voltage of LM35DZ and decides whether to energize or de-energize the relay (LED1 ON or OFF respectively).

Components list:

IC1 : LM35DZ
IC2 : TL431
IC3 : LM358

LED1 – 3mm or 5mm LED

Q1 – General purpose PNP transistor ( A1015,…) with E-C-B pin-out)
D1, D2 — 1N4148
D3, D4 — 1N400x (x=2,,,,.7)

ZD1 — Zener diode, 13V, 400mW

Preset (trim pot) : 2.2K (Temperature set point)
R1 – 10K
R2 – 4.7M
R3 – 1.2K
R4 – 1K
R5 – 1K
R6 – 33Ω

C1 – 0.1 µF ceramic or mylar cap
C2 – 470 µF or 680 µF electrolytic cap. (16V min)
Miniature relay – DC12V DPDT, Coil = 400 Ω or higher