Patent ID: 8664965

Claim:
Method for measuring the dielectric permittivity and the electrical conductivity of a fluid comprising the step of alternately connecting a first measurement circuit for measuring said dielectric permittivity and a distinct second measurement circuit for measuring said electrical conductivity to an electrode pair facing each other on opposite sides of a volume for containing said fluid, so as to be placed in electrical contact with said fluid, wherein each said electrode comprises at least two separate sectors, wherein each said sector is suited to establish an electrical contact with said fluid separately from the other sector, and wherein at least one of said electrical conductivity measurements includes the following steps, which are carried out simultaneously: injecting a current through first corresponding sectors of said electrodes; measuring the voltage between the other sectors of said electrodes; and determining said electrical conductivity as a function of the ratio between said injected current and said measured voltage wherein, when said electrodes are connected to said dielectric permittivity measurement circuit, the sectors of each electrode are connected to one another wherein a sector of each one of said electrodes comprises at least two separate zones in electrical contact with said fluid, said method comprising at least a first measurement phase including a sequence of measurements of the same electric property chosen between permittivity and conductivity, wherein said sequence comprises a measurement between a first pair of corresponding zones on the two electrodes and at least a subsequent measurement between a second pair of said corresponding zones.