Thermal Conductivity Detector for Gas Mixtures Having at Least Three Components

A gas analyzer for a gas mixture with at least three components, comprising:

• a channel guiding the gas mixture;
• a thermoelement probe having a measuring point in an interior of the channel and a cold junction in thermal contact with a wall of the channel;
• a control device configured to induce pulsed activation of the thermoelement probe via current pulses;
• a measuring device configured to measure a voltage at the cold junction of the thermoelement probe in pauses between the current pulses;
• and
• an evaluation device configured to determine a temperature difference between the measuring point and the cold junction from the measured voltage and configured to calculate a ratio of the at least three components of the gas mixture from temperature difference values determined in each pause at at least two different time instants;
• wherein the control device is further configured to generate current pulses with at least two different energy contents;
• and
• wherein the evaluation device is further configured to capture a higher temperature difference value in a pause after a current pulse with a higher energy content at a first time instant of the at least two different time instants and configured to utilize the captured higher temperature difference value for a calculation than after a current pulse with a lower energy content.