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Can I
use permeability or hydraulic conductivity data to derive a void structure?
No. Permeability
or hydraulic conductivity is too sensitive to too many features of the void structure,
so 'inversion' of that property is not possible. Also, a single permeability or
hydraulic conductivity reading contains too little information. (A single measurement
from the mercury intrusion curve (e.g. the characteristic throat diameter) also
provides too little information, which is why Pore-Cor uses the shape of the entire
curve.) Can
Pore-Cor RS read data files direct from my porosimeter? Yes.
Pore-Cor reads data direct from Micromeritics Autopore, Thermo Electron (Carlo
Erba) Pascal, and Quantachrome porosimeters. For further details on file formats,
see 'Experimental Data requirements' in the Help system on the Pore-Cor CD, which
can also be downloaded from this site.
Why
do I need Pore-Cor when I already have the new Micromeritics porosimeter software?
The Micromeritics software
uses an implicit assumption that the porous solid comprises unconnected aligned
cylinders, as in the 'Not this' diagram which
opens the website. If your sample is like that, then use the Micromeritics software.
If it is more like the 'But this' diagram, i.e.
a 3-D interconnected network of voids and narrower connections, then Pore-Cor
will give you more information. The
Micromeritics software calculates fractal dimensions, whereas Pore-Cor does not.
Why not?First
you need to read the previous answer. Then the answer to this is that whereas
a fractal dimension can be calculated based on the aligned cylinders model, it
is very much more difficult for a 3-D interconnected network, and we have not
done it yet. Can
I use Pore-Cor Research Suite for quality assurance purposes?
Yes.
Imagine a box bounded by acceptable upper and lower limits of two experimental
parameters. The box is two-dimensional for 2 parameters, but for more parameters
becomes a cuboid, and so on. If your product's properties fall within the box,
then it is acceptable for sale. Pore-Cor allows you to use more and/or better
parameters to define the box. For example, you could replace characteristics throat
diameter, which is based on the 50% intrusion point, with simulated permeability,
which may be much closer to a required experimental property. We have done this
for tantalum capacitors made from sintered tantalum corals - the efficiency of
the final capacitors correlated closely with Pore-Cor simulated permeability.
A case study with more detail will be produced about this. While
working with Pore-Cor program, an error occurred with a data file. Error message
was like 'second data is lower than first data'. The
software will not accept intrusion curves for which the intrusion volume goes
down with increasing pressure. This sometimes happens if the user has not used
Pore-Comp to pre-process the data using an accurate blank run for the same penetrometer.
So under those circumstances, you must clean up the data file - i.e. remove the
values which go down instead of up. If you think your data file is OK, then it
may be that your regional settings are confusing the software - please go to step
8 of section 1.4 of the loading instructions.
Can
I model both mercury intrusion and extrusion, or both water retention and drainage
? No - unfortunately
Pore-Cor only fits itself to a mercury intrusion curve (or water retention curve).
We have not managed to fit both intrusion and extrusion together yet (or water
retention followed by drainage). However, you can see a simulation of extrusion
by clicking on the 'Secondary Imbibition..' button on the output options screen.
It gives you different simulations depending on the snap-off ratio and contact
angle hysteresis dialled in.
I find the buttons and text very difficult to read.
| Change the overall colour scheme using the drop-down menu at the top left of the opening screen, as shown on the right . |
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The
Pore-Cor program did not get a value of porosity from Micromeritics *.rpt file.
I read it from a report and wrote it in the data input screen. Is this valid operation? Yes
- for Micromeritics format files the software does not read the porosity directly,
so must be input manually. However, if the intrusion files and the blank are processed
first using Pore-Comp, the correct porosity is calculated. Then if the output
from Pore-Comp is used as the input to Pore-Cor, the correct porosity is displayed.
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