Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry Techniques Research Articles

Functional nanocellulose hydrogel with amino acid integration for enhanced Li/Fe separation in LiFePO4 batteries.

With the rising prevalence of lithium-ion batteries, efficient recovery of metal ions, particularly those potentially released from LiFePO4 anodes, has become critical. Given that both Fe3+ and Li+ ions can form electrostatic adsorptive interactions, achieving effective separation of conventional adsorbent materials becomes challenging. This study presents an amino acid-functionalized nanocellulose hydrogel (ANH) synthesized by incorporating L-threonine, which significantly enhances the selective adsorption of Fe3+ in a mixed-ion environment by leveraging coordination differences between Li+ and Fe3+. The morphology, functional groups, and pore structure of ANH were extensively characterized using scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and mercury intrusion porosimetry techniques. Through batch experiments, the adsorption thermodynamics and isotherms of ANH for Fe3+ were examined. Furthermore, the adsorption selectivity of ANH for Li+ and Fe3+ was evaluated in a mixed-ion system, revealing that the adsorption capacity for Fe3+ was four times higher than for Li+ at elevated concentrations. The adsorption mechanism of Li+/Fe3+ was elucidated through multi-scale simulations, and the influence of varying amino acid grafting degree on adsorption metrics, such as solvent-accessible area and hydrogen bonding numbers, was investigated. The combination of experimental and theoretical results demonstrates the potential of ANH to inform the development of high-performance, selective adsorbents.

Influence of fiber type on the mechanical performance and fracture mechanism of fiber reinforced concrete under coupled static-dynamic compression

As a high-performance building material, fiber-reinforced concrete (FRC) has attracted garnered significant interest in practical engineering construction. However, the effect of coupled static-dynamic loading on the dynamic response of FRC remains far from understood, which seriously limits its wide application. In this study, a series of coupled static-dynamic loading tests are conducted on four types of FRC specimens using the modified split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) system, and the influences of static pre-stress and strain rate on the mechanical performance of FRC under coupled static-dynamic loading are systematically analyzed. The experimental results indicate that static pre-stress generally reduces the dynamic strength and energy dissipation density, but increases the total strength and fragmentation degree of FRC. As the pre-stress ratio increases from 0 to 0.6, the dynamic strength of FRC decreases ranging from 12 to 25 %, and the total strength increases ranging from 12 to 34 %. The failure features of FRC specimens changes from tensile failure mechanism to tensile-shear mixed mechanism with increasing the static pre-stress. Combining the scanning electron microscope (SEM) and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) techniques, the microscopic structure and fracture mechanisms of FRC specimens are revealed, and the underlying influencing mechanisms of the static pre-stress, strain rate and fibers are further discussed. The axial pre-stress exerts a dual effect on FRC: enhancement by compacting primary voids as well as attenuation by stimulating secondary microcracks. The strain rate dominates the mechanical performance of FRC under coupled static-dynamic loading, and the influence of pre-stress is diminished by higher strain rates. In addition, the fiber incorporation strengthens the concrete pore structure by bridging action and crack inhibition, resulting in superior mechanical performance compared to normal concrete under coupled static-dynamic loading conditions.

Investigation of macro-micro mechanical behaviors and failure mechanisms in cemented tailings backfill with varying proportions of fine

This study investigates the impact of tailings characteristics, particularly fine tailings, on the efficiency and effectiveness of mining engineering backfill operations. Contrary to the common underestimation, fine tailings significantly affect the mechanical properties and failure mechanisms of Cemented Tailings Backfill (CTB). Through a series of experiments examining various particle size distributions and employing advanced Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry (MIP) techniques, this research clarifies the role of fine tailings in modifying the mechanical strength and failure patterns of CTB. Adding 20 % fine tailings optimally enhances both the early and long-term strength of backfill materials. With aging, adding 30 % fine tailings shows a rapid strength increase from 7d to 28d, with the 28d strength slightly lower than that of specimens with 20 % addition, but the specimens demonstrate better ductility after reaching peak strength. As the content of fine tailings increases, crack propagation in the specimens shifts from radial to axial, simplifying the fracture mode from complex to singular. Consequently, the fracture mechanism changes from ductile to brittle, and then reverts to ductile. Moreover, using particle flow simulation and moment tensor analysis to study the failure processes indicates that while increased fine particle content boosts the material's initial strength, it ultimately leads to a simpler crack network and volumetric expansion as the primary failure mode. In terms of energy conversion mechanisms, as the content of fine particles increases, the energy first increases and then decreases. During the elastic stage and the early stage of the plastic stage, the energy is mainly converted into strain energy and PB bonding energy, which affects the elasticity of the sample. In the later stage of the plastic phase, the energy is mainly converted into dissipated energy, leading to the failure of the sample.

Study on the effect of rubber content on the frost resistance of steel fiber reinforced rubber concrete

In cold areas, the steel fiber reinforced rubber concrete (SFRRC) pavement is exposed to natural environment and experiences varying degrees of damage from freezing and thawing. This can have a serious impact on the normal usage and safe operation of the pavement structure. This research examines the impact of varying rubber concentrations on multiple variables, such as the rate of mass reduction, relative dynamic modulus of elasticity, compressive strength, and thickness of the damage layer (Hf) during freeze–thaw (F-T) durability testing conducted on SFRRC. Furthermore, an analysis is conducted to determine the degradation pattern exhibited by SFRRC. The internal structure evolution and pore structure characteristics of SFRRC were examined using scanning electron microscopy and mercury intrusion porosimetry techniques, which revealed the underlying damage mechanism in SFRRC during F-T cycles. The results suggest that the addition of an appropriate amount of rubber can effectively enhance the frost resistance of SFRRC in water. A gradual improvement in the frost resistance of SFRRC is observed when increasing the rubber content from 0 to 10%. The optimal frost resistance is observed in SFRRC with 10% rubber content. However, when the rubber content reaches 15%, SFRRC exhibits significant degradation and lower level of resistance to freezing compared to SFRRC without rubber. Microcracks form within SFRRC due to the freezing–thawing forces experienced during the experiment, resulting in the development of a damage layer that extends from the surface to the interior. The compressive strength of the damaged layer significantly decreases as Hf increases. The addition of appropriate rubber in SFRRC improves its pore structure, leading to an increased proportion of harmless or less harmful pores and a reduction in average pore size, thereby significantly enhancing its frost resistance.

Three-dimensional pore network of kaolin using FIB-SEM imaging

The aim of this paper is to propose a new approach permitting the investigation of the 3D pore variation of kaolin K13 in relation with mechanical loading. A mechanical loading consisting of one-dimensional compression and oedometric loading is applied to a sample of centimeter scale. A postmortem protocol using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with Focused Ion Beam (FIB) was carried out to observe and then obtain a large number of slices of an extracted sub-volume from the small sample. Image analysis using a new processing method enabled the reconstruction of the observed and extracted sub-volume in the form of a rebuilt sub-volume. The segmentation of pores and particles was carried out using an approach based on machine learning and the pore space properties can be quantified. Pore morphology was identified based on two parameters namely the flatness and the elongation. Spatial orientation can also be locally determined. The proposed treatment enabled the distribution of pore size (termed Im_PSD) to be deduced and these were then compared with the results of Mercury intrusion porosimetry technique.

Investigation of the pore structure performance of dune sand mortar with ceramic waste

The use of construction waste in creating concrete and mortar is an important process that not only offers economic benefits but also helps protect the environment by reducing waste in rural and urban areas. This experimental study aims to investigate the effect of adding crushed ceramic waste (CCW) and crushed brick waste (CBW) on the bulk density, workability, compressive and flexural strengths, water absorption and microstructural properties of dune sand mortar. To determine changes in porosity, the study uses the mercury intrusion porosimetry technique to measure porosity and pore size distribution. Scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analyses are conducted to examine the microstructure and size of the voids using an electron microscope, and photographs of voids in the mortar matrix are taken. By replacing 15% of the sand with CCW and CBW, the compactness and mechanical strength of the dune sand mortar are enhanced, increasing the dynamic modulus of elasticity by around 29 and 26%, respectively. This is due to the pozzolanic activity of these residues, which mainly occur in the form of medium and small capillaries in all the mortars studied, reducing the diameter of the pores.

Early-age shrinkage behavior of cement-fly ash paste under wind speeds: A study using BSE-IA and MIP techniques

While laboratory studies have shown that fly ash (FA) can reduce shrinkage in cement-based materials in the absence of wind, its impact on cement-based materials under wind speed conditions has not been extensively studied. This research investigates the influence of FA on the early-age shrinkage of cement paste under various wind speeds. The corresponding changes in pore structure were tested using mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) and backscattered electron image analysis (BSE-IA). The results show that under wind speed conditions, FA is not effective in reducing early-age shrinkage of cement paste. In fact, high levels of FA content can increase shrinkage values under wind speed conditions. Both wind speed and FA increase water evaporation, but they have different impact times. Although both wind speed and FA decrease mesopore content below 50 nm and increase water evaporation, they have opposite effects on early-age shrinkage. This suggests that mesopore content and water evaporation alone cannot fully characterize the change trend of early drying shrinkage. The two-factor parameter rs, which combines water evaporation and MIP-based pore size distribution, can effectively characterize drying shrinkage trends under the combined effects of wind speed and FA. BSE-IA can intuitively characterize pore size distribution above 200 nm, while the results of MIP underestimate the distribution of large capillary pores. Therefore, the current rs obtained based on MIP may be smaller than the actual value. With the advancement of testing technology in the future, rs can be further optimized.

Evolution of nano-pores in illite-dominant clay during consolidation

AbstractIn this paper, the evolution of nanoscale pores, covering inter-particle pores and inter-layer pores, in illite-dominant clay during consolidation is monitored using small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and nitrogen gas adsorption (N2GA) techniques. No obvious change observed in the characteristic peaks of SAXS intensity curves during consolidation suggests that the intra-particle structure of the clay, including interlayer spacings, is not affected by mechanical loading, at least up to 4 MPa. The N2GA test results show that the volume of inter-particle pores inside the aggregates does decrease gradually as the compression proceeds, which is accompanied by a gradual reduction in specific surface area, probably due to the rearrangement of the particles composing the aggregates. The inter-particle pores are compressed as a whole during consolidation instead of the progressive collapse in an ordered manner, from the larger to the smaller. By comparing the pore-size distributions of illite-dominant clay obtained by MIP (mercury intrusion porosimetry) and N2GA techniques, it is found that the shapes of the two distributions in the common measurement range are obviously not matched, essentially due to the sequential nature of the drying and wetting processes. While filling the research gap in the evolution of intra-aggregate pores during consolidation, this study also shows that the N2GA technique and SAXS measurement used in conjunction with each other appear as a powerful approach for clay nano-pores identification.

Full-scale pore characteristics in coal and their influence on the adsorption capacity of coalbed methane.

Coalbed methane (CBM) is primarily stored and transported through the pores in the coal matrix, making it essential to study the development of different scales of pores in coal to better understand the evaluation and exploration of CBM. In this study, four coal samples of varying ranks (Ro,max = 0.68%-2.86%) were selected, and different scale pores were obtained through low-pressure CO2 and Ar adsorption (LP-CO2/ArGA) and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) experiments. A full-scale pore evaluation model was established, and the impact of pores on methane adsorption and restriction was analyzed and discussed through high-pressure adsorption experiments. Our results show that (1) at high pressures (> 100 MPa), the MIP technique caused pore compression and overestimated the pore size below 30 nm by up to 47.2%; (2) to obtain a comprehensive pore evaluation, we developed an accurate model that combines LP-CO2/ArGA with NLDFT and BJH and NLDFT models to determine micropore (0.3-1.5 nm) and mesopore (1.5-30 nm) parameters. By combining this model with MIP test results, we can obtain a full-scale pore size in the range of 0.3 nm-200 μm; (3) coal rank affected the development of full-scale pore characteristics. As coal rank increased, the specific surface area (SSA) of micropores and adsorption capacity of methane first decreased, then increased. Micropores were found to be the most important storage space for CBM and control gas adsorption, with a microporous SSA and PV to total SSA and total PV ratio of 97.93% and 63.69%, respectively. (4) We also observed a significant linear relationship between the fractal dimension of micropores and the Langmuir volume (VL) based on fractal theory. As the fractal dimension increased, VL also increased (R2 = 0.8581), indicating that VL is controlled by the complexity of micropores, which is consistent with the comprehensive evaluation index (Dt) and VL (R2 = 0.8744). Based on our predicted model, VL can be estimated using the SSA of micropores and Dt. Our findings shed light on the relationship between pore morphology and CBM occurrence and have practical implications for fields such as catalytic synthesis, E-CBM, and gas purification.

Solidification/stabilization treatment of Hong Kong marine deposits slurry at high water content by ISSA and GGBS

Soft soils have been adopted as a conventional fill material in land reclamation projects, which is quite promising in Hong Kong with a huge mass of dredged marine sediments produced per year. It is proposed to use Hong Kong marine deposits (HKMD) as fill material treated by stabilisation/solidification (S/S) technology with sustainable binding material. In this work, lime, incinerated sewage sludge ash (ISSA) and ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) were selected as the binding materials. The S/S performance of the binders on HKMD slurry was investigated. The results showed that the use of ISSA and GGBS as part of the binder is effective in promoting the strength of HKMD slurry with a high initial water content of 200%. The HKMD slurry treated by 30% binders (30% lime and 70% (ISSA + GGBS) with ISSA: GGBS = 3) gains strength, which became higher with increasing curing time. The results from X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermo-gravimetric (TG) analysis and scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectrometer (SEM-EDS) presented the formations of calcium (aluminium) silicate hydrate (C-(A)-S-H), Friedel’s salt, and ettringite, which are mainly responsible for the strength increase of treated HKMD with their phases filling into the pores, interlocking and reinforcing the particles in the mixture. The porosity of the treated HKMD in bulk and powder state was determined by mercury intrusion porosimetry technique (MIP) and nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherms (NAI), it is found that the bulk porosity of treated HKMD samples reduces with curing time due to the neoformations, especially the ettringite crystal by SEM results. This work indicates the potential application of lime-activated recycling wastes (i.e., ISSA and GGBS) for S/S treatment of HKMD slurry.

Investigation of Pore and Filling Material Bond in Filled Travertine Used as a Building Material

Pores, voids, and cracks reduce the strength and economic value of travertine and limits its use. When used as a building material, travertine is often filled to increase its strength and extend its service life. The present experimental study investigates the bond between the pore filler in cement-based filling materials and travertine. For the purpose of the study, five travertine samples were filled with a cement-based filling material. A polarized microscope was used for the mineralogical-petrographic characterization of the travertines, while an image analysis software program (CLEMEX) was used to determine pore size and the number of travertines. A mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) technique was used to determine the size and the distribution of pores in the travertine, while the pore filling was identified and characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). The pore structure, the bonding of the filler with the pore and the filler performance were then discussed. There was no gap between the pore filling and the Noche travertine sample. The best pore-fill-travertine bond was formed. An opening at the border of the pore filling and the travertine was visible in the Yellow travertine sample. Shrinkages and collapses were noted in the applied filling process, and filing shrinkage was also noted in the Red, Silver and Light travertine samples, preventing the establishment of a healthy connection between the pore filling and the travertine.

Effect of carbon fiber on the properties of polymer cement based building sealant

AbstractThe working property, bond property, and mechanical property of five kinds of polymer cement based building sealant (PCBS) with different carbon fiber content were tested. The effect of carbon fiber on the properties of PCBS was discussed by analyzing the variation of the leveling performance, consistency, low temperature flexibility, surface dry time, elastic recovery rate, tensile mechanical property, and shear mechanical property of PCBS with carbon fiber content. And the modification mechanism of carbon fiber on PCBS was interpreted using scanning electron microscopy and mercury intrusion porosimetry techniques. The results shows that PCBS still has good working property and bonding property with carbon fiber addition. As the carbon fiber content increases, the leveling performance and low temperature flexibility of PCBS are unaltered., the consistency increases, while the surface drying time and elastic recovery rate decrease. The tensile and shear mechanical properties of PCBS can be improved by adding carbon fiber. With the increase of carbon fiber content, the strength performance indexes of PCBS increase, while the energy consumption performance indexes first increased followed by a decrease. When the carbon fiber content is 0.1%, the properties of PCBS is the best. The pore structure of PCBS gradually deteriorates, and the total porosity and the percentage of macropores increase with carbon fiber addition. Carbon fiber primarily exerts cracking resistance and internal deterioration effects in PCBS.

A comparative study of micro-CT and mercury intrusion techniques for predicting permeability and surface area evolution during chemical dissolution

In this paper, we report on experimental and computational studies investigating the evolution of pore structure and permeability of a microporous carbonate rock during chemical dissolution using information provided from X-ray micro-computed tomography (µ-CT) and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) techniques. We consider a chemical dissolution in a core sample by a nonacidic solution wherein a quasi-uniform modification of pore structure occurred. First, we conduct a comparative analysis on the capabilities and limitations of the µ-CT and MIP methods to quantify the evolution of pore size and pore surface area. In particular, we incorporate micropores into the calculations of the pore size-related parameters to highlight the uncertainties that ignoring microporosity causes. In the second part of the paper, we present predictive results on the fractional changes in the permeability of the rock using the Katz-Thompson (KT) and Kozeny-Carman (KC) models. The predictions are based on two characteristic parameters of the pore phase, i.e., the critical pore diameter and the specific pore surface area, and two characteristic macro-scale properties, i.e., porosity and formation factor, all calculated from both the MIP and µ-CT methods. The predicted changes in permeability are compared with those calculated directly on the images using the lattice-Boltzmann (LB) flow simulation on segmented images. The effect of changes in microporosity is also assessed to investigate its role in permeability evolution. The results showed that the KT model could reasonably predict the fractional changes in permeability in terms of the pore structure and macroscale parameters calculated from the MIP and µ-CT methods.

Thermo-physical and mechanical investigation of cementitious composites enhanced with microencapsulated phase change materials for thermal energy storage

This paper reports a comprehensive experimental investigation of cement pastes enhanced with Microencapsulated Phase Change Materials (MPCM) for Thermal Energy Storage (TES) purposes. The experimental plan considers three water-to-binder ratios and three MPCM volume fractions, for a total of nine different MPCM paste mixtures. The water-to-binder ratios of the pastes are 0.33, 0.40 and 0.45, which were mixed with a commercial MPCM, namely Nextek 37D® having a melting/solidification temperature of 37 °C, with volume percentage substitutions of 0%, 20% and 40%, respectively. Thermal, physical and mechanical tests were performed to investigate the effect MPCM have on the resulting TES, strengths and conductive properties of the considered mixtures by employing DSC, Hot-Disk, and mechanical tests. The measured latent heat of MPCM was 197.3 J/g and 194.6 J/g for heating and cooling, respectively. The volumetric latent enthalpies for the MPCM-based composites showed an almost constant average of 20–25 MJ/m3 for samples with 20% MPCM and 55–60 MJ/m3 for samples with 40% MPCM, independently of the w/b ratio. Thermal conductivity values measured at 25 and 45 °C ranged between 0.93 and 0.44 W/m × K. MPCM substitution turned out to significantly affect the overall porosity of the composite resulting in a lower thermal conductivity for the MPCM-pastes in comparison to the plain cement matrix. Finally, mechanical tests were conducted that showed a strength loss due to either increasing w/b ratios or for enhanced amounts of MPCM (e.g., up to a 74% and 69% of strength loss were registered for bending and compression, respectively). The thermo-physical and mechanical characterizations were conducted according to an experimental plan that provided a wide set of research results for both sole MPCM and MPCM-cement systems analyzed by SEM, EDS/elemental mapping, contact angle tests, particle size distribution analysis and Mercury Intrusion Porosimetry technique.

Improved Crack Resistance and Pore Structure of Cement-Based Materials by Adding EVA Powder

The improved properties of ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA)-modified cement-based materials have not been fully clarified, especially crack resistance and pore structure. The purpose of this research was to investigate the influence of EVA copolymer on the mechanical performances and microstructural properties of cement paste. Strengths, autogenous and drying shrinkage, and water absorption expansion were investigated to evaluate the mechanical properties and volume stability. The ring restrained shrinkage and chloride permeability tests revealed the crack resistance and enhancement of impermeability. The microstructures of EVA-modified cement-based materials were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) techniques. The experimental results indicated that mixing EVA into cement-based materials increased the flexural strength, reduced the crack propagation and chloride ion penetration, and reduced the negative capillary pressure by improving the water retention. The addition of EVA resulted the remarkable reduction of harmful pores. The optimal mass fraction of EVA powder was approximately 4%.

Characterization of gas diffusion layer transport properties by limiting current approach

The high performance of hydrogen fuel cells requires an efficient transport of product/reactants in the porous electrodes. An important role in the transport processes plays a gas diffusion layer (GDL) – a key part of the fuel cell electrode. In this work, we studied gas transport properties of commercially available GDLs using a limiting current technique. Average relative diffusivities of oxygen and hydrogen for different commercially available GDLs were measured in operating fuel cell. An elaborate analysis of oxygen and hydrogen transport provided important insights into gas diffusion performance and water saturation of GDL at different current densities. Water transport was found to be governed by the GDL thickness. Structural study of GDL by scanning electron microscopy and mercury intrusion porosimetry techniques was performed. Fuel cell performance of GDLs at different relative humidities was studied and analyzed in the framework of transport and structural properties.

Lightweight Concretes with Improved Water and Water Vapor Transport for Remediation of Damp Induced Buildings

Most of the historical and old building stock in Europe are constructed from masonry, when brick, stones, or their combination are bound with traditional mortars. Rising damp, due to accompanying effects, is the main factor influencing the quality of indoor climate as well as having an important impact on the durability of masonry structures. In this study, new types of lightweight concrete with waste aggregate content as a suitable material for remediation of damp damaged masonries were designed and tested. Alternative aggregate served as silica sand substitution in the range of 0–100 vol.%. Basic structural properties, mechanical resistance, water, and water vapor transport properties were measured after 28 days of water curing and were compared with dense reference concrete and with traditional masonry materials as well. Moreover, the porous structure of produced concretes and changes caused by usage of alternative aggregate usage were evaluated with the mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) technique. Obtained experimental data showed the suitability of modified concretes with 25–50 vol.% of waste aggregate content to ensure acceptable strength and hydric properties, and these properties were found to be comparable with masonry structures and materials used in the past.

Fractal dimension and its variation of intact and compacted loess

To investigate the fractal dimension and its variation of intact and compacted loess, consolidated-drained (CD) triaxial tests were performed to obtain intact and compacted loess specimens at different stress-strain states, their pore-size distribution (PSD) curves were measured by using the mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) technique. Based on the PSDs, three models (namely, Menger sponge model, Neimark model and the model based on the law of thermodynamics) were used to determine the fractal dimensions of specimens. The results show that there have 3 or 4 fractal intervals (or fractal dimensions, i.e., Ds1, Ds2, Ds3, Ds4,) when using Menger sponge model, only Ds3 satisfies the definition of fractal dimension. Neimark model can be used to determine the fractal dimensions of inter-aggregate pores and intra-aggregate pores, respectively (i.e., DNmacro and DNmicro). Most DNmacro values are meaningless physically, DNmicro increases with the increase of axial strain during shearing, suggesting that the surfaces of pores become complex with the increase of axial strain. The model based on the law of thermodynamics is the most appropriate if only one fractal dimension (i.e., Df) is expected in the whole measurable range of pore diameter. Df increases linearly with the growth of confining stress during consolidation or axial strain during shearing for both loess soils, indicating that the roughness of the pore surfaces increases with the increase in stress or strain. Besides, the fractal dimensions of intact and compacted loess were compared. According to the variations of PSD and Df, the mechanism for the evolution of the loess soil pore structure is proposed. These findings are expected to provide new insight into establishment of the connection between microstructure and macro stress-strain state of loess.

Investigation of pore size distribution by mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) technique applied on different OSB panels

Mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) is a technique used to characterize the pore size distribution and resin penetration in lignocellulosic materials, such as oriented strand board specimens (OSB), a multilayer panel utilized in structural applications. The method is based on the isostatic injection, under very high pressure, of a non-wetting fluid (mercury) into the porous material to determine parameters such as pore size distribution and percentage of porosity of the specimens. In this study, five different OSB were analyzed; they contained different wood species, resin type, and resin content. The panels manufactured with castor oil polyurethane resin showed porosity values in the range of 54.7 and 27.8%. This was a promising result compared with those obtained for panels made with phenolic resins, which are currently commercialized in Brazil.

Textile Industry Wastewater Treatment by Cavitation Combined with Fenton and Ceramic Nanofiltration Membrane

This work first time reports the intensification of real wastewater treatment by combination of hydrodynamic cavitation (HC), Fenton reagent, and membrane separation. In this work, a micro-porous ceramic membrane was used for the preparation of nano-porous catalytic membrane reactor. Initially, the aluminium boehmite sol has been synthesized and coated onto the tube side of the ceramic membrane by wet impregnation technique. A layer by layer technique was adopted for the wet impregnation of boehmite sol onto the ceramic membrane. After achieving a desired number of layers coating onto the ceramic membrane, a prepared catalyst sol was further used for coating. The dried boehmite powder was characterized using X-ray diffractometer and particle size distribution analysis. Mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) technique was used to identify the pore size distribution of modified ceramic membrane. The modified ceramic membrane was used in conjunction with HC for industrial dye wastewater treatment. The impact of process parameter such as cavitation unit (orifice) inlet pressure, intensifying chemical additive like Fenton reagent, and H2O2 dosage was investigated. HC along with intensifying chemical additives H2O2 and Fenton reagent improved the organic pollutants removal from textile industry wastewater