Modification Of Pore Structure Research Articles

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.

Utilization of coal liquefaction solid residue waste as an effective additive for enhanced catalytic performance

The co-liquefaction of lignite and heavy residues is regarded as a promising technique for upgrading inferior feedstock, but is limited in the long-term by several engineering challenges that must be overcome before commercialization, in particular to the excessive catalyst consumption and production of solid residue (SR) waste. Herein, the SR waste was transformed into a favorable catalytic additive via a simple activation method that simultaneously decreased the required hydrogenation-catalyst dosage and enabled the resulting hazardous wastes to be utilized. The inorganic minerals contained within coal had a positive influence on the hydro-conversion of the co-liquefaction system and the dispersion of SRs, which motivated us to exploit the enriched minerals in SRs by further activation treatments. The application of activated SRs as cheap additives resulted in an enhanced catalytic performance in co-liquefaction reactions, with a sharp decrease in the required hydrogenation catalyst dosage of nearly 60%. The exposure of iron sulfides in activated SRs following the partial removal of organic carbonaceous matter and silica-alumina minerals provided additional catalytic activity for promoting hydrogenation reactions and aromatic-aliphatic bond cleavages. Furthermore, the modified pore structure of activated SRs with a sharply increased surface area was beneficial for restricting coke deposition on the surface of hydrogenation catalysts and reacted coals, and thus improved the catalytic environment of reaction systems with a relatively economic catalyst dosage.

N, S co-doped branched carbon nanotubes with hierarchical porous structure and electron/ion transfer pathways for supercapacitors and lithium-ion batteries

Rational design of the pore structure and surface heteroatoms modification of the carbonaceous-based electrodes is essential for high performance energy storage. Herein, a N, S co-doped porous carbon nanotubes with hierarchically hollowed and trunk-branched nanotube structure based on polypyrrole was fabricated via simple soft template polymerization and activation. The 3D interconnected structure with uniformly distributed active sites can form intimate contact interface and interconnected channels, thus facilitate the electron transfer and electrolyte infiltration. Therefore, the N, S co-doped branched carbon reveals a large specific capacitance (420.6 F g−1 at 0.5 A g−1), good rate capability (287.2 F g−1 at 30 A g−1) and superior cyclic stability (99.32% capacitance retained after 12000 cycles) in supercapacitor. Moreover, this N, S co-doped branched carbon nanotubes also exhibits a high specific capacity (905 mAh g−1 at 0.1 A g−1) and rate capability (461 mAh g−1 at 12.8 A g−1) as LIBs anode. Additionally, full LIBs battery configured by aNSC-2.5//LiFePO4 can achieve an energy density of 2112 W h kg−1anode (424 W h kg−1cathode). This simple, well-controlled and easy-scalable porous carbon fabrication strategy can be applied in the many practical fields.

Carbonation investigation on atmospherically exposed lime-treated silty soil

The effect of carbonation on a one-year atmospherically exposed lime-treated soil structure is investigated. The investigation involves analyzing the chemical characteristics and pore-structure modifications of several specimens sampled up to 12 cm depth perpendicular to the surface. On comparing the analysis with untreated and lime-treated core-sampled specimens, carbonation is found to have occurred on specimens sampled up to 4.2 cm depth perpendicular to the surface. The decrease in soil pH to a value 9 or lower than that and the presence of carbonates confirmed the carbonation effect. At the pore-structure level, carbonation mechanism is found to increase macropores of diameter 20000–100000 Å, which is missing in the non-carbonated specimens and even greater than the one found at untreated soil. Such an observation confirmed the loss of cementitious compounds due to carbonation, thus, converting the mesopores developed due to lime treatment to macropores of larger pore diameter.

Multifunctional Role of Silica in Pharmaceutical Formulations.

Due to the high surface area, adjustable surface and pore structures, and excellent biocompatibility, nano- and micro-sized silica have certainly attracted the attention of many researchers in the medical fields. This review focuses on the multifunctional roles of silica in different pharmaceutical formulations including solid preparations, liquid drugs, and advanced drug delivery systems. For traditional solid preparations, it can improve compactibility and flowability, promote disintegration, adjust hygroscopicity, and prevent excessive adhesion. As for liquid drugs and preparations, like volatile oil, ethers, vitamins, and self-emulsifying drug delivery systems, silica with adjustable pore structures is a good adsorbent for solidification. Also, silica with various particle sizes, surface characteristics, pore structure, and surface modification controlled by different synthesis methods has gained wide attention owing to its unparalleled advantages for drug delivery and disease diagnosis. We also collate the latest pharmaceutical applications of silica sorted out by formulations. Finally, we point out the thorny issues for application and survey future trends pertaining to silica in an effort to provide a comprehensive overview of its future development in the medical fields. Graphical Abstract.

Microscopic pore structure changes in coal induced by a CO2-H2O reaction system

Geological carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) sequestration in deep coal beds is a potential technique for enhancing coal bed methane recovery. Since porosity and connectivity between pores or fractures are the most important parameters affecting mineral dissolution and percolation of coal bed methane, it is crucial to understand the pore structure changes in coal induced by CO 2 injection. To investigate the role that mineral reactions play in coal pore structure changes, three groups of CO 2 -H 2 O-coal interaction experiments were carried out in parallel at 40 °C and 5 MPa. Based on X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, the mineral compositions of coal samples after interaction exhibit significant changes, notably a marked decrease in calcite and dolomite. The pore type, pore size distribution, effective porosity, and spatial configuration of coal samples before and after interaction were studied through combined low-temperature N 2 adsorption and desorption (LTNAD), nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR), and X-ray computed tomography scanning (CT). The results show that new types of pores were formed and pore shapes became more complex due to mineral reactions. The number of macropores and fractures increased significantly, with the average pore diameter also increasing. Overall, the experiments show that CO 2 -H 2 O-coal interaction plays a positive role in pore structure modification, which can effectively enhance the coal bed methane recovery. • CO 2 sequestration in deep coal beds induced CO 2 – H 2 O- coal interaction. • CO 2 – H 2 O- coal interaction causes coal pore structure change. • The mineral reaction significantly increased the porosity and pore connectivity.

Self-assembly of corrosion inhibitors-intercalated layered double hydroxides (LDHs) in cementitious systems

This work investigates the self-assembly of corrosion inhibitor-intercalated layered double hydroxides (LDHs) in cementitious systems. The impacts of inorganic and organic corrosion inhibitors (i.e., sodium nitrite, sodium benzoate, and sodium molybdate) on the intercalation chemistry and chloride-induced transformation of LDHs in ordinary Portland cement (OPC) and limestone calcined clay cement (LC3) pastes are revealed. The results show that direct admixing of inorganic or organic inhibitors results in spontaneous formation of inhibitors-intercalated LDHs (i.e., NO2-AFm, C6H5COO-AFm, and MoO4-AFm), regardless of binder chemistry. The sequestrated anodic inhibitors in cementitious systems are released upon exposure to chloride, accompanied by simultaneous formation of Friedel's salts (Cl-AFm). The incorporation of anodic inhibitors has little influence on the chloride binding capacity of OPC and LC3 pastes, but impacts their chloride resistance via pore structure modification. This research advances our understanding of the physicochemical roles of admixed anodic inhibitors in cementitious systems.

Freeze–Thaw and Salt Crystallization Durability of Silica Acid Ester Consolidated Porous Limestone from Hungary

The durability of consolidated highly porous limestones was tested after salt and freeze–thaw cycles. Three porous limestone lithotypes that were commonly used in construction in the Central-European region during previous centuries were selected for the tests. Specimens of Miocene limestone were consolidated with four different types of ethyl silica-based consolidants (KSE 100, KSE 300, KSE 300 E, KSE 300 HV). After consolidation, the samples were exposed to freeze thaw cycles and salt crystallization tests. Water saturation under atmospherically pressure, capillary water absorption and splitting tensile strength were measured on treated and untreated samples to assess change attributed to consolidation in the open porosity and mechanical parameters. The increase in the tensile strength of the medium-grained samples was higher than that of the consolidated fine-grained lithotypes. The effect of consolidation treatment was very different in terms of pore-size distribution as obtained by Mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP). Untreated and consolidated samples were subjected to 10 cycles of sodium sulphate crystallization (EN 12370) and 10 freeze–thaw cycles (EN 12371) tests. Experiments concluded that in addition to the initial strength increase after the conservation, the modified pore structure is the crucial factor to evaluate the long-term efficiency of stone conservation.

Effect of rice husk ash surface modification by silane coupling agents on damping capacity of cement-based pastes

Damping capacity of cement-based composites can be of practical importance for civil infrastructure applications. This work started with optimizing the calcination process of rice husk ash (RHA), followed by chemical treatment to achieve a porous structure on RHA surface. Silane coupling agents (SCAs) were subsequently used to alter the interface and connections between the RHA and cement-based matrix. In the 1st stage, the RHA calcined at 600° C for 1.5 h and then treated with HCl solution showed the highest index of pozzolanic activity (IPA). The HCl treatment also significantly increased the pore volume, surface area, and average pore size of RHA-I to 0.18 cm3/g, 17.86 m2/g and 43 nm, respectively. In the 2nd stage, the SCAs altered the surface of RHA by physical adhesion and bonding effect, and the pore volume, surface area and average pore size of RHA-II became 0.15–0.21 cm3/g, 18.0–50.0 m2/g and 11–32 nm, respectively. Based on the surface and pore structure modifications, the RHA-II was used to improve the damping performance of cement-based pastes and dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) was performed to test the damping capacity of the pastes. Silane A151 fulfilled the function of improving the damping performance of cement-RHA pastes. Specifically, RHA-II-A151 increased the loss tangent value up to nearly 0.06 around −30° C.

A novel hydrophilic‐modified gas diffusion layer for proton exchange membrane fuel cells operating in low humidification

A novel hydrophilic-modified gas diffusion layer (GDL) through inserting the polyacrylonitrile (PAN) into the microporous layer is fabricated to elevate the performance of the proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) under low humidfication. The single fuel cell test confirms that the membrane electrode assembly with 3 wt% addition of PAN in the cathode GDL exhibits a maximum power density of 0.616 W cm−2, which is 30% higher than that of conventional hydrophobic GDL (0.480 W cm−2) under low humidity. This significant enhancement in performance is attributed to the powerful wettability and the pore structure modification of the PAN. Besides, the introduction of PAN shows little influence on the performance of PEMFCs under full humidity. Our findings reported here shed new light on developing a robust GDL that can be used in both low and high humidification.

Freeze\u2013Thaw Resistance of Ternary Blended Concrete Using Ferronickel Slag

The present study investigated the resistance of concrete blended with ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) and ferronickel slag (FNS) to cycles of freeze and thaw. The replacement ratio of the binders was 0%, 50 wt% of GGBS and 30 wt% of GGBS + 20 wt% of FNS for O100, OG50 and OG30F20, respectively. Specimens consisted of cement paste and concrete kept at 0.45 water/binder ratio. After 28 days of curing, specimens were subjected to freeze and thaw cycles (300) for measuring the variation of strength, weight loss and fundamental transverse frequency. Simultaneously mercury intrusion porosimetry was performed to examine the pore structure modifications at 28 days. The hydration products for cement paste cured at each determined age were characterized by X-ray diffraction and the content of CH and CSH was obtained from thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). As a result, the ternary blended concrete specimens showed lower deterioration degree when subjected to the freeze and thaw cycles. This may be due to a latent hydraulic and/or pozzolanic reaction producing more CSH in the matrix, which in turn increases the volume of small pores. The increased content of C–S–H gel for OG30F20 was confirmed by TGA, accounting for 69.9%. However, the binder system consisting of ordinary Portland cement and GGBS did not exhibit higher resistance to the given deleterious environment, presumably due to a delayed hydration process.

Modification of CO2 capture and pore structure of hardened cement paste made with nano-TiO2 addition: Influence of water-to-cement ratio and CO2 exposure age

This paper studies the effects of nano-TiO2 in CO2 sequestration of hardened cement paste depending on the water-to-cement ratio (w/c) and the pore structure. Twelve cement paste mixtures were prepared with four different percentages of nano-TiO2 (0%, 0.5%, 1%, 2%) and three w/c (0.45, 0.50, 0.55). Samples were exposed for 24 h to a CO2 environment at two different ages (14 and 28 days). Thermogravimetric analysis and 3D X-Ray scans of the pore structure were performed on exposed and unexposed samples. Results showed that nano-TiO2 produces an improvement in the CO2 uptake until a certain percentage. This maximum percentage depends on exposure age and w/c. Nano-TiO2 produces a reduction in porosity and an increment of calcium hydroxide (CH) reactivity, which have opposite effects on CO2 uptake. These two competing mechanisms may explain why nano-TiO2 can be beneficial or detrimental for the CO2 uptake as a function of w/c ratio and age.

Significant structural evolution of a long‐term fallow soil in response to agricultural management practices requires at least 10 years after conversion

AbstractAgricultural practices can have significant effects on the physical and biological properties of soil. The aim of this study was to understand how the physical structure of a compromised soil, arising from long‐term bare‐fallow management, was modified by adopting different field management practices. We hypothesized that changing agricultural practices from bare‐fallow to arable or grassland would influence the modification of pore structure via an increase in porosity and pore connectivity, and a more homogenous distribution of pore sizes, and that this change exerts a rapid evolution of soil structure following conversion. Soil aggregates (<2 mm) collected in successive years from field plots subjected to three contrasting managements were studied: bare‐fallow, bare‐fallow converted to arable, and bare‐fallow converted to grassland. Soil structure was assessed by X‐ray computed tomography on the aggregates at 1.5 μm resolution, capturing detail relevant to soil biophysical processes. The grassland system increased porosity, diversity of pore sizes, pore connectivity and pore‐surface density significantly over the decade following conversion. However, measured at this resolution, the evolution of most of these metrics of soil structure required approximately 10 years post‐conversion to show a significant effect. The arable system did not influence soil structural evolution significantly. Only pore size distribution was modified in grassland in a shorter time frame (2 years post‐conversion). Hence, evolution of soil structural characteristics appears to require at least a decadal timescale following conversion to grassland.Highlights The physical structure of a compromised soil was modified by adopting plant‐based field management practices. Conversion to grassland increased pore size diversity after 2 years. Porosity, pore connectivity and pore surface density showed a significant modification between 7 and 10 years after conversion.

Constructing porous beads with modified polysulfone-alginate and TiO2 as a robust and recyclable photocatalyst for wastewater treatment

The availability of suitable support material for immobilizing photocatalyst, without loss of photoactivity, is a bottleneck for photocatalytic wastewater treatment in real-world applications. Here we report a facile method for the preparation and pore structure modification of highly stable and porous polymer composite consisting of polysulfone (PSF) and alginate (Alg) for immobilizing TiO2 nanoparticles. Compared to its constituents alone, this newly identified polymer composite has much higher stability as well as adsorption capacity towards the pollutant molecules, acting as an ideal matrix for immobilizing the photocatalyst. Various combinations of PSF, Alg, and TiO2 were tested in the form of beads, with the final ratio of 10:6:12, for the best adsorption and photodegradation capacity. With surface modification, these beads (denoted as PAT-12 M) showed superior photocatalytic activity toward methylene blue (MB) and the two pharmaceuticals – triclosan (TCS) and diclofenac (DCF), which were almost completely removed within 50, 40 and 120 min, respectively. The reactive oxygen species scavenging experiments confirmed the OH radicals played the primary role in photodegradation. The robustness of these beads allowed their use for at least 25 cycles under batch mode and 30 days in continuous mode with over 99% MB degradation. Thanks to the large size (3 mm) and excellent mechanical stability, these beads can be effortlessly dispersed in polluted solutions, in interswitchable suspended or floating form, and easily recovered. With these advantageous properties, PAT-12 M beads could be effectively employed for a wide range of applications at large scales.

Oxidation and associated pore structure modification during experimental alteration of granite

Weathering plays a crucial role in a number of environmental processes, and the microstructure and evolution of multi-scale pore space is a critically important factor in weathering. In igneous rocks the infiltration of meteoric water into initially relatively dry material can initiate disaggregation, increasing porosity and surface area, and allowing further disaggregation and weathering. These processes, in turn, allow biota to colonize the rock, further enhancing the weathering rate. In some rocks this may be driven by primary mineral oxidation. One such mineral, biotite, has been repeatedly mentioned as a cause of cracking during oxidation. However, the scale-dependence of the processes by which this occurs are poorly understood. We cannot, therefore, accurately extrapolate laboratory reaction rates to the field in predictive numerical models.In order to better understand the effects of oxidation and test the hypothesis that fracture and disaggregation are initiated by swelling of oxidizing biotites, we reacted granite cores in a selenic acid-rich aqueous solution at 200 °C for up to 438 days. Elevated temperatures and selenic acid were used to provide relatively fast reaction rates and highly oxidizing conditions in sealed reaction vessels. These experiments were analyzed using a combination of imaging, X-ray diffraction, Mössbauer spectroscopy, and small- and ultra-small angle neutron scattering to interrogate porosity and microfracture formation. The experimental results show little observable biotite swelling, but significantly more observable fractures and growth of iron oxides and/or clays along grain boundaries. Pyrite disappeared from the reacted sample. Significant increases in porosity were also observed at the sample rim, likely associated with feldspar alteration. Fractures and transport were observed throughout the core, suggesting that stresses due to crystallization pressures caused by the growing iron phases may be the initiating factors in granite weathering, possibly followed by biotite swelling after sufficient permeability is achieved.

The effect of application of digestate and agro-food industry sludges on Dystric Cambisol porosity.

The spatial arrangement and pore size distribution play an important role in accumulation and protection of exogenous organic matter (EOM) in the soil, but how different organic materials contribute to modify pore structure is poorly understood. We aimed at exploring possible changes in the complexity of the soil phase during fertilization with different doses of digestate and sludges sourced from the agro-food industry. For this purpose, the short-term effects—one year, of soil fertilization, were investigated in several sampling periods and within two depths (0–25 cm and 25–40 cm). Changes in the specific surface area (SSA), total pore volume (VMIP), total pore area (SMIP), average pore radius (RMIP) and pore size distribution (PSD) were monitored using N2 adsorption/desorption (NAD) and mercury porosimetry (MIP) methods. Our results showed that the intensity of observed changes depended on the type and dose of organic material, soil depth and sampling date. Accumulation of EOM increased with soil depth, masking a large proportion of SSA. Deeper soil layer was more susceptible to changes in the pore size distributions due to the formation of new elongated pores. We concluded that this specific structural porosity was related to the decomposition of organic matter during the formation of soil aggregates.

The use of antifreeze proteins to modify pore structure in directionally frozen alginate sponges for cartilage tissue engineering

It is thought that osteoarthritis is one of the world’s leading causes of disability, with over 8.75 million people in the UK alone seeking medical treatment in 2013. Although a number of treatments are currently in use, a new wave of tissue engineered structures are being investigated as potential solutions for early intervention. One of the key challenges seen in cartilage tissue engineering is producing constructs that can support the formation of articular cartilage, rather than mechanically inferior fibrocartilage. Some research has suggested that mimicking structural properties of the natural cartilage can be used to enhance this response. Herein directional freezing was used to fabricate scaffolds with directionally aligned pores mimicking the mid-region of cartilage, anti-freeze proteins were used to modify the porous structure, which in turn effected the mechanical properties. Pore areas at the tops of the scaffolds were 180.46 ± 44.17 μm2 and 65.66 ± 36.20 μm2 for the AFP free and the AFP scaffolds respectively, and for the bases of the scaffolds were 91.22 ± 19.05 μm2 and 69.41 ± 21.94 μm2 respectively. Scaffolds were seeded with primary bovine chondrocytes, with viability maintained over the course of the study, and regulation of key genes was observed.

Modification of water absorption and pore structure of high-volume fly ash cement pastes by incorporating nanosilica

High-volume (>50%) fly ash (HVFA) is used to partially replace cement in concrete to reduce the greenhouse gas emission, which is beneficial to both cement industry and environment. However, one drawback of using high-volume fly ash cement (HVFAC) is the increase of the water absorption and the reduction of the durability of cement-based materials. In this study, the effect of nanosilica (NS) on the compressive strength and water absorption of HVFAC pastes were investigated. In addition, the phase composition, microstructure and pore structure of the pastes were analyzed through X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP). Results showed that the addition of NS increased the compressive strength and reduced the water absorption of HVFAC pastes. NS could react with Portlandite to produce additional C–S–H gel, and simultaneously a higher content of fly ash was hydrated in the presence of NS. Therefore, the incorporation of NS refined the pores and reduced the pore volume of HVFAC pastes. The pores with diameter larger than 10 nm were more pronounced for the water absorption ability of HVFAC composites. This study provided a possible way to reduce the negative effect brought by the increased water absorption when using HVFA in cementitious materials.

Transient gas diffusivity evaluation and modeling for methane and helium in coal

Gas diffusion in coal in known to be a transient process. A conceptualized cylindrical pore network was proposed in this study to quantify the transient mass transfer in coal at various pressures. Experimental measurements were carried out to measure the time-dependent mass transfer through the volumetric method. Based on the geometrical model, a new analytical model was proposed to describe and quantify the dynamic contributions of bulk diffusion, Knudsen diffusion and surface diffusion to the total gas mass transfer. In the model, the nanoscale pore deformation and dynamics were implicitly considered and modeled through the pore volume compressibility and the matrix shrinkage and swelling variations. This allows to model the gas transient process with pore structure modification. The analytical model is being solved through a numerical approach. The numerical model also combines the interactions between gas adsorption and desorption by recalling the converse source terms in the governing equations. The transient gas transport process can be divided into two stages, namely, the fast bulk and Knudsen diffusion controlled free pressure equilibrium and the slow sorption-controlled mass transfer due to the gradient of free gas pressure (pf) and adsorption equivalent pressure (pa). The numerical model was calibrated and validated against with the laboratory measurements. Comparing the cases that helium and methane injections at similar pressure (~315.98 psi for helium and ~319.90 psi for methane), the equilibrium time for helium is ~ 4.5% shorter than that of methane does attributed to the relative slow sorption kinetics. Also, the pore radius with methane injection will never recover to the initial pore radius, a 3.3% irreversible strain on pore radius induced by sorption effects was observed. A 3.6% difference between the relative probability of the molecular-wall collisions for helium (~97.7%) and the relative probability of molecular-wall collisions between methane molecules (~ 94.1%) was believed to be induced by the sorption effects. These results can ultimately provide the approach and data for analyzing the dynamic sorbing gas transport behaviors in sorptive coal.

There is no such thing as ‘undisturbed’ soil and sediment sampling: sampler-induced deformation of salt marsh sediments revealed by 3D X-ray computed tomography

Within most environmental contexts, the collection of ‘undisturbed’ samples is widely relied upon in studies of soil and sediments. However, the impact of sampler-induced disturbance is rarely acknowledged, despite the potential significance of modification to sediment structure for the robustness of data interpretation. In this study, 3D computed X-ray microtomography (μCT) is used to evaluate and compare the disturbance imparted by four commonly used sediment sampling methods within a coastal salt marsh. Paired sediment core samples from a restored salt marsh at Orplands Farm, Essex, UK, were collected using four common sampling methods (push, cut, hammer and gouge methods). Sampling using two different area-ratio cores resulted in a total of 16 cores that were scanned with μCT to identify and evaluate sediment structural properties of samples that can be attributed to sampling method. 3D qualitative analysis identifies a suite of sampling disturbance structures including gross-scale changes to sediment integrity and substantial modification of pore space, structure and distribution, independent of sediment strength and stiffness. Quantitative assessment of changes to pore space and sediment density arising from the four sampling methods offers a means of direct comparison between the impact of depth sampling methods. Considerable disturbance to samples results from use of push, hammer and auguring samplers, whilst least disturbance is found in samples recovered by cutting and advanced trimming approaches. In many environmental studies involving sediment recovery through coring or other depth sampling, there is no such thing as an undisturbed sediment sample. The novel use of μCT scanning of sealed sediment cores has enabled the identification and evaluation of the nature and extent of sample disturbance resulting from four common types of sediment recovery methods. Depth sampling and coring methods remain key tools for understanding sediments and soils, but referring to undisturbed sediment sampling is no longer tenable without supporting evidence.