Powder Characterization

The Malvern Mastersizer 3000 in our institute uses laser diffraction tenchnique to measure particle size distributions in the range of 0.01 microns up to 3.5 mm. In the case of laser diffraction systems, the particle size reported is the diameter of a sphere that yields an equivalent light scattering pattern as the particle being measured.

Malvern Mastersizer 3000 with two different wet sample dispersion units

Specifications:

Dispersions type: Wet
Analysis: Mie and Fraunhofer scattering
Red light Source: Max. 4mW He-Ne, 632.8nm
Blue light Source: Max. 10mW LED, 470nm
120 ml to 1000 ml dispersant volume
40 W in-line sonication probe

BET method

With the BET device Gemini 2360 (from Micromeritics) the specific surface area (SSA) of solid materials can be determined. The method is named after three scientists, Brunauer, Emmett and Teller. During the measurement the SSA is calculated based on the volume of gas molecules (usually nitrogen) which adsorb on available surface area. The peculiar feature of this methods is that even micro cracks and pores can be reached. The SSA allows to draw conclusions about the degree of crystallinity of minerals or about the reactivity of cement, for example.