The growth of interest in newly developed porous materials has prompted
the writing of this book for those who have the need to make meaningful
measurements without the benefit of years of experience. One might
consider this new book as the 4th edition of "Powder Surface Area and
Porosity" (Lowell & Shields), but for this new edition we set out to
incorporate recent developments in the understanding of fluids in many
types of porous materials, not just powders. Based on this, we felt that
it would be prudent to change the title to "Characterization of Porous
Solids and Powders: Surface Area, Porosity and Density". This book gives
a unique overview of principles associated with the characterization of
solids with regard to their surface area, pore size, pore volume and
density. It covers methods based on gas adsorption (both physi- and
chemisorption), mercury porosimetry and pycnometry. Not only are the
theoretical and experimental basics of these techniques presented in
detail but also, in light of the tremendous progress made in recent
years in materials science and nanotechnology, the most recent
developments are described. In particular, the application of classical
theories and methods for pore size analysis are contrasted with the most
advanced microscopic theories based on statistical mechanics (e.g.
Density Functional Theory and Molecular Simulation). The
characterization of heterogeneous catalysts is more prominent than in
earlier editions; the sections on mercury porosimetry and particularly
chemisorption have been updated and greatly expanded.
