Mercury porosimetry—breakthrough pressure for penetration between packed spheres

Abstract

The mathematical relationships have been developed for describing the penetration of fluids into the void spaces of a collection of uniform solid spheres. The pressure required for initial penetration or “breakthrough” pressure is defined in terms of the porosity of the spherical model and the contact angle of the fluid. Calculated data, covering the porosity range of 47.64% to 25.95%, and contact angles of 90° to 180°, are presented. These relationships allow the determination of particle radius from standard mercury penetration and porosity data.