Particle Insights

Discover Particle Insights, a resource dedicated to examining the essential characteristics of particles and the investigative methods employed to analyze them. This section offers crucial details on characterization techniques and their uses, covering aspects such as dimensions, form, structure, and dynamics. Whether you’re a researcher, technician, or industry professional, you’ll gain valuable knowledge about the underlying science of particles and their widespread influence across diverse disciplines.

Properties of particles

The characteristics of particles, encompassing dimensions, morphology, surface area, and compositional attributes, exert a profound influence on their behavioral patterns, interactional dynamics, and practical applications across a spectrum of scientific and industrial disciplines. Here is presented an extensive, though not exhaustive, enumeration of these properties, revealing their impact on diverse processes and technological advancements.

1. aeratability

2. aerodynamic/hydrodynamic properties

3. agglomeration

4. bulk density

5. bulk structure

6. chemical composition

7. coherence length

8. compaction properties

9. composition

10. concentration

11. crystal phase

12. defect number and distribution

13. density (bulk and tapped)

14. electrostatic charge

15. flow (BFE & FFC)

16. flow properties

17. geometry

18. habit

19. hydrophilicity

20. loading

21. mobility

22. morphology

23. particle shape

24. particle size (SIA, DIA & DNS)

25. particle size distribution

26. pH

27. pore size (absolute and average)

28. porometry

29. porosity

30. refractive index

31. response to pH

32. rheology

33. shape

34. shape distribution

35. size

36. size distribution

37. solubility

38. stability

39. structuring (e.g. agglomerates vs aggregate/primary particles)

40. surface area

41. surface charge

42. surface chemistry

43. surface energy

44. surface structure

45. surface tension

46. surface texture

47. thermal stability

48. triboelectric charge

49. zeta potential

Analytical techniques

The investigation and characterization of particle properties rely heavily on analytical techniques, which enable researchers to obtain precise measurements of various attributes, including size, shape, composition, and surface characteristics. Herein is presented a comprehensive, though not exhaustive, inventory of these methodologies, elucidating their diverse applications in both scientific research and industrial settings.

1. acoustic spectroscopy

2. aerodynamic size measurement methods for aerosols

3. analytical ultracentrifugation (AUC)

4. angle of repose

5. appearance

6. asymmetric-flow field-flow fractionation ICPMS (AF4-ICPMS)

7. centrifugal liquid sedimentation (CLS)

8. chemical identification methods

9. coulombic measurement

10. crystallography (X-ray, neutron, etc.)

11. differential centrifugal sedimentation

12. direct imaging techniques

13. dynamic light scattering (DLS)

14. electron microscopy

15. electron scanning microscopy

16. electrophoretic light scattering

17. energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDAX)

18. flow behaviour (shear cell)

19. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR)

20. gas adsorption

21. image analysis

22. image analysis software – automated determination of particle dimensions

23. laser diffraction

24. microscopic particle size analysis

25. microscopy – electron, visible and other

26. nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA)

27. non-invasive back scatter

28. optical particle characterisation (OPC)

29. physico-chemical characterization techniques

30. Raman spectroscopy combined with automated microscopy-based imaging

31. rheology

32. scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy (SEM/TEM)

33. scanning mobility particle sizer (SMPS)

34. shear cell

35. sieving (wet/dry)

36. single particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM)

37. single particle extinction and scattering

38. single particle inductively-coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (sp-ICPMS)

39. size-exclusion chromatography with multi-angle light-scattering (SEC MALS)

40. static and dynamic imaging

41. sub-visible particles (SVP)

42. surface area/porosity

43. surface characterisation – zeta potential, electrophoretic light scattering etc.

44. thermal properties

45. ultrasonic methods for the determination of particle size and zeta potential

46. UV-vis confocal

47. X-ray diffraction

48. X-ray fluorescence

49. X-ray microtomography

50. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS)