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Permeability refers to the porous characteristics of an organic or inorganic material, incorporating a sample’s susceptibility to both liquid and vapour. Various measurement methodologies exist for the determination of a sample’s permeability via a permeameter, which uses both liquid and gas flow systems.

In a typical permeameter, a sample will be loaded into a chamber and liquid or gas is forced to flow through it at varying pressure levels. Intuitive software controls the experiment parameters and collects the requisite data for analysis of the sample’s permeability. These processes are fundamental for material characterisation, quality control, and various areas of academic study. This article will explore some of the applications of permeability measurements in more detail:

Geological Studies

In a geological sense, permeability describes the amount of fluid or vapour that can pass through the cracks or porous structures in a rock sample. This property is primarily determined by the sample’s genesis, whether it is igneous, sedimentary, or metamorphic in origin. Geological permeability measurements are used to examine the conditions of samples under sustained environmental conditions, providing insight into fields of environmental research such as coastal erosion forecasting. It is also commonly applied in the field of oil exploration, or petroleum geology. Petroleum Geology Petroleum geology is the study of hydrocarbon fuels; natural gases and liquids formed from chemical bonds of hydrogen (H) and carbon (C). This area of study widely uses liquid flow methods to determine the permeability of a geological sample to establish whether it is an exploitable hydrocarbon reservoir. To accurately assess a sample’s reservoir potential, un-stimulated rock cores must be measured on millidarcy (md) scales, necessitating precise instrumentation with high degrees of repeatability. Permeameters are therefore integral to the search for viable fuel deposits, and for research into hydrocarbon formation.

Pharmaceuticals

Two of the most important metrics for pharmaceutical development are solubility and permeability, and understanding the interplay between the two is vital to produce efficient oral drug delivery systems. These two chemical properties inform the absorptive characteristics of a drug through permeable biological membranes, but this process is difficult to observe in-vitro due to widely varying factors that can affect results. However, sophisticated permeameters can simulate the behaviour of drugs in-vitro to determine the absorptive properties of a drug under varying biological conditions.

Fabric & Textiles

The permeability of manufactured materials such as fabric and textiles is generally a controllable process, therefore its measurement is primarily applied for research and development, or quality control purposes. Permeability is a crucial measurement for the development and manufacture of geo-textiles, which are designed to assist various environmental processes. These permeable fabrics are designed for soil separation, to aid in filtration or draining of groundwater or nutrients, or simply to protect against environmental impacts such as flooding.

Permeability Measurements from Lawson Scientific

Lawson Scientific are a leading contract analytical laboratory, with over 100 combined years’ experience in all areas of material and particle characterisation. We feature a thorough range of permeameters using different methodologies, including:

• LP-100: an educational liquid permeameter for rock core permeability analysis with an accuracy of 0.1% at full scale, and robust, easy-to-use design to ensure longevity in teaching environments;
• EPG-100A: an educational gas permeameter using the steady state technique to measure the permeability of samples to gases such as air, nitrogen (N), and helium (He);
• DMPC-E96: a water vapor permeability tester for fabric and textiles analysis, with a humidity range of 5% RH to 90% RH;
• Advanced Bendsten Air Permeability and Surface Roughness Tester: a gas permeameter and roughness tester for porous solids, featuring a real-time graphical test display and completely automated air permeability test options.

If you would like to find out more, please do not hesitate to contact us .