Characterization of mineral building materials by mercury-intrusion porosimetry

Mineral building materials are generally heterogeneous and porous solids. Their engineering properties are closely associated with their porosity and pore-size distribution, which can be studied by mercury intrusion. The entire pore-size distribution curves are used to determine changes in the pore structure of a material class in a qualitative way. Certain parameters derived from pore-size distributions can be correlated to engineering properties. These key values are applied as criteria to evaluate the quality and durability of a building material. However, because of the heterogeneity of natural and artificial building materials and the influence of moisture content on their pore structure the results are strongly affected by preparation conditions such as sampling and drying. A correct analysis requires a knowledge of these effects. The paper describes the use of mercury porosimetry to study mineral building materials such as cementitious materials, bricks, and renderings. Furthermore, the influence of preparation effects on the precision of measurements is discussed.