Study on some factors affecting the results in the use of MIP method in concrete research

Effects of rate of pressure application and forms and type of sample on porosity and pore size distribution of concrete estimated through mercury intrusion porosimetry (MIP) are presented in this experimental work. Two different forms of concrete sample, namely, crushed chunks of concrete and small core drilled out from the concrete beam specimens, were used for this study. The results exhibit that the rate of pressure application in mercury porosimetry has little effect on porosity and pore size distribution of concrete. It is also demonstrated that small cores drilled out from large concrete specimens are preferable as samples for performing porosimetry test on concrete. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.