METHODOLOGY FOR POROSIMETRY IN VIRTUAL CEMENTITIOUS COMPOSITES TO ECONOMICALLY AND RELIABLY ESTIMATE PERMEABILITY

• Main Authors: Kai Li, Piet Stroeven, Nghi LB Le
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Slovenian Society for Stereology and Quantitative Image Analysis 2015-05-01
• Series: Image Analysis and Stereology
• Subjects: DEM; permeability; porosimetry; water saturation
• Online Access: http://www.ias-iss.org/ojs/IAS/article/view/1271

<p>A novel methodology is described for porosimetry as well as for water transport through the pore system in dynamic DEM-based virtual cementitious materials. The pore network topology, the pore size distribution and the pore connectivity are assessed on the basis of a robotics-inspired pore delineation method and star volume measurements. Permeability estimates are based on a tube network model that incorporates these parameters and a shape factor. Since concrete contains in practical situations a variable amount of water, permeability estimation is presented as a function of the state of saturation. Satisfactory agreement is found with experimental data, validating the methodology. Earlier, the various "building blocks" were separately validated. </p>