Gas physisorption measurements are an important tool for the characterization of porous solids and fine powders. Hence the publication, in 1985, of an IUPAC report dedicated to the determination of surface area and porosity by physical adsorption received a lot of attention. Indeed, the recommendations in the 1985 report have been broadly followed and referred to by the scientific and industrial community. Over the past 25 years major advances have been made in the development of nanoporous materials with uniform, tailor-made pore structures (e.g., mesoporous molecular sieves, carbon nanotubes and nanohorns, microporous-mesoporo
us carbons and silicas with hierarchical pore structures). Their characterization has required the development of high resolution experimental protocols for adsorption of nitrogen, argon, carbon dioxide and krypton. Furthermore, novel procedures based on density functional theory and molecular simulation (e.g., Monte-Carlo simulations) have been developed to allow a more accurate and comprehensive pore structural analysis to be obtained from high resolution physisorption data. It is evident that these new procedures, terms and concepts now necessitate the updating and extension of the 1985 recommendations. Consequently an international, well-balanced, IUPAC task group (Committee members: M. Thommes (chairman) K. Kaneko, A.V. Neimark, J.P. Olivier, F. Rodriguez-Reinoso, J. Rouquerol, and K.S.W. Sing) was established in 2010 and has now completed their work. The new recommendations which have just been published provide (i) authoritative, up-to-date guidance on gas physisorption methodology and (ii) draw attention to the advantages and limitations of using physisorption techniques for studying solid surfaces and pore structures with particular reference to the determination of surface area and pore size distribution.
Gas physisorption measurements are an important tool for the characterization of porous solids and fine powders. Hence the publication, in 1985, of an IUPAC report dedicated to the determination of surface area and porosity by physical adsorption received a lot of attention. Indeed, the recommendations in the 1985 report have been broadly followed and referred to by the scientific and industrial community. Over the past 25 years major advances have been made in the development of nanoporous materials with uniform, tailor-made pore structures (e.g., mesoporous molecular sieves, carbon nanotubes and nanohorns, microporous-mesoporous carbons and silicas with hierarchical pore structures). Their characterization has required the development of high resolution experimental protocols for adsorption of nitrogen, argon, carbon dioxide and krypton. Furthermore, novel procedures based on density functional theory and molecular simulation (e.g., Monte-Carlo simulations) have been developed to allow a more accurate and comprehensive pore structural analysis to be obtained from high resolution physisorption data. It is evident that these new procedures, terms and concepts now necessitate the updating and extension of the 1985 recommendations.
Consequently an international, well-balanced, IUPAC task group (Committee members: M. Thommes (chairman) K. Kaneko, A.V. Neimark, J.P. Olivier, F. Rodriguez-Reinoso, J. Rouquerol, and K.S.W. Sing) was established in 2010 and has now completed their work. The new recommendations which have just been published provide (i) authoritative, up-to-date guidance on gas physisorption methodology and (ii) draw attention to the advantages and limitations of using physisorption techniques for studying solid surfaces and pore structures with particular reference to the determination of surface area and pore size distribution.
