The shape of particulates affects the performance of abrasives, pharmaceutical powders, agglomerate materials, chemical powders including polymers and catalysts, industrial materials including Portland cement, such minerals as graphite or garnet, pigments, food powders and many other common materials. Generally, size data is insufficient to predict behavior.
A few examples may be cited. In the pharmaceutical and other industries, the rate at which a substance dissolves is crucial. Researchers have found that both particle size and shape, and the relation between size and shape, affect dissolution rates. Rates are affected by such shape factors as aspect ratio, degree of flakiness, and smoothness of the surface. These factors have different effects at different particle sizes.
Granular flow is critical in many industries, and particle shape plays a large role in granular processes. The settling behavior of sediments and other materials in a liquid is important in civil engineering and in the manufacture of substrates, for example. Settling velocities are greatly affected by shape and size.
Packing of irregular particles is another area where a particle shape analyzer can provide data that predict behavior.