Porosity in carbons often means different things to different people depending largely on the different applications of the various carbon materials. On the one hand, users involved in gas purification or respiratory protection are concerned primarily with microporosity, and at the other extreme, the user of carbon in the form of metallurgical coke is concerned with macroporosity because of its influence on the mechanical properties of the coke. Between these extremes there is a range of applications which rely on different aspects of the nature of the porous structure and the characterization required reflects the particular application in mind. This characterization of a wide diversity of porous structures presents some problems. However recent developments have produced some solutions, for example computerized image analysis has facilitated the measurement of pore shape and size. The eleven chapters in this book present an analysis of the current methods of characterization and the role of various aspects of carbon porosity in some representative and diverse applications.
