An improved technique for the determination of rock porosity

Abstract

A modified technique for the determination of the connected porosity of rocks by the water immersion method has been developed and tested. The technique is recommended for rocks with porosity less than 0.05. The major modifications to the technique include saturation of the sample under vacuum conditions and determination of the water-saturated but surface-dry weight from a drying curve.Porosity measurements on 48 granitic samples showed that the technique is reproducible within a 95% confidence range of ±4% of the mean value. However, the possibility of spatial variation of porosity must be taken into account in assigning uncertainties to the measured values.