DMI/MRS Seminar
Abstract:
The overall goal of my research is to study and understand reactive, multiphase transport in porous materials. Of particular interest is manipulating chemical and physical processes that occur during reactive, multiphase transport in both engineered (cementitious) and natural (geological) porous materials. To this end, quantitative imaging approaches such as X-ray computed tomography (CT), neutron tomography, electrical imaging modalities, and simultaneous imaging are powerful tools to obtain complementary information with temporal context to better understand complex changes within materials.
This presentation will provide an overview of three-dimensional (3D) imaging techniques and how these modalities are used to study changes in porous materials with time (four-dimensional, 4D). Numerous porous materials are utilized to construct the built environment, including cement-based materials (concrete and foamed cement [a non-Newtonian fluid in slurry form]), wood, asphalt concrete, and geological materials (sandstones, limestone) among others. From characterizing pore size distribution evolution and quantifying the kinetics of water sorption in cement-based materials to studying reactive transport in both cement-based and geological materials used for Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), 4D imaging provides a powerful tool to further our understanding of material properties, material behavior, and enable the development of new materials