Different Measuring Techniques Provide Different Results – but What is the Truth?

The most common methods to determine the particle size are dynamic digital image analysis (DIA), static laser light scattering (SLS, also called laser diffraction) and sieve analysis. This article presents the advantages and drawbacks of each technique, their comparability among each other as well as detailed application examples.

Each method covers a characteristic size range within which measurement is possible, and which partly overlap. The three methods presented here, for example, all measure particles in a range from 1 μm to 3 mm. However, the results for measuring the same sample can vary considerably.

This article will help to interpret the informative value and significance of particle analysis results and to decide which method is best suited for a particular application. The analyzers used for the measurements presented in this article are sieve shakers (Retsch), image analysis systems CAMSIZER® P4 and CAMSIZER® XT (Retsch Technology) and laser granulometer Horiba LA-960.