Comments on surface structure analysis by water and nitrogen adsorption

Specific surface area and pore size distribution are determined usually from adsorption isotherms at low temperatures using nitrogen or noble gases. These are not absolute parameters and the measuring methods are fraught with serious difficulties. General problems of sorption measurements and recent developments are discussed. To obtain information for practical purposes these measurements need to be supplemented by investigations of the sorbate/sorbent system used in practice. Results of the measurement of nitrogen and water vapour adsorption on different materials are compared. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.