Analysis of Particle Size and Particle Size Distribution: D 10, D 50, D 90

The size of a particle is called "grain size", also known as "particle size" or "diameter". When a certain physical property or physical behavior of the measured particle is closest to a homogeneous sphere (or combination) of a certain diameter, the diameter (or combination) of the sphere is taken as the equivalent particle size (or particle size distribution) of the measured particle. Of course, for non-spherical particles, their particle size is related to the measurement standard and statistical method, and the particle size can only be "equivalent".

The percentage (or cumulative percentage) of particles of different particle size intervals in the total amount of powder is called frequency particle size distribution (or cumulative particle size distribution). Its ordinate is the particle size composition calculated by different standards, which can be the percentage or cumulative percentage of number, length, area, volume, and its abscissa is the particle size value calculated by different standards. D10, D50, and D90 can reflect the uniformity of the powder, also known as the cumulative distribution of the powder.

D50: also known as the median particle size, refers to the particle size value corresponding to the cumulative distribution percentage reaching 50%. This is a typical value indicating the particle size, which accurately divides the population into two equal parts, that is, 50% of the particles have a particle size exceeding this value, and 50% of the particles have a particle size below this value. If the D50 of a sample is 5μm, it means that among all the particles of the sample, 50% of the particles have a particle size greater than 5μm, and 50% of the particles have a particle size less than 5μm. D50 is often used to indicate the average particle size of a powder.

D90: refers to the particle size value corresponding to 90% of the cumulative distribution percentage from small to large in the particle size distribution. That is, in a certain powder, the number of particles with a particle size less than D97 accounts for 97% of the total number of particles. It is usually used to indicate the coarse end particle size index of the powder, and is an indicator that is focused on in the production and application of powders. Similarly, some industries use values such as D95 and D97, and their physical meanings are similar to D90.

D10: refers to the cumulative percentage below this value of 10%, which is the opposite of D90. In production and life applications, these three parameters are of great significance. For example, in the pharmaceutical industry, if you know the particle size distribution of a drug, you can understand the effectiveness and side effects of the drug. In addition, in the field of environmental protection, particle size distribution is also one of the important indicators for air and water quality monitoring.

In short, D10, D50, and D90 are three very important parameters in particle size distribution, which represent the distribution of particles in different intervals. Micro-particles are widely used in daily life and industrial production. The size and distribution are directly related to industrial processes, product quality, energy consumption, and the safety of the production process. Therefore, it is very meaningful to accurately and conveniently measure the diameter (particle size) of micro-particles and obtain the particle size distribution function.