Air permeance /porosity

The permeability of paper to air affects how the material behaves during many conversion and application processes. It can be measured using a range of air leakage instruments of different types:

The Bendtsen air permeance tester measures the flow of air through a fixed area in ml/min.

The Gurley tester measures the time for 100ml of air to flow through a set area.

Pira measure the porosity and air permeance of a range of porous materials including tissue, paper and non-woven materials for packaging applications such as filters, labels and packaging materials for medical devices.

Pira's UKAS, ISO 17025 accredited testing is performed to British standard, BS 6538: Part 2 (Bendtsen) and BS 6538 Part 3 (Gurley), and International standards, ISO 5636 Part 3 (Bendtsen) and ISO 5636 Part 5 (Gurley).

Expert Profile

  • Doug joined Pira in 1989 and has 20 years experience in the physical testing of packaging and packaging materials. He heads a team specialising in packaging and print related technical investigations. In 2004 Doug gained his postgraduate degree with distinction in Packaging Technology from Brunel University.

    Doug Leatherdale
    Doug Leatherdale

    Head of Physical Testing

    Pira International

    +44 1372 80 2108

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