Science Project by Jason
First, the meaning of permeability is "The capability of a porous rock or sediment to permit the flow of fluids through it’s pore spaces." Almost all rocks have this capability, but the question is this ",Does density affect the rate of permeability?" I believe that density does indeed have an effect on permeability and there is a high correlation of .6 to 1. I believe that as density increases, the rate of permeability will increase as well. With minimal knowledge of the subject of permeability this hypothesis seems reasonable. But, reasonable only density is the only physical rock property considered and other rock properties are not.
To test the hypothesis a method must be used. The method used consists of four operations. First, the rocks of pumice, scoria, limestone, basalt, slate, sandstone, a second type of limestone, conglomerate, marble, and two samples of another form of sandstone are each measured with a balance to find their masses. Next, the volume is found by wrapping the rocks in plastic wrap and submerging them in water contained in a spill can. The excess water that spills out of the spigot is placed in a graduated cylinder to find the rock’s volume. The third operation is simply done by dividing the mass of each rock by it’s volume to find it’s density. The last operation is the most important because it will uncover the data that will be made into graphs and compared. The operation is this, on each rock a droplet of water is placed and the clock starts. Once a droplet completely absorbs and vanishes from the surface of each rock the time that it absorbed completely is recorded. The process is repeated and then the data can be made into graphs and analyzed.
In conclusion, after experimenting and analyzing the data and graphs the hypothesis was proven wrong. Density has a low correlation to the rate of permeability, the correlation in fact turns out to be much lower than expected. The correlation of density to permeability is R^2 = 0.0205. For example, slate has a density of 1.65 g/ml and a permeability rate of 5,222 seconds. The hypothesis states that the permeability rate should increase as density increases. Evidently, this is not true. Conglomerate has a permeability rate of 1020 seconds, but it’s density is higher than slate. The same is true for the rocks marble, sandstone 1, limestone 2, and sandstone 2 and 2’. All have densities higher than slate and permeability rates lesser than slate. The reason for this low correlation is particle size and the shape of the particles. For example, a rock such as conglomerate has rounded particles that are visible to the naked eye. Meanwhile, slate has particles that are not visible to the naked eye. It is proven that rocks with large rounded particles will absorb water faster than a rock with small squared particles because round particles cause a rock to have a high porosity. In effect, making the permeability rate higher. Squared particles cause a rock to have a low porosity. In effect, making the rate of permeability lower.
This project was awarded a Meritorious