ABSTRACT
This chapter describes and discusses most important distinctive characteristics of industrial powders in context of importance and relevance within discipline of Powder Technology or Particle Technology. The important feature of a particulate material is the way its shear strength varies with the consolidating stress, and the properties used to identify and quantify such interactions are commonly known as failure properties of a powder. The failure properties take into account the state of compaction of the powder as this strongly affects its flowability unless the powder is cohe-sionless, like dry sand, and it gains no strength on compression. The time of consolidation can also have an effect on failure properties of powders. The Jenike shear cell has been considered for long time the testing cell for establishing standard procedures in industrial applications and research. It has been recognized as one of the standards for testing bulk solids in the United States and in Europe, being especially focused on cohesive powders.
