Theoretical assessment of systematic errors in volume fraction determinations by microscopy methods

Abstract

A set of equations were derived to estimate systematic errors in experimental determinations of volume fractions transformed by microscopy methods. For reactions that occur by continuous nucleation and growth, the experimental values of volume fractions transformed may be subjected to significant errors when the largest grain size of the distribution is close to the microscope resolution limit. For transformations occurring from a fixed number of nuclei, the systematic errors are smaller than those observed in the continuous nucleation case, but can still be significant when reflection methods are used. Transmission methods lead to smaller errors than reflection techniques.