Measurements of restricted diffusion using an oscillating gradient spin-echo sequence.

An oscillating gradient spin-echo (OGSE) pulse sequence was used to measure the apparent diffusion coefficient (D(app)) of water in the short diffusion time regime in the presence of restrictions. The diffusion coefficients of water in a simple water sample and a water and oil mixture were measured to be the same for different periods of the gradient oscillation, as expected when there are no restriction effects. The D(app) of water in the spaces between closely packed beads was also measured as a function of the gradient oscillation periods in the range 11 to 80 ms. The D(app) of water in restricted systems varies with the period of the gradient oscillation and the dispersion depends on the scale of the restriction. For a sample of packed beads of diameter 9.1 +/- 0.7 microm, the pore surface-to-volume ratio was estimated experimentally by this method to be 1.3 +/- 0.1 microm(-1), corresponding to a mean pore diameter of 6.4 +/- 0.7 microm. A Monte Carlo computer simulation of the NMR OGSE signal from the spins diffusing in a system of compartments was also implemented and the D(app) demonstrated similar behavior with gradient oscillation periods. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.