Importance of covariance in mass balancing of particle size distribution data

The covariance between the particle weight fractions in various size intervals can be calculated using an error propagation technique applied to the measured weights retained on each sieve of a column of standard sieves. This paper shows that this covariance should be accounted for in the calculation of the standard deviation of the cumulative size distribution of particles and in the adjustment of redundant size distributions. This paper illustrates an application of this concept to the processing of size distributions.