How to import data (text and numbers) from a tabuled .dat file in MATLAB?

Hello everyone.

I need to read tabulated data from a file named 'Mechanism.dat,' which includes both numbers and words. Here are the first two lines of the .dat file as an example:

1.00 ch3och3 1.00 m 0.00 ND 1.00 ch3 1.00 ch3o 1.00 m 0.23E+20 -0.661 84139.

1.00 ch3och3 1.00 o2 0.00 ND 1.00 ch3och2 1.00 ho2 0.00 ND 0.41E+24 2.000 44910.

I tried using the command

table0 = readtable('Mechanism.dat', 'Delimiter', ' ', 'MultipleDelimsAsOne', true);
disp(table0)

however it replaces the words with the numerical value NaN. How can I overcome this issue?"

Answer 1

[Sulaymon Eshkabilov]

It is reading ok:

% *.data can be uploaded and thus, .txt file format is taken. Both works
% table0 = readtable('Mechanism.dat', 'Delimiter', ' ', 'MultipleDelimsAsOne', true);
table0 = readtable('Mechanism.txt', 'Delimiter', ' ', 'MultipleDelimsAsOne', true);
disp(table0)

    Var1       Var2        Var3     Var4     Var5     Var6     Var7       Var8        Var9     Var10      Var11    Var12      Var13     Var14     Var15
    ____    ___________    ____    ______    ____    ______    ____    ___________    ____    ________    _____    ______    _______    ______    _____

     1      {'ch3och3'}     1      {'m' }     0      {'ND'}     1      {'ch3'    }     1      {'ch3o'}      1      {'m' }    2.3e+19    -0.661    84139
     1      {'ch3och3'}     1      {'o2'}     0      {'ND'}     1      {'ch3och2'}     1      {'ho2' }      0      {'ND'}    4.1e+23         2    44910

% Alt. way is readcell
table1 = readcell('Mechanism.txt', 'Delimiter', ' ', 'MultipleDelimsAsOne', true);
disp(table1)

    {[1]}    {'ch3och3'}    {[1]}    {'m' }    {[0]}    {'ND'}    {[1]}    {'ch3'    }    {[1]}    {'ch3o'}    {[1]}    {'m' }    {[2.3000e+19]}    {[-0.6610]}    {[84139]}
    {[1]}    {'ch3och3'}    {[1]}    {'o2'}    {[0]}    {'ND'}    {[1]}    {'ch3och2'}    {[1]}    {'ho2' }    {[0]}    {'ND'}    {[4.1000e+23]}    {[      2]}    {[44910]}

[Jonatan Eisermann]

Thank you. That's correct. There was an error in my .dat file, so it wasn't working.

[Sulaymon Eshkabilov]

Most welcome. Glad to be of some help!