sedimentation
(rus. седиментация)
—
(from Latin sedimentum meaning "sedimentation") – settling of dispersed phase particles (solid granules, liquid droplets, gas bubbles) in a liquid or gaseous dispersion medium in gravitational or centrifugal force field.
Description
Sedimentation occurs when the directional movement of particles under gravity or centrifugal force prevails over the chaotic thermal motion of particles. The sedimentation rate depends on a particle's mass, size and shape, medium viscosity and density as well as particles' acceleration under the effects of the above-mentioned forces. Sedimentation in dispersed systems (especially with a gas dispersion medium) is often accompanied by the enlargement of sediment particles due to coagulation or coalescence. Sedimentation in centrifuges and ultracentrifuges as well as in gravitational field is the basis for sedimentation analysis.
Author
- Shlyakhtin Oleg A.
Sources
- Sedimentation // The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (in Russian), 3rd. Edition — Мoscow: Sovetskaja ehnciklopedija, 1969–1978. — http://bse.sci-lib.com/article100742.html (reference date: 31.07.2010).
- Chemical Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian) // Ed. by Knunjanc I. L. — Мoscow: Sovetskaja ehnciklopedija, 1983. 519 pp.