Keywords
Adsorption; coagulation; floc breakage; flocculation; flocculation kinetics; fractals; hydrolyzing metal salts; polymeric flocculants; sweep flocculation
Definition
Flocculation is a process whereby small particles in suspension are caused to aggregate, giving large clusters (flocs) that are much more easily separated than the original particles. The process is in widespread use in many industrial applications.
Overview
Flocculation is a process that is widely used in industrial applications, such as biotechnology, mineral processing, papermaking, water and wastewater treatment, and others. It depends essentially on collision and attachment of particles in a suspension. In this way, particle aggregates (flocs) are formed that are very much larger than the original (primary) particles so that they can be more easily separated by physical methods. The generic term for this process is “aggregation,”...
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Gregory, J. (2013). Flocculation Fundamentals. In: Tadros, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Colloid and Interface Science. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-20665-8_17
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-20665-8_17
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
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