Definition
Sedimentation is a process whereby the particles of a suspension that have density larger than the medium in which they are dispersed settle under the influence of gravity. This is particularly the case with particles of radius R > 1 μm when the density difference between the particles and medium Δρ is > 0.1. When the gravity force that is (4/3)R3ΔρgL (where g is the acceleration due to gravity and L is the height of the container) is higher than the Brownian motion kT (where k is the Boltzmann constant and T is the absolute temperature), the particles will settle to the bottom of the container and form a compact sediment (“clay” or “cake”) that is dilatant (shear thickening). For a polydisperse suspension (that is mostly the case in practice), the larger particles will settle at a faster rate than the smaller ones. A concentration gradient is produced with the volume fraction of the suspension ϕ decreasing exponentially...
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Tadros, T. (2013). Sedimentation. In: Tadros, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Colloid and Interface Science. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-20665-8_140
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-20665-8_140
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-642-20664-1
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