What defines a colloidal suspension?
Particle diameter less than 1 micrometer
A colloidal suspension is a type of mixture that contains two or more substances that do not dissolve in each other and have different properties, such as size, polarity, and density. The substance that is dispersed throughout the mixture is called the dispersed phase, and the substance in which the dispersed phase is suspended is called the continuous phase.
What defines a colloidal suspension is the size of the dispersed particles. In a colloidal suspension, the dispersed particles are larger than simple molecules or ions but smaller than particles that can be seen with the naked eye. These particles have a size range of between 1 nanometer and 1 micrometer, which is between the size of atoms and small cells.
In a colloidal suspension, the dispersed particles are usually evenly distributed throughout the continuous phase and they remain suspended due to the Brownian motion, which is the random movement of particles in a fluid environment. Colloidal suspensions can be classified into different types based on the dispersed phase and the continuous phase, such as sols, gels, and emulsions.
Colloidal suspensions exhibit unique properties, such as Tyndall effect, electrophoresis, and coagulation. The Tyndall effect is the scattering of light by the dispersed particles, which makes the suspension appear cloudy or opaque. Electrophoresis is the movement of charged particles under the influence of an electric field, and coagulation is the process in which the dispersed particles come together to form larger particles, resulting in the destabilization of the suspension.
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