abstract:Sedimentation equilibrium in a solution or suspension of different particles, such as molecules, exists when the rate of transport of each material in any one direction due to sedimentation equals the rate of transport in the opposite direction due to diffusion. Sedimentation is due to an external force, such as gravity (for very large particles) or centrifugal force in a centrifuge.
The process of bed-rebuilding caused by the sedimentation in a reservoir hasdualbehaviorofnon-equilibrium and as well as of tending to establishequilibrium.