Question

What is a suspension of a heterogeneous mixture?

Answer 1

chemistry, a suspension is a heterogeneous mixture that contains solid particles sufficiently large for sedimentation. The particles may be visible to the naked eye, usually must be larger than 1 micrometer, and will eventually settle. A suspension is a heterogeneous mixture in which the solute particles do not dissolve, but get suspended throughout the bulk of the solvent, left floating around freely in the medium.^[1] The internal phase (solid) is dispersed throughout the external phase (fluid) through mechanical agitation, with the use of certain excipients or suspending agents. An example of a suspension would be sand in water. The suspended particles are visible under a microscope and will settle over time if left undisturbed. This distinguishes a suspension from a colloid, in which the suspended particles are smaller and do not settle.^[2]Colloids and suspensions are different from solution, in which the dissolved substance (solute) does not exist as a solid, and solvent and solute are homogeneously mixed.