What Does levigation Mean
Levigation is the act and result of levying . This verb , whose etymological root is found in the Latin word levigāre (translatable as "pulverize" ), refers to dissolving a powdered matter in water in order to achieve the separation of its parts according to their thickness .
With levigation, the thicker particles settle at the bottom of the container, being separated from the thinner ones. It is a technique that is used in different industrial fields.
For the development of levigation, the first thing to do is transform an insoluble matter into powder . This powder should be wet with water or another leavening agent . Then, usually with the help of a mill, the incorporation of more water and the passage of the material through different tanks or containers, the separation is favored, although the process can also be carried out more simply.
Levigation is similar to sedimentation . In the case of sedimentation, however, the wet material is not sprayed, but only agitation is generated in water .
In mining , for example, levigation is often used to separate the minerals from the gangas (the waste that is discarded). For this, the raw mineral is pulverized, a liquid is added to it and it is subjected to a stream of water. The gangue, having a lower density, is dragged, while the mineral is deposited at the bottom since it is more dense.