Resuspends

Resuspends is the third-person singular present tense form of the verb resuspend, meaning to cause something that has settled or separated to be suspended again in a liquid or gas. Resuspend can also refer to the act of reintroducing a solid or particulate into a suspension after it has been settled or removed.

In environmental and earth sciences, resuspension describes particles that are lifted back into suspension from a surface by agitation, flow, or wind. For example, sediment can be resuspended in a river or coastal zone by currents, while dust or soil particles can be resuspended into the air by human activity or surface erosion. Factors affecting resuspension include shear stress, turbulence, grain size, density, surface roughness, and moisture. Resuspension processes influence turbidity, contaminant transport, and the exposure of ecosystems to settled materials.

In laboratory and industrial contexts, resuspension refers to re-dispersing solids or cells in a liquid after deposition or centrifugation. Common examples include resuspending a pellet in buffer after centrifugation, or re-dispersing powders to achieve a uniform suspension. Effective resuspension requires adequate mixing without causing damage to sensitive materials; techniques include gentle pipetting, vortexing with care, or using mild surfactants as appropriate.

Resuspension also has implications for indoor air quality and public health, where particles previously deposited on surfaces can become airborne again through movement, cleaning, or HVAC activity. Understanding resuspension helps in modeling exposure, controlling contamination, and designing processes that minimize unwanted re-dispersion.