agglomerating

Agglomerating is the act of forming an agglomerate—an aggregate, cluster, or mass—by the gathering together of separate particles, droplets, or entities. The term is used across disciplines to describe both natural clumping and engineered binding, and it can refer to solids, liquids, or organizations.

In materials science and process engineering, agglomeration describes particle clumping due to interparticle forces such as van der Waals attraction, capillary forces from moisture, or electrostatic interactions. It can be undesirable, causing poor flow or segregation, or desirable, to yield granules or pellets with improved handling characteristics. Techniques to promote agglomeration include wet granulation, dry granulation, and pelletization, often using binders, moisture control, and drying steps. The resulting agglomerates differ in size, porosity, and mechanical strength, and are chosen to suit downstream processes like compaction, extraction, or dissolution.

Outside manufacturing, agglomeration appears in soil science, mining, and environmental remediation, where fine particles are made into larger units to improve stability, permeability, or filtration. For example, in heap leaching, fines may be agglomerated with binders to enhance solution percolation and distribute liquids more evenly.

In economics and regional science, agglomeration refers to the clustering of firms and activities in a geographic area, producing agglomeration economies through shared inputs, specialized labor, and knowledge spillovers. The process can raise productivity and attract investment, shaping urban growth, policy, and planning decisions.

See also agglomeration.