The key difference between levigation and trituration is that levigation is important in mixing or triturating a powder with a liquid in which it is insoluble to reduce its particle size, whereas trituration is important in reducing the particle size of powders to make a greater surface area available.
Levigation is the process of decreasing the particle size of powders via the process of triturating them with a mortar and pestle in the presence of a small amount of liquid in which the substance is insoluble. Trituration is a process useful in purifying crude chemical compounds consisting of soluble impurities.
CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Levigation
3. What is Trituration
4. Levigation vs Trituration in Tabular Form
5. Summary – Levigation vs Trituration
What is Levigation?
Levigation is the process of decreasing the particle size of powders via the process of triturating them with a mortar and pestle in the presence of a small amount of liquid in which the substance is insoluble. The chemicals we can use for this process are known as levigating agents or wetting agents. This type of liquid can displace the film of air existing on the surface of dry powders. Typically, there is a thin layer of air on every powder ingredient, which creates an air barrier that can hinder the uniform mixing with the base that is important in compounding the formulation.
What is Trituration?
Trituration is a collection of methods that are used to process material. It can be described as either a form of comminution or as the production of a homogenous powdered material through mixing and grinding component materials thoroughly. For instance, the formation of dental amalgam by combining particles of a metal such as gold or silver with mercury.
In organic chemistry, trituration can be described as a process useful in purifying crude chemical compounds consisting of soluble impurities. Here, we can choose a solvent in which the desired product is not soluble in the solvent where the undesired byproducts are very soluble or vice versa. For instance, if there are impurities that are soluble and the desired product is not soluble in the solvent, we can wash the crude material with the solvent and then filter the mixture to get the purified product in solid form. In the meantime, the impurities in the solution are washed away.
In pharmacology, the process of trituration involves the grinding of one compound into another for the dilution of one of the ingredients. It is also useful in adding volume for processing and handling as well as in masking undesirable qualities. Moreover, the process of juicing considers trituration juicer as a style of juicer that we can use to break down fresh produce into juice and fiber.
What is the Difference Between Levigation and Trituration?
Levigation and trituration are important analytical techniques. The key difference between levigation and trituration is that levigation is important in mixing or triturating a powder with a liquid in which it is insoluble to reduce the particle size, whereas trituration is important in reducing the particle size of powders to make a greater surface area available.
The following table summarizes the difference between levigation and trituration.
Summary – Levigation vs Trituration
Levigation is the process of decreasing the particle size of powders via the process of triturating them with a mortar and pestle in the presence of a small amount of liquid in which the substance is insoluble. Trituration is a process useful in purifying crude chemical compounds consisting of soluble impurities. The key difference between levigation and trituration is that levigation is important in mixing or triturating a powder with a liquid in which it is insoluble to reduce the particle size, whereas trituration is important in reducing the particle size of powders to make a greater surface area available.
Reference:
1. “Water Treatment Solutions.” Lenntech Water Treatment & Purification.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Photo of hand, glass, red, color, drink, blue, health, preparation, alcohol, wine glass, science, laboratory, mix, pharmacy, organ, drug, lab, medical, chemistry, compounding, healthcare, pharmacist, formula, stemware, sense” (CC0) via Pxhere
2. “Agropole Oliviers Unité de trituration Cl J Weber20” By inra.dist –(CC BY 2.0) via Commons Wikimedia