aerosol

Sol in which the dispersed phase is a solid, a liquid or a mixture of both and the continuous phase is a gas (usually air).
Notes:
  1. Owing to their size, the particles of the dispersed phase have a comparatively small settling velocity and hence exhibit some degree of stability in the earth s gravitational field.
  2. An aerosol can be characterized by its chemical composition, its radioactivity (if any), the particle size distribution, the electrical charge and the optical properties.
  3. Modified from previous definition, within which particles with equivalent diameters usually between 0.01 and 100 μm are specified. This extends beyond the size range specified for a colloidal system. To avoid confusion the definition proposed here is recommended.
Source:
PAC, 2007, 79, 1801 (Definitions of terms relating to the structure and processing of sols, gels, networks, and inorganic-organic hybrid materials (IUPAC Recommendations 2007)) on page 1805