Dispersions are multi-phase mixtures consisting of substances that are insoluble in one another. One phase is the continuous phase in which small particles of the other phase are dispersed. A suspension consists of a liquid continuous phase and dispersed solid particles. In an emulsion the dispersed particles are small droplets of another liquid, and a foam consists of a liquid continuous phase and dispersed gas bubbles.
Over time destabilisation processes take place inside dispersions: the dispersed particles can sediment or cream due to gravity. Moreover phase separation occurs because of the interfacial tension: the dispersed particles cluster or merge in order to minimise their interfacial area to the surrounding continuous phase.
These destabilisation mechanisms can be characterised time- and temperature-dependent with the stability analysis system MS 20 from DataPhysics.