Sedimentation of a solid material (a precipitate) from a liquid solution in
which the material is present in amounts greater than its solubility in the liquid.
Note:
When precipitation occurs in sol-gel processing, sol particles have
aggregated to a size where gravitational forces cause them to sink or float.
Generally, aggregation arises from a change in the sol that reduces the interparticle repulsion.
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 1824