What are the four ways the internal phase of emulsions can form aggregates?

• A. creaming, aggregation, coalescence, and breaking
• B. creaming, flocculation, coagulation, and breaking
• C. creaming, flocculation, coalescence, and sedimentation
• D. creaming, flocculation, coalescence, and breaking

Answer: (C)

Emulsions can form aggregates of the dispersed droplets through both gravitational separation and inter-droplet interactions. If the dispersed phase is less dense than the continuous phase, droplets drift upward and collect at the top—creaming. If it is more dense, they drift downward to the bottom—sedimentation. Droplets can also cluster together without merging, a process called flocculation, where they stay as individual droplets but move together as a loose aggregate. Finally, droplets can merge to form larger droplets, known as coalescence, which directly changes the size distribution and accelerates separation. These four modes—creaming, sedimentation, flocculation, and coalescence—describe how the internal phase can form aggregates in an emulsion.