ABSTRACT
L INTRODUCTION Colloidal aggregates constitute the fundaments of agricultural soils [1-12] and sediments of the aquatic environment [13-20]. Aggregation processes serve in industrial and environmental strategies [21-27]. Aggregation or agglutination techniques are employed in a great number of biological and medical applications [28-35]. The well-known role of polymers as aggre gation agents extends to all these domains. The opposite process of frag mentation means that the aggregate becomes dispersed into single consti tutive solid particles. However, this fully dispersed stage may not be reached for thermodynamic or kinetic reasons, and therefore at equilibrium or after a given period, fragments of smaller mass and size coexist with single par ticles. The unbreakable constitutive solid particle may be monodisperse or polydisperse in mass, size, and shape.
