Tyndall Effect in Colloidal Solution
All the Colloidal Solution shows Tyndall Effect and the following illustration shows the representation of the Tyndall effect.
As shown in the above figure, When a strong, convergent light beam passes through a colloidal solution, its path is visible when the light beam is viewed perpendicularly. Such a phenomenon is called the Tyndall effect. In the Tyndall effect, the colloidally suspended particles outline the path of a strong beam of light because of the scattering of light by the colloidal particles.
As a result, it can be used to determine whether a given solution is a colloid but not with certainty as some fine suspension also shows the Tyndall effect. The intensity of scattered light is affected by the density of colloidal particles and the frequency of incident light.
|
Type of Mixture |
Solution |
Colloid |
Suspension |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tyndall Effect | Do not scatter light | Scatter light (Tyndall effect) | May either scatter light or be opaque |
The Irish physicist John Tyndall discovered (and is named after) the Tyndall effect. The particles that cause the Tyndall effect can have diameters ranging from 40 to 900 nanometers (1 nm = 10-9 m). In comparison, the visible light spectrum has wavelengths ranging from 400 to 750 nanometers.
Tyndall Effect
Tyndall effect is the scattering of light by a colloid or an extremely tiny solution of particles. It is also known as the Tyndall phenomenon and is similar to Rayleigh scattering, in that the intensity of the scattered light is inversely proportional to the wavelength’s fourth power, with blue light being scattered far more intensely than red light.
On the other hand, the Tyndall effect is caused by particles of the same size as the wavelength of light, whereas Rayleigh scattering is caused by particles much smaller than the wavelength of light. The British physicist John Tyndall, who conducted the initial and in-depth studies of this effect, is honored with its name.