In the present investigation, Taylor's analysis of the axial dispersion of a solute in a Newtonian fluid undergoing laminar flow through a circular tube was applied to dispersions of colloidal particles, in which effects of size exclusion, inertial and colloidal forces, and wall retardation must be considered. The results indicate that the product of the particle Reynolds and Peclet numbers determines the importance of the inertial forces on both the effective axial diffusion coefficient and the height of a theoretical plate.
The height of a theoretical plate as a function of the eluant ionic strength and average velocity, particle diameter, and tube diameter was determined experimentally. Close agreement with the numerical calculations from the diffusion equation was obtained. The height of a theoretical plate was found to attain a maximum value when the product of Reynolds and Peclet numbers was approximately 10.5.