ˌsupersatuˈration
[f. supersaturate v.: see -ation.]
The action of supersaturating; the condition or state of being supersaturated; addition of more than is sufficient for saturation (cf. saturation 3).
| 1791 Phil. Trans. LXXXI. 400 By a super-saturation of the medium. 1793 Beddoes Calculus 22 A supersaturation of the alkali. 1836 J. M. Gully Magendie's Formul. (ed. 2) 116 The supersaturation of the system with iodine..may be known by..the following symptoms. 1842 Parnell Chem. Anal. (1845) 321 The lead in excess now existing in the solution is precipitated by supersaturation with sulphuretted hydrogen gas. 1876 Phil. Mag. II. 216 This is a consequence..of the condition of supersaturation being maintained even in solutions from which crystals of sugar are being deposited. 1902 Encycl. Brit. XXVIII. 568/1. 1941 [see kern n.2 3]. 1983 Sci. Amer. June 108/3 The concentration of dissolved nitrogen in the dolphin's muscle tissue was indicative of a degree of supersaturation that in a human diver would have been dangerous. |
| fig. 1802–12 Bentham Ration. Judic. Evid. (1827) I. 435 By supersaturation, as well as by inanition, the powers of the mind..may be destroyed. |