suspension (redirected from Suspensions)

suspension, in vehicles

suspension, in automobiles, system of springs used to suspend the frame, body, engine, and power train above the wheels. Its principal purpose is to lessen the jarring of the automobile that is caused by irregularities in the roads traveled. Since the wheels of an automobile accelerate, stop, and steer it, the suspension must also serve to keep the wheels in close contact with the road surface at all times. The types of springs used in suspensions include leaf springs, coil springs, torsion bars, and air springs. There have been many refinements in modern suspensions. On most vehicles the front wheels are suspended independently, i.e., the front axle has been eliminated. Certain vehicles also have the rear wheels suspended independently. Hydraulic shock absorbers have been included to prevent the springs from shaking the automobile excessively after a jolt. An elaborate system of mechanical linkages is often included to position the mass of the vehicle accurately with respect to its wheels during accelerating, braking, and steering.

---

suspension, in chemistry

suspension, in chemistry, mixture of two substances, one of which is finely divided and dispersed in the other. Common suspensions include sand in water, fine soot or dust in air, and droplets of oil in air. A suspension is different from a colloid or solution. Particles in a suspension are larger than those in colloids or solutions; they are visible under a microscope, and some can be seen with the naked eye. Particles in a suspension precipitate if the suspension is allowed to stand undisturbed.

---

suspension - In lazy evaluation, a suspension (or in Henderson's terminology, a "recipe") is a closure with a flag indicating whether the expression has been evaluated or not. When the expression is evaluated the first time, this flag is set. Subsequent requests for the value of the expression will not attempt to re-evaluate it.