entrainment

[ en-treyn-muhnt ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

the act or fact of trapping bubbles in a liquid:
A notorious problem in some ink-jet printing systems is the entrainment of tiny air bubbles in the ink during operation.
the act or fact of being drawn into a current or flow:
Fish screens have proven reliable at preventing fish entrainment into watercourses diverted for agricultural use.
the synchronization of different rhythmic cycles that interact with each other:
In individuals with sleep-wake disorder, continued treatment with medication was required to maintain entrainment of the circadian rhythms of melatonin and cortisol in the body.
Chemistry. the carrying along of a substance in a moving fluid, as drops of liquid in a vapor during evaporation or distillation:
The research studies the physical processes determining droplet entrainment in turbulent gas flow over a liquid layer in pipes and channels.
Meteorology. the transfer of air from the surrounding atmosphere into an organized air current:
During a hurricane the temperatures in the upper atmosphere depend partly on the entrainment of drier or cooler air from outside the vortex.

First recorded in 1830–40, for an earlier sense; from French entraînement, equivalent to entrain ²( def ) + -ment ( def )

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