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The Collaborative International Dictionary
Comminution

Comminution \Com`mi*nu"tion\, n.

  1. The act of reducing to a fine powder or to small particles; pulverization; the state of being comminuted.
    --Bentley.

  2. (Surg.) Fracture (of a bone) into a number of pieces.
    --Dunglison.

  3. Gradual diminution by the removal of small particles at a time; a lessening; a wearing away.

    Natural and necessary comminution of our lives.
    --Johnson.

Wiktionary
comminution

n. 1 (context mining, waste management English) The breaking or grinding up of a material to form smaller particles. 2 (context traumatology English) Fracture of a bone site in multiple pieces (at least three); crumbling.

Wikipedia
Comminution

Comminution is the reduction of solid materials from one average particle size to a smaller average particle size, by crushing, grinding, cutting, vibrating, or other processes. In geology, it occurs naturally during faulting in the upper part of the Earth's crust. In industry, it is an important unit operation in mineral processing, ceramics, electronics, and other fields, accomplished with many types of mill. In dentistry, it is the result of mastication of food. In general medicine, it is one of the most traumatic forms of bone fracture.

Within industrial uses, the purpose of comminution is to reduce the size and to increase the surface area of solids. It is also used to free useful materials from matrix materials in which they are embedded, and to concentrate minerals.