According to electrostatic principle, for the first time, RLW (abbreviation of the author' name) electrostatic disperser for particle dispersion in air has been designed and developed successfully. Furthermore, the voltage-current characteristics and dispersion effect of RLW electrostatic disperser have been established. It was shown that the electrode constant C and the initiating electrode voltage V-0 of RLW electrostatic disperser equals to 2.678 and 8584 V, respectively. At relative humidity of the air equal to 70%, optimal electrostatic dispersion effect of calcium carbonate and talcum particles can be achieved with corona voltage of 29 kV, the corona current was improved to 1.65 mA, and the dispersion index of calcium carbonate and talcum reached 1.43 and 1.42, respectively. (C) 2003 Published by Elsevier B.V.