NOVELTY - Dispersing particles in a medium involves providing a first particle/solvent dispersion comprising the particles and a first solvent; adding a second solvent to the first particle/solvent dispersion to form a second particle/solvent dispersion, where the first solvent and the second solvent are miscible; and extracting substantially all of the first solvent from the second particle/solvent dispersion to form a third particle/solvent dispersion.    USE - The method is used for dispersing particles in a medium for producing a particulate reinforced composite (claimed). This composite may be used to form reinforcing or abrasion resistant coatings; used to coat glass and plastic windows, face masks, and other objects designed to be transparent or translucent; used to prevent scratches; as gas barrier coatings for clothing; for packaging; used in stents and other biomedical devices requiring stiffness and a large strain to failure; and used to form fibers, films, and coatings. This composite is useful in LEDs, filters, solar cells, and photodetectors; in telecommunications, such as, in sources, modulators, channel monitoring devices, and switches for optical signals; as pigments or to modify the dielectric constant of the polymer matrix.    ADVANTAGE - The method can achieve high exfoliation of clay particles and can completely disperse a variety of nanoparticles in polymers. This enhances the mechanical properties and increases the heat distortion temperature of the resulting composite. The method also provides optical and electronic properties to polymer matrix composites.    DETAILED DESCRIPTION - An INDEPENDENT CLAIM is also included for a particulate reinforced composite produced by providing a first particle/solvent dispersion, adding a second solvent to the first particle/solvent dispersion, extracting substantially all of the first solvent from the second particle/solvent dispersion, dissolving a polymer in the third particle/solvent dispersion to form a dispersed particle/dissolved polymer mixture, and extracting at least a portion of the solvent from the mixture.