The effect of impeller blade width on the critical impeller speed (Njs) for the suspension of solid particles has been studied in a flat-bottomed agitated vessel of inside diameter 0.29 m. Tap water and resin particle of 0.506 mm are used as liquid and solid phases respectively. The solid loading was 5 % by volume. In this study, the following three impellers were employed, namely Rushton turbine, pitched blade turbine and A320 impellers. The ratio of impeller width to vessel diameter was varied in the range of 0.21 to 0.41. The ratio of impeller clearance to vessel diameter was varied in the range of 0.17 to 0.41. With the increase in impeller blade width, the critical impeller speed initially decreases to a minimum value and then increases with the impeller blade width. The A320 impeller was found to be more energy efficient than pitched blade turbine and Rushton turbine impellers. The impeller blade width has a more significant effect on the critical impeller speed of A320 impeller. Pitched blade turbine shows that the strong dependence of impeller clearance on critical impeller speed. A modified Zwietering correlation has been proposed for the estimation of critical impeller speed as a function of impeller blade width, which is expected to be useful in design. © Research India Publications.