So, M’benga wrote about the particles because he’s a doctor, and they can heal by expanding molecular structures like flesh. Scotty heard about this property and was like “Well can it expand atomic structures too? We could sure use some ‘healing’ on our deuterium reserves”. And turns out it can. So, think of it as a kind of smart matter that turns into whatever it touches. With gravitic containment and good aim, that principle of copying what it touches can do both jobs. And luckily, M’benga has seemingly already designed a hose nozzle smart enough to do the job on flesh. Just copy the molecules in the right places until everything is back to normal.