CHEMISTRY GLOSSARY

astatine    →   astat

Astatine was discovered by Emilio Gino Segrè, Dale R. Corson and K. R. MacKenzie (USA) in 1940. The origin of the name comes from the Greek word astatos meaning unstable. It is unstable, radioactive member of the halogen group. Astatine does not occur in nature. Similar to iodine. Produced by bombarding bismuth with alpha particles. Since its isotopes have such short half-lives there are no commercially significant compounds of astatine.

ball mill    →   kuglični mlin

Ball mill is a grinder for reducing hard materials to powder. The grinding is carried out by the pounding and rolling of a charge of steel or ceramic balls carried within the cylinder. The cylinder rotates at a relatively slow speed, allowing the balls to cascade through the mill base, thus grinding or dispersing the materials.

Type of ball mills, centrifugal and planetary mills, are devices used to rapidly grind materials to colloidal fineness (approximately 1 μm and below) by developing high grinding energy via centrifugal and/or planetary action.

transference number    →   prijenosni broj

Transference number of an ion is the fraction of the total current that is carried by that ion during electrolysis. Different ions carry different fractions of the current because different ions move at different speeds under the same potential gradient. In general, a cation and an anion differ in the amount of current they can carry during electrolysis.

van der Waals’s radius    →   van der Waalsov radijus

Van der Waals’s radius is one half the distances between two nonbonded atoms, when attractive and repulsive forces between the atoms are balanced.

barium    →   barij

Barium was discovered by Sir Humphry Davy (England) in 1808. The origin of the name comes from the Greek word barys meaning heavy. It is soft, slightly malleable, silvery-white metal. Attacked by air and water. Soluble compounds toxic by ingestion. Barium is found in barytine (BaSO₄) and witherite (BaCO₃), never found in pure form due to its reactivity. Must be stored under kerosene to remain pure. Barite, or barium sulfate (BaSO₄), when ground is used as a filter for rubber, plastics and resins. It is insoluble in water and so is used in X-rays of the digestive system. Barium nitrate, Ba(NO₃)₂, burns brilliant green and is used in fireworks.

battery    →   baterija

Battery a device that converts chemical energy to electrical energy. The process underlying the operation of a battery involves a chemical reaction in which electrons are transferred from one chemical species to another. This process is carried out in two half-reactions, one that involves the loss of electrons and one that involves their gain. The battery is an electrochemical cell divided in two half-cells, and reaction proceeds when these are connected together by an electrically conducting pathway. The passage of electrons from one half-cell to the other corresponds to an electric current. Each half-cell contains an electrode in contact with the reacting species. The electrode which passes electrons into the circuit when battery discharges is called anode and is negative terminal. The electrode which receives electrons is called cathode, and is the battery’s positive terminal. The electrical circuit is completed by an electrolyte, an electrically conducting substance placed between the two electrodes which carriers a flow of charge between them. In wet cells, the electrolyte is a liquid containing dissolved ions, whose motion generates an electrical current; in dry cells the electrolyte is basely solid, for example, a solid with mobile ions or porous solid saturated with an ionic solution.

beryllium    →   berilij

Beryllium was discovered by Friedrich Wöhler (Germany) and independently by A. B. Bussy (France) in 1828. The origin of the name comes from the Greek word beryllos meaning mineral beryl; also called glucinium from the Greek word glykys meaning sweet. It is steel-grey metal. It resists attack by concentrated nitric acid, has excellent thermal conductivity and is nonmagnetic. At ordinary temperatures, it resists oxidation in air. Beryllium and its salts are toxic and should be handled with the greatest of care. Beryllium is found mostly in minerals like beryl [AlBe₃(Si₆O₁₈)] and chrysoberyl (Al₂BeO₄). Pure beryllium is obtained by chemically reducing beryl mineral. Also by electrolysis of beryllium chloride. Its ability to absorb large amounts of heat makes it useful in spacecraft, missiles, aircraft, etc. Emeralds are beryl crystals with chromium traces giving them their green colour.

bismuth    →   bizmut

Bismuth was discovered by Claude Geoffroy (France) in 1753. The origin of the name comes from the German words Weisse Masse meaning white mass; now spelled wismut and bisemutum. It is hard, brittle, steel-grey metal with a pink tint. Stable in oxygen and water. Dissolves in concentrated nitric acid. Bismuth can be found free in nature and in minerals like bismuthine (Bi₂S₃) and in bismuth ochre (Bi₂O₃) Main use is in pharmaceuticals and low melting point alloys used as fuses.

boron    →   bor

Boron compounds have been known for thousands of years, but the element was not discovered until 1808 by Sir Humphry Davy (England) and independently by Joseph-Louis Gay-Lussac (France) and L. J. Thenard (France). The origin of the name comes from the Arabic word buraq and the Persian word burah meaning boraks. It is hard, brittle, lustrous black semimetal. Unreactive with oxygen, water, alkalis or acids. Combines with most metals to form borides. Boron is obtained from kernite, a kind of borax (Na₂B₄O₇·10H₂O). High purity boron is produced by electrolysis of molten potassium fluroborate and potassium chloride (KCl). Amorphous boron is used in pyrotechnic flares to provide a distinctive green color and in rockets as an igniter.

bromine    →   brom

Bromine was discovered by Antoine J. Balard (France) in 1826. The origin of the name comes from the Greek word bromos meaning stench. It is reddish-brown liquid with suffocating, irritating fumes. Gives off poisonous vapour. Causes severe burns. Oxidizer. Bromine occurs in compounds in sea water. It was once used in large quantities to make a compound that removed lead compound build up in engines burning leaded gasoline. Now it is primarily used in dyes, disinfectants and photographic chemicals.