CHEMISTRY GLOSSARY

explosion    →   eksplozija

Explosion is a rapid violent chemical reaction that produces large amounts of gas and heat, accompanied by light, sound and a high-pressure shock wave.

gray    →   grej

Gray (Gy) is the SI derived unit of absorbed dose of radiation. The gray is the absorbed dose when the energy per unit mass imparted to matter by ionising radiation is one joule per kilogram (Gy = J/kg). The unit was named after the British scientist Louis Harold Gray (1905-1965).

gunpowder    →   barut

Gunpowder (black powder) is a low explosive composed of potassium nitrate, sulphur and charcoal. Typical proportions are 6:1:1.

harmonic motion    →   harmoničko gibanje

Harmonic motion is caused by restoring force, acting on a body that is displaced from its equilibrium position. This force tries to put the body back in equilibrium. Usual examples are the motion of a body attached to elastic spring (see: Hooke’s law) and the motion of mathematical pendulum. The body undergoes periodic motion around the equilibrium point.

balance    →   vaga

Balance is an instrument to measure the mass (or weight) of a body. Balance beam type scales are the oldest type and measure weight using a fulcrum or pivot and a lever with the unknown weight placed on one end of the lever, and a counterweight applied to the other end. When the lever is balanced, the unknown weight and the counterweight are equal. The equal-arm balance consists of two identical pans hung from either end of a centrally suspended beam. The unequal-arm balance is made with one arm of the balance much longer than the other.

More modern substitution balances use the substitution principle. In this calibrated weights are removed from the single lever arm to bring the single pan suspended from it into equilibrium with a fixed counter weight. The substitution balance is more accurate than the two-pan device and enables weighing to be carried out more rapidly.

Electromagnetic force restoration balances also use a lever system but a magnetic field is used to generate the force on the opposite end of the lever and balance out the unknown mass. The current used to drive the magnetic coil is proportional to the mass of the object placed on the platform.

heat    →   toplina

Heat is a form of energy associated with and proportional to molecular motion. It can be transferred from one body to another by radiation, conduction, or convection.

melanin    →   melanin

Melanin is a skin pigment (substance that gives the skin its colour). Dark-skinned people have more melanin than light-skinned people.

metabolism    →   metabolizam

Metabolism is a sum of all chemical and physiological processes by which the body builds and maintains itself. It is a process of building the body’s molecular structures from nutrients (anabolism) and breaking them down for energy (catabolism).

carbon    →   ugljik

Carbon has been known since ancient times. The origin of the name comes from the Latin word carbo meaning charcoal. Graphite form of carbon is a black, odourless, slippery solid. Graphite sublimes at 3825 °C. Diamond form is a clear or colored; an extremely hard solid. C60 is Buckminsterfullerine. Carbon black burns readily with oxidants. Carbon is made by burning organic compounds with insufficient oxygen. There are close to ten million known carbon compounds, many thousands of which are vital to organic and life processes. Radiocarbon dating uses the carbon-14 isotope to date old objects.

dielectric constant    →   dielektrična konstanta

Dielectric constant or permittivity (ε) is an index of the ability of a substance to attenuate the transmission of an electrostatic force from one charged body to another. The lower the value, the greater the attenuation. The standard measurement apparatus utilises a vacuum whose dielectric constant is 1. In reference to this, various materials interposed between the charged terminal have the following value at 20 °C:

The exceptionally high value for water accounts for its unique behaviour as a solvent and in electrolytic solutions. Dielectric constant values decrease as the temperature rises.