CHEMISTRY GLOSSARY

abundance of elements    →   rasprostranjenost elemenata

Elements in nature are mostly found in different compounds and, rarely, in the free (elementary) state. In Earth’s crust the most abundant of all elements is oxygen (with 49.5 %), then silicon (25 %), aluminium (7.5 %), iron (4.7 %), calcium (3.4 %), sodium (2.6 %), potassium (2.4 %), magnesium (1.9 %) and hydrogen (1.9 %). These nine elements make up almost 99 % of the Earth’s composition.

acid salt    →   kisela sol

Acid salt is a compound formed by replacing hydrogen in an acid with a metal (or a radical that acts like a metal).

atom radius    →   radijus atoma

Atoms and molecules have no strict boundaries. The volume of a free atom is usually defined as that volume that contains 90 % of electron cloud. The radius of an atom represents half of interatom distance of two identical atoms which are in touch but are not interconnected either by a covalent or an ionic bond, but with a very weak van der Waals’s bond.

auxochrome    →   auksokromna grupa

Auxochrome is a group or substructure in a molecule that influences the intensity of absorption of the molecule.

brass    →   mjed

Brasses are alloys of copper and zinc (generally 5 % to 40 %). Brass has been known to man since prehistoric times, long before zinc itself was discovered. It was produced by melting copper together with calamine, a zinc ore. Its ductility reaches a maximum with about 30 % zinc and its tensile strength with 45 % although this property varies greatly with the mechanical and heat treatment of the alloy. Typical applications included gears, plumbing ware fittings, adapters, valves and screw machine products. The French horn is a valved brass wind instrument.

Brass may contain small amounts of other alloying elements, such as aluminum, lead, tin, or nickel. Lead can be added as an alloying element resulting in a brass that can be rapidly machined and produces minimal tool wear. Additions of aluminium, iron and manganese to brass improve strength, whilst silicon additions improve wear resistance. Brass containing tin (< 2 % ) is less liable to corrosion in seawater; it is sometimes called naval brass and is used in naval construction.

cation exchange    →   kationski izmjenjivač

Cation exchange is a cationic resin has positive ions built into its structure and therefore exchanges negative ions. In the cation exchange, the side groups are ionised acidic groups, such as (-SO₃H, -COOH, -OH) to which cations H⁺ are attached. The exchange reaction is one in which different cations in the solution displace the H⁺ from the solid.

cyanogen    →   cijan

Cyanogen is a colourless gas, (CN)₂ with a pungent odour. The compound is very toxic. It my be prepared in the laboratory by heating mercury (II) cyanide.

Bunsen burner    →   Bunsenov plamenik

Bunsen burner is a standard source of heat in the laboratory. German chemist Roberts Bunsen (1811-1899) improved the burner's design, which had been invented by Faraday, to aid his endeavors in spectroscopy. The Bunsen burner has a vertical metal tube through which a fine jet of fuel gas is directed. Air is drawn in through airholes near the base of the tube and the mixture is ignited and burns at the tube’s upper opening. The flow of this air is controlled by an adjustable collar on the side of the metal tube. When the whole is closed a yellow safety flame is displayed. Where as when the whole is open it displays a power dull blue flame with a faint blue outer flame with a vibrant blue core used u for combustion and hearting. The flame can reach temperatures of 1 500 °C.

chlorine    →   klor

Chlorine was discovered by Carl William Scheele (Sweden) in 1774. The origin of the name comes from the Greek word chloros meaning pale green. It is greenish-yellow, disagreeable gas with irritating odour. Gas is toxic and severe irritant by contact or inhalation. Never found in free form in nature. Commercial quantities of chlorine are produced by electrolysis of aqueous sodium chloride (NaCl) from seawater or brine from salt mines. Used in water purification, bleaches, acids and many, many other compounds such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFC).

Knudsen number    →   Knudsenova značajka

Knudsen number (Kn) is a dimensionless quantity used in fluid mechanics, defined by

where λ is mean free path and l is length.