CHEMISTRY GLOSSARY

chromium    →   krom

Chromium was discovered by Louis-Nicholas Vauquelin (France) in 1797. The origin of the name comes from the Greek word chroma meaning colour. It is very hard, crystalline, steel-grey metal. The pure metal has a blue-white colour. It is hard, brittle and corrosion-resistant at normal temperatures. Hexavalent compounds toxic by skin contact. The most important chromium mineral is chromite [Fe,Mg(CrO₄)]. Produced commercially by heating its ore in the presence of silicon or aluminium. Used to make stainless steel. It gives the colour to rubies and emeralds. Iron-nickel-chromium alloys in various percentages yield an incredible variety of the most important metals in modern technology.

copper    →   bakar

Copper has been known since ancient times. The origin of the name comes from the Latin word cuprum meaning the island of Cyprus famed for its copper mines. It is malleable, ductile, reddish-brown metal. Resistant to air and water. Exposed surfaces form greenish carbonate film. Pure copper occurs rarely in nature. Usually found in sulfides as in chalcopyrite (CuFeS₂), coveline (CuS), chalcosine (Cu₂S) or oxides like cuprite (Cu₂O). Most often used as an electrical conductor. Also used in the manufacture of water pipes. Its alloys are used in jewellery and for coins.

impedance    →   impedancija

Impedance is the analogue of the resistance or resistivity when applied to alternating current. That is, it is a measure of a material’s inability to carry the electrical current. In many materials the impedance varies as the frequency of the applied electrical potential changes, due to the properties of the conducting liquid or solid. In electrochemistry, the impedance of the electrodes is also frequency dependent.

insulator    →   izolator

Insulator is a material in which the highest occupied energy band (valence band) is completely filled with electrons, while the next higher band (conduction band) is empty. Solids with an energy gap of 5 eV or more are generally considered as insulators at room temperature. Their conductivity is less than 10^-6 S/m and increases with temperature.

coulomb    →   kulon

Coulomb (C) is the SI unit of electric charge. It is equal to the charge transferred by a current of one ampere in one second (C = A s). The unit was named after the French physicist C. A. Coulomb (1736-1806).

Coulomb’s law    →   Coulombov zakon

Coulomb’s law is the statement that the force F between two electrical charges q₁ and q₂ separated by a distance r is

where ε_o is the permittivity of a vacuum, equal to

cross-linking    →   umrežavanje

Cross-linking is an attachment of two chains of polymer molecules by bridges, composed of either an element, a group, or a compound, that join certain carbon atoms of the chains by primary chemical bonds, as indicated in the schematic diagram

Cross-linking occurs in nature in substances made up of polypeptide chains that are joined by the disulfide bonds of the cysteine residue, as in keratins or insulin. Cross-linking can be artificially effected, either adding a chemical substance (cross-linking agent), or by subjecting the polymer to high-energy radiation. Examples are: vulcanisation of rubber with sulphur, cross-linking of polystyrene with divinylbenzene, or cross-linking of polyethylene by means of high-energy radiation.

Cross-linking has the effect of changing a plastic from thermoplastic to thermosetting. Thus, it also increases strength, heat and electrical resistance, and especially resistance to solvents and other chemicals.

dialysis    →   dijaliza

Dialysis is a method by which large molecules (such as starch or protein) and small molecules (such as glucose or amino acids) may be separated in a solution by selective diffusion through a semipermeable membrane. Through this kind of membrane dissolved particles pass and colloid dimension particles fall behind. For example, if a mixed solution of starch and glucose is placed in a closed container made of a semipermeable substance (such as cellophane), which is then immersed in a beaker of water, the smaller glucose molecules will pass trough the membrane into the water, while the starch molecules remain behind.

ionic current    →   ionska struja

Ionic current is an electric current with ions as charge carriers

ligand field theory    →   teorija ligandnog polja

Ligand field theory is a description of the structure of crystals containing a transition metal ion surrounded by nonmetallic ions (ligands). It is based on the construction of molecular orbitals involving the d-orbitals of the central metal ion and combinations of atomic orbitals of the ligands.