Encyclopedia

tartar

tartar or argol (är'gul) [key], impure potassium hydrogen tartrate deposited as a crust in fermenting vessels during wine making. When purified, it yields cream of tartar. Tartar is the chief natural source of tartaric acid.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

More on tartar from Fact Monster:

  • dental tartar - tartar, dental tartar, dental, precipitate of saliva that accumulates around teeth at the gum line. ...
  • Tartars - Tartars: Tartars: see Tatars.
  • cream of tartar - cream of tartar cream of tartar, white crystalline powder. Chemically it is potassium hydrogen ...
  • tartaric acid - tartaric acid tartaric acid, HO2CCHOHCHOHCO2H, white crystalline dicarboxylic acid. It occurs as ...
  • argol - argol argol : see tartar.

See more Encyclopedia articles on: Organic Chemistry