Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

500 results found

pantothenic acid

(Encyclopedia)pantothenic acid pănˈtəthĕnˈĭk [key]: see coenzyme; vitamin. ...

oxalic acid

(Encyclopedia)oxalic acid ĕthˌāndīōĭk [key], HO2CCO2H, a colorless, crystalline organic carboxylic acid that melts at 189℃ with sublimation. Oxalic acid and oxalate salts are poisonous. Oxalic acid is found...

acid anhydride

(Encyclopedia)acid anhydride ănhīˈdrīd, –drəd [key], chemical compound that reacts with water to form an acid (see acids and bases). Anhydrides of inorganic acids are usually oxides of nonmetallic elements. ...

nitric acid

(Encyclopedia)nitric acid, chemical compound, HNO3, colorless, highly corrosive, poisonous liquid that gives off choking red or yellow fumes in moist air. It is miscible with water in all proportions. It forms an a...

acid rain

(Encyclopedia)acid rain or acid deposition, form of precipitation (rain, snow, sleet, or hail) containing high levels of sulfuric or nitric acids (pH below 5.5–5.6). Produced when sulfur dioxide and various nitro...

benzoic acid

(Encyclopedia)benzoic acid bĕnzōˈĭk [key], C6H5CO2H, crystalline solid organic acid that melts at 122℃ and boils at 249℃. It is the simplest aromatic carboxylic acid (see aryl group and carboxyl group). In ...

tartaric acid

(Encyclopedia)tartaric acid, HO2CCHOHCHOHCO2H, white crystalline dicarboxylic acid. It occurs as three distinct isomers, the dextro-, levo-, and meso- forms. The dextro- and levo- forms are optically active; the me...

sulfonic acid

(Encyclopedia)sulfonic acid səlfŏnˈĭk [key], organic compound containing the functional group RSO2OH, which consists of a sulfur atom, S, bonded to a carbon atom that may be part of a large aliphatic or aromati...

Browse by Subject