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water

(Encyclopedia)CE5 A. Water molecule (black circles represent valence-shell electrons) B. Structure of ice: Each oxygen atom (white circles) is bonded to four other oxygen atoms by hydrogen bonds, the hydrogen at...

water gas

(Encyclopedia)water gas, colorless poisonous gas that burns with an intensely hot, bluish (nearly colorless) flame. The gas is a mixture of carbon monoxide and hydrogen with very small amounts of other gases, e.g.,...

alkyl group

(Encyclopedia)alkyl group ălˈkĭl [key], in chemistry, group of carbon and hydrogen atoms derived from an alkane molecule by removing one hydrogen atom (see radical). The name of the alkyl group is derived from t...

tritium

(Encyclopedia)tritium trĭtˈēəm [key], radioactive isotope of hydrogen with mass number 3. The tritium nucleus, called a triton, contains one proton and two neutrons. It has a half-life of 12.5 years and decays ...

equivalent weight

(Encyclopedia)equivalent weight. The equivalent weight of an element or radical is equal to its atomic weight or formula weight divided by the valence it assumes in compounds. The unit of equivalent weight is the a...

hydrogenation

(Encyclopedia)hydrogenation hīdrôjˈənāˌshən, hīˌdrəjənāˈshən [key], chemical reaction of a substance with molecular hydrogen, usually in the presence of a catalyst. A common hydrogenation is the harde...

free radical

(Encyclopedia)free radical, in chemistry, a molecule or atom that contains an unpaired electron but is neither positively nor negatively charged. Free radicals are usually highly reactive and unstable. They are pro...

chemical equation

(Encyclopedia)chemical equation, group of symbols representing a chemical reaction. There are a number of other symbols used in chemical equations. A symbol written above or below the reaction arrow indicates spe...

H

(Encyclopedia)H, 8th letter of the alphabet. It is a usual symbol for a glottal spirant, murmured (as in the English house) or voiceless (as in the English herb). In some Greek alphabets eta, the long e, had this f...

Prout, William

(Encyclopedia)Prout, William, 1785–1850, English chemist and physician. Prout's hypothesis, advanced in 1815–16, suggested that atomic weights of elements are multiples of that of hydrogen and that elements are...