carbon monoxide
Noun: * A colorless, odorless, and highly toxic gas: Carbon monoxide (chemical formula CO) is a poisonous gas produced when carbon-containing fuels burn incompletely due to insufficient oxygen. It binds to hemoglobin in red blood cells much more strongly than oxygen does, preventing oxygen transport in the body and leading to poisoning, which can be fatal.
Carbon monoxide is used as a noun, typically in scientific, medical, and safety contexts to describe the gas itself, its properties, its sources, or the dangers it poses. * It is commonly preceded by articles like "the" or "a," or used without an article in general statements. * It is often found in phrases like "carbon monoxide poisoning," "carbon monoxide detector," and "carbon monoxide levels."
- Every home should have a carbon monoxide detector near sleeping areas.
- Running a car engine in a closed garage produces deadly amounts of carbon monoxide.
- The firefighters were concerned about carbon monoxide buildup after the house fire.
- Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning include headache, dizziness, and nausea.
- Scientific/Industrial Context: In industrial settings, carbon monoxide is also a useful chemical feedstock. For example, "The plant uses in the production of acetic acid."
- Figurative Use (Rare): It can be used metaphorically to describe something invisible and suffocating. For example, "A atmosphere of mistrust hung in the room like ."
- CO: The standard chemical abbreviation for carbon monoxide.
- Carbon monoxide poisoning (n.): The medical condition caused by inhaling CO gas.
- Carbon monoxide detector/alarm (n.): A safety device that alerts to the presence of CO gas.
- CO: (The direct chemical synonym, used primarily in technical writing.)
- White damp: (A mining term for air containing a dangerous mixture of gases, including carbon monoxide.)
- To emit/produce carbon monoxide: The action of releasing CO.
- Faulty heaters can emit carbon monoxide.
- Exposure to carbon monoxide: The state of being subjected to the gas.
- Exposure to carbon monoxide requires immediate medical attention.*
- Carbon monoxide intoxication: A formal term for poisoning.
- Incomplete combustion: The chemical process that produces carbon monoxide.
- an odorless very poisonous gas that is a product of incomplete combustion of carbon