flowers of zinc

Thân thiện

A chemist carefully weighs white flowers of zinc powder in a laboratory.

Definition

1. Noun:
   • A white powdery substance, zinc oxide: "flowers of zinc" is a historical and industrial term for zinc oxide (ZnO), a white, insoluble powder. It is produced by oxidizing zinc vapor and condensing it.

Usage

• As a direct object: The term is used to name this specific chemical compound, particularly in historical, industrial, or technical contexts.
  • The apothecary prepared a salve using flowers of zinc.
  • The production of flowers of zinc involves the combustion of metallic zinc.

Advanced Usage

• The term is largely archaic in modern scientific discourse, where "zinc oxide" is the standard term. "Flowers of zinc" may appear in historical texts, older formulations, or in discussions of traditional industrial processes.

Variants and Related Words

• Zinc oxide (n): The modern, systematic chemical name for the same compound (ZnO).
• Philosopher's wool (n): Another archaic name for zinc oxide.
• Zinc white (n): A common name for zinc oxide when used specifically as a white pigment.

Synonyms

• Zinc oxide: The primary, modern synonym.
• ZnO: The chemical formula.

Notes

• The "flowers" in the name refers to the fine, powdery, flocculent form of the substance as it condenses, resembling a light dust or "bloom." It is not related to botanical flowers.

Học thuật

Noun

1. oxide of zinc; a white powder used as a pigment or in cosmetics or glass or inks and in zinc ointment

Từ đồng nghĩa

• zinc oxide
• philosopher's wool
• philosophers' wool