nitre
/'naitə/
Học thuậtThân thiện
Definition
Noun: 1. Potassium nitrate (KNO₃): A white crystalline chemical compound, used historically and in modern applications as a fertilizer, in food preservation, and as a key component in gunpowder and other explosives. - The miners used dynamite containing nitre to blast through the rock. - Saltpeter, another name for nitre, was a valuable commodity in ancient times.
Usage Examples
As a chemical substance:
- The soil was enriched with nitre to improve crop yields.
- Early fireworks recipes often listed nitre as a primary ingredient.
In historical/industrial contexts:
- The cave walls were coated with nitre deposits.
- The manufacture of gunpowder requires sulfur, charcoal, and nitre.
Advanced Usage
- "Chile nitre" or "soda nitre": These are historical or alternative names for sodium nitrate (NaNO₃), a related but distinct compound. The term "nitre" alone typically refers to potassium nitrate.
- Chile nitre was a major export product in the 19th century.
Variants and Related Words
Saltpeter / Saltpetre (n): The most common synonym for potassium nitrate.
- Saltpeter was mined from deposits in caves and stables.
Niter (n): An alternative spelling, primarily used in American English.
- The chemical formula for niter is KNO₃.
Nitrate (n): A broader class of chemical compounds containing the nitrate ion (NO₃⁻). Nitre is a specific type of nitrate.
- Nitrates are common in both fertilizers and preserved meats.
Synonyms
- Potassium nitrate: The systematic chemical name.
- Saltpeter / Saltpetre: The traditional name.
Related Phrases and Compounds
- Nitre cake: An industrial term for crude sodium bisulfate, a byproduct of nitric acid production. This is a distinct compound and usage from "nitre" itself.
- Nitre bed: A historical method for producing saltpeter artificially by composting organic matter with manure and earth.
Noun
- (KNO3) used especially as a fertilizer and explosive