Lexic.us

Definition of Alkali

1. Noun. Any of various water-soluble compounds capable of turning litmus blue and reacting with an acid to form a salt and water. "Bases include oxides and hydroxides of metals and ammonia"

2. Noun. A mixture of soluble salts found in arid soils and some bodies of water; detrimental to agriculture.

Definition of Alkali

1. n. Soda ash; caustic soda, caustic potash, etc.

2. n. Soluble mineral matter, other than common salt, contained in soils of natural waters.

Definition of Alkali

1. Noun. (chemistry) One of a class of caustic bases, such as soda, potash, ammonia, and lithia, whose distinguishing peculiarities are solubility in alcohol and water, uniting with oils and fats to form soap, neutralizing and forming salts with acids, turning to brown several vegetable yellows, and changing reddened litmus to blue. ¹

2. Noun. Soda ash; caustic soda, caustic potash, etc. ¹

3. Noun. (context: Western United States) Soluble mineral matter, other than common salt, contained in soils of natural waters. ¹

¹ Source: wiktionary.com

Definition of Alkali

1. a type of chemical compound [n -LIES or -LIS] : ALKALIC [adj]

Medical Definition of Alkali

1. Origin: F. Alcali, ultimately fr. Ar. Alqali ashes of the plant saltwort, fr. Qalay to roast in a pan, fry. 1. Soda ash; caustic soda, caustic potash, etc. 2. One of a class of caustic bases, such as soda, potash, ammoma, and lithia, whose distinguishing peculiarities are solubility in alcohol and water, uniting with oils and fats to form soap, neutralising and forming salts with acids, turning to brown several vegetable yellows, and changing reddened litmus to blue. Fixed alkalies, potash and soda. Vegetable alkalies. Same as Alkaloids. Volatile alkali, ammonia, so called in distinction from the fixed alkalies. Source: Websters Dictionary (01 Mar 1998)

Lexicographical Neighbors of Alkali

alk-1-enylglycerophospholipid alk. alkadiene alkadienes alkadienyl alkahestic alkahests alkalaemia alkalamide alkalamides

alkalating agent alkalemia alkalescence alkalescent alkali (current term) alkali bee alkali denaturation test alkali disease alkali earth metal alkali flat

alkali flats alkali metal alkali metals alkali poisoning alkali reserve alkali sink alkalic alkalied

Literary usage of Alkali

Below you will find example usage of this term as found in modern and/or classical literature:

1. Biennial Report by California Dept. of Agriculture, California State Commission of Horticulture (1907)
"This is the successful reclamation of a 20-acre tract of alkali land south of ... The history of the alkali question in the Fresno district is doubtless ..."

2. Journal of the American Chemical Society by American Chemical Society (1899)
"These are the so-called "alkali" soils, and represent the worst phase of the ... The agriculturist recognizes two kinds of alkali: the " white " and the ..."

3. Annual Report by Illinois Farmers' Institute (1905)
"A Delegate—What do you use on alkali land? Professor Hopkins—alkali may be ... alkali is a poisonous substance, and there are several different kinds of it. ..."

4. Standard Methods of Chemical Analysis: A Manual of Analytical Methods and by Wilfred Welday Scott (1922)
"Add a drop or two of phenolphthalein and run in the standard alkali, ... Acid and alkali. If the standard sample contains L per cent carbonate of lime and d ..."

5. The Journal of Geology by University of Chicago Department of Geology and Paleontology (1905)
"These patches have received the name of "alkali spots" from the farmers of the ... Genetically, these "alkali spots" are invariably connected with the small ..."

6. Index of Economic Material in Documents of the States of the United States by Adelaide Rosalia Hasse (1908)
"alkali 1871. alkali soils; practical mode of neutralizing or extracting alkali from soil. ... Publications on alkali lands and their reclamation by Cal. ..."

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