Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
⚗️ A lab chemical 🧴 A UV blocker 🖋️ A photoinitiator
benzophenone

benzophenone

9.3
A chemical used in inks and plastics to start a reaction with UV light
  • noun
  • /ˌbɛnzoʊˈfɛnˌoʊn/
  • Specialized
: benzofenona
  • In the production of polymers, benzophenone acts as an effective photoinitiator.

Examples

  • The manufacturer added benzophenone to the ink formulation to enhance the curing process under UV light.

  • What about kind of inherent like efficiency of cross linking in terms of these benzophenones versus the aryl azides?

  • Benzophenone is commonly used as a benzophenone in UV-curing processes for printing inks.

Surface Forms

benzophenone singular
benzophenones plural

Morphology

benzophenone = phenone (opaque) = benzo + phen + one

Formed from specialized chemical combining forms ('benzo-' + 'phen-' + '-one'); this nomenclature is domain-specific and not guessable by average B1 learners.

Etymology

Benzophenone comes from benzo- (from benzene, a ring of carbon) and -one (like in acetone, a 'ketone'). That name shows it has a benzene‑ketone structure that reacts under UV light to start chemical changes, which is why benzophenone is used as a photoinitiator in UV curing and inks.