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Glite Dictionary
phosphotungstic

phosphotungstic

9.9
Relating to a chemical that has both phosphorus and tungsten
  • adjective
  • /ˌfɑsfoʊˈtʌŋstɪk/
  • Specialized
: fosfotúngstico
  • In microscopy, phosphotungstic dye is often used to improve contrast in cellular images.

Examples

  • The researcher prepared a sample using phosphotungstic acid for enhanced staining of the tissue sections.

  • Cytoplasmic cross-striations are difficult to identify on routine hematoxylin and eosin sections but can be identified in some cases with phosphotungstic acid hematoxylin.

    Academic text (2005)

  • The laboratory synthesized a new phosphotungstic compound to study its effects on metal corrosion.

Surface Forms

phosphotungstic positive

Morphology

phosphotungstic = tungstic + tungstic (semi-transparent) = phospho + tungst + ic

The structure 'phospho-' + 'tungstic' clearly indicates presence of phosphorus and tungsten in chemical nomenclature, but the combining forms are specialized and may be unfamiliar to general learners.

Etymology

The word phosphotungstic joins phospho- from phosphorus, which relates to 'light' as in the word phosphorescent, and tungst- from tungsten, whose name means 'heavy stone'. So, phosphotungstic describes a compound that has both a phosphorus part and a tungsten part.