sulfonic
- noun
- /sʌlˈfɒnɪk/
- Specialized
- The laboratory experimented with various sulfonic compounds for their unique properties.
- sulfonic acid
Examples
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In chemical synthesis, adding sulfonic acid can enhance the reaction rate.
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Many industrial processes use sulfonic acids to create efficient detergents.
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Furthermore, photochemically generated sulfonic acids could also affect the dissolution/swelling behavior of the cycloolefin polymers.
Academic text (2001) -
Prospectors had also discovered iron and copper pyrites, galantine, sulfonic acids, salts, and more varieties of mercaptan than the chemists could classify.
Fiction book (2000)
Synonyms
1
7.5
An organic acid that has the group of atoms SO3H
Compounds
Surface Forms
Morphology
sulfonic = sulfon (opaque) = sulfon + ic
This is a technical chemical formation built on the combining form 'sulfon-' plus the adjective suffix '-ic', but the base is not a common standalone English word for most learners.
Etymology
Sulfonic (as a noun) takes its name from sulfo- 'from sulfur' and -ic 'related to', so it means a compound that has the sulfur group –SO3H and can be an acid or its salt. That's why a chemist may call a molecule 'a sulfonic' when it includes that sulfur-containing group.