GLOSSARY:
Fluoroplastic- any of the plastics, as Teflon, in which hydrogen atoms of the hydrocarbon chains are replaced by fluorineatoms.
Carbon atoms- an atom of carbon.
Fluorine atoms- an atom of fluorine.
Fluorocarbon-any of a class of compounds produced by substituting fluorine for hydrogen in a hydrocarbon, andcharacterized by great chemical stability: used chiefly as a lubricant, refrigerant, fire extinguishing agent,and in industrial and other applications in which chemical, electrical, flame, and heat resistance isessential; banned as an aerosol propellant in the U.S. because of concern about ozone layer depletion.
Hydrophobic- having little or no affinity for water.
Chlorofluorocarbon- any of several volatile, inert, saturated compounds of carbon, fluorine, chlorine, and hydrogen: used asrefrigerants, foam-blowing agents, solvents, and, formerly, as aerosol propellants until scientists becameconcerned about depletion of the atmospheric ozone layer.
Tetrafluotoethylene gas- a colourless, odourless, faintly toxic gas belonging to the family of organic halogen compounds; it is the starting material in the manufacture of polytetrafluoroethylene, a valuable synthetic resin.
Chlorinating- to introduce chlorine atoms into an organic compound by an addition or substitution reaction.
Ions- one of the electrically charged particles formed in a gas by electric discharge or the like.
Plasma- a highly ionised gas containing an approximately equal number of positive ions and electrons.
Unsaturated hydrocarbons- hydrocarbons that have double or triple covalent bonds between adjacent carbon atoms.
Electrons- a stable elementary particle present in all atoms, orbiting the nucleus in numbers equal to the atomicnumber of the element in the neutral atom.
Coefficient of friction- the force required to move two sliding surfaces over each other, divided by the force holding them together. It is reduced once the motion has started
Fluorine- a toxic pungent pale yellow gas of the halogen group that is the most electronegative and reactive of all the elements, occurring principally in fluorspar and cryolite: used in the production of uranium, fluorocarbons, and other chemicals.
Carbon- a nonmetallic element existing in the three crystalline forms: graphite, diamond, and buckminsterfullerene: occurring in carbon dioxide, coal, oil, and all organic compounds
Chemically inert- Not readily reactive with other elements; forming few or no chemical compounds.
Polymer- any of numerous natural and synthetic compounds of usually high molecular weight consisting of up to millions of repeated linked units, each a relatively light and simple molecule.
Tetraethyl- a colorless, poisonous, oily liquid, used in gasoline for internal-combustion engines as an antiknock agent.
Electric field- a region of space near a charged particle in which an electric force acts on other charged particles.
Carcinogen- a cancer-causing substance.
Perfluorooctanoic acid- a synthetic, stable perfluorinated carboxylic acid and fluorosurfactant.
Characterise- to mark or distinguish as a characteristic.
Carbon atoms- an atom of carbon.
Fluorine atoms- an atom of fluorine.
Fluorocarbon-any of a class of compounds produced by substituting fluorine for hydrogen in a hydrocarbon, andcharacterized by great chemical stability: used chiefly as a lubricant, refrigerant, fire extinguishing agent,and in industrial and other applications in which chemical, electrical, flame, and heat resistance isessential; banned as an aerosol propellant in the U.S. because of concern about ozone layer depletion.
Hydrophobic- having little or no affinity for water.
Chlorofluorocarbon- any of several volatile, inert, saturated compounds of carbon, fluorine, chlorine, and hydrogen: used asrefrigerants, foam-blowing agents, solvents, and, formerly, as aerosol propellants until scientists becameconcerned about depletion of the atmospheric ozone layer.
Tetrafluotoethylene gas- a colourless, odourless, faintly toxic gas belonging to the family of organic halogen compounds; it is the starting material in the manufacture of polytetrafluoroethylene, a valuable synthetic resin.
Chlorinating- to introduce chlorine atoms into an organic compound by an addition or substitution reaction.
Ions- one of the electrically charged particles formed in a gas by electric discharge or the like.
Plasma- a highly ionised gas containing an approximately equal number of positive ions and electrons.
Unsaturated hydrocarbons- hydrocarbons that have double or triple covalent bonds between adjacent carbon atoms.
Electrons- a stable elementary particle present in all atoms, orbiting the nucleus in numbers equal to the atomicnumber of the element in the neutral atom.
Coefficient of friction- the force required to move two sliding surfaces over each other, divided by the force holding them together. It is reduced once the motion has started
Fluorine- a toxic pungent pale yellow gas of the halogen group that is the most electronegative and reactive of all the elements, occurring principally in fluorspar and cryolite: used in the production of uranium, fluorocarbons, and other chemicals.
Carbon- a nonmetallic element existing in the three crystalline forms: graphite, diamond, and buckminsterfullerene: occurring in carbon dioxide, coal, oil, and all organic compounds
Chemically inert- Not readily reactive with other elements; forming few or no chemical compounds.
Polymer- any of numerous natural and synthetic compounds of usually high molecular weight consisting of up to millions of repeated linked units, each a relatively light and simple molecule.
Tetraethyl- a colorless, poisonous, oily liquid, used in gasoline for internal-combustion engines as an antiknock agent.
Electric field- a region of space near a charged particle in which an electric force acts on other charged particles.
Carcinogen- a cancer-causing substance.
Perfluorooctanoic acid- a synthetic, stable perfluorinated carboxylic acid and fluorosurfactant.
Characterise- to mark or distinguish as a characteristic.