Thanatochemistry: A Survey of General, Organic, and Biochemistry for Funeral Service Professionals Glossary

Question 1

A group of chemicals used in addition to vascular and cavity embalming fluids;

Most are applied to the body surface

Answer 1

Accessory chemicals

Question 2

A substance that yields hydrogen or hydronium ions in aqueous solution

Answer 2

Acid (Arrhenius)

Question 3

A substance that donates a proton

Answer 3

Acid (Bronsted-Lowry)

Question 4

A substance that accepts a pair of electrons

Answer 4

Acid (Lewis)

Question 5

A wax-like material produced by saponification of body fat in a body buried in alkaline soil

Answer 5

• Adipocere

* Gravewax

Question 6

An organic compound containing one or more hydroxyl (-OH) groups

Answer 6

Alcohol

Question 7

General formula is R–OH, where R is a hydrocarbon group

Answer 7

Alcohol

Question 8

An organic compound containing one or more –CHO groups

Answer 8

Aldehyde

Question 9

The general formula is R–CHO, where R is a hydrocarbon group or hydrogen

Answer 9

Aldehyde

Question 10

A sugar in which the functional groups are hydroxyl groups (–OH) and an aldehyde group (–CHO)

Answer 10

Aldose

Question 11

Pertaining to any member of one of the two major groups of organic compounds, those having straight or branch chain structures

Answer 11

Aliphatic

Question 12

A saturated hydrocarbon

Answer 12

Alkane

Question 13

A hydrocarbon that has no carbon – carbon multiple bonds

Answer 13

Alkane

Question 14

Has only carbon–carbon single bonds

Answer 14

Alkane

Question 15

Formerly called the paraffin series

Answer 15

Alkane

Question 16

An unsaturated hydrocarbon containing a double bond

Answer 16

Alkene

Question 17

A monovalent radical or the general formula CnH2n+1 formed when an alkane loses one hydrogen atom

Answer 17

Alkyl group

Question 18

An aliphatic hydrocarbon with one or more halogen atoms attached

Answer 18

Alkyl halide

Question 19

An unsaturated hydrocarbon containing a triple bond

Answer 19

Alkyne

Question 20

The existence of an element in two or more distinct forms

Answer 20

Allotropism

Question 21

Examples: oxygen as O, O2, and O3

Carbon as coal, graphite, and diamond

Answer 21

Allotropism

Question 22

Any compound derived from ammonia by substitution of a carbonyl group (C==O) for hydrogen, or from an organic acid group with an amino group (–NH2)

Answer 22

Amide

Question 23

Formed by the neutralization of an organic acid with ammonia

Answer 23

Amide

Question 24

An organic compound containing nitrogen

Answer 24

Amine

Question 25

Any compounds formed from ammonia by replacement of one or more hydrogen atoms by organic radicals

Answer 25

Amine

Question 26

The general formula is R--NH2

Answer 26

Amine

Question 27

The building blocks of proteins

Answer 27

Amino acid

Question 28

A compound containing an amino group (--NH2), a carboxyl (--COOH) group attached to an alpha carbon and a radical

Answer 28

Amino acid

Question 29

Any compound that can act as both an acid and a base in solution

Answer 29

Amphoteric

Question 30

Example: amino acid

Answer 30

Amphoteric

Question 31

A negatively charged atom or group of atoms

Answer 31

Anion

Question 32

Used to keep the blood in the liquid state

Answer 32

Anticoagulants

Question 33

Chemicals that retard the tendency of the blood to become more viscous by natural postmortem processes and/or prevent any other adverse reactions from occurring between the blood and the other embalming chemicals

Answer 33

Anticoagulants

Question 34

A solution in which water is the solvent

Answer 34

Aqueous solution

Question 35

A solution in which water is the solvent

Answer 35

Aqueous solution

Question 36

Any compound containing a resonance-stabilized ring such as benzene or toluene

Answer 36

Aromatic

Question 37

Occurs because electrons are not fixed objects near a given atom, but move around the entire molecule

Answer 37

Resonance

Question 38

The concentrated, preservative embalming chemical that will be diluted with water to form the arterial solution for injection into the arterial system during vascular embalming

Answer 38

Arterial fluid

Question 39

The smallest particle of an element that has all the properties of the element

Answer 39

Atom

Question 40

Self-digestion or self-destruction of the body by autolytic enzymes

Answer 40

Autolysis

Question 41

Those chemicals specifically designed for use in the preparation of bodies that have been autopsied

Answer 41

Autopsy chemicals

Question 42

A substance that yields hydroxide ions in an aqueous solution

Answer 42

Base (Arhenius)

Question 43

A substance that accepts a proton

Answer 43

Base (Bronsted-Lowry)

Question 44

A substance that donates a pair of electrons

Answer 44

Base (Lewis)

Question 45

The branch of chemistry dealing with compounds produced by living organisms

Answer 45

Biochemistry

Question 46

The rapid passage of liquid particles to the vapor state by forming bubbles through the action of heat

Answer 46

Boiling

Question 47

Substances that in solution are capable of neutralizing, within limits, both acids and bases and thereby maintaining the original or constant pH of the solution

Answer 47

Buffers

Question 48

The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one gram of water 1 degree Celsius at 15 degrees Celsius

Answer 48

calorie

Question 49

A compound of hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen that is an aldehyde or ketone derivative of a polyhydroxyl alcohol

Answer 49

Carbohydrate

Question 50

Examples: sugars, starches, and glycogen

Answer 50

Carbohydrate

Question 51

A chemical group composed of one carbon atom double bonded to oxygen

Answer 51

Carbonyl group

Question 52

An organic compound containing the carboxyl group (--COOH)

Answer 52

* Carboxylic acid | * Organic acid

Question 53

A substance that changes the rate of a chemical reaction but undergoes no net change itself during the reaction

Answer 53

Catalyst

Question 54

A positively charged atom or group of atoms

Answer 54

Cation

Question 55

Concentrated embalming chemicals that are injected into the cavities of the body following aspiration in cavity embalming

Answer 55

Cavity fluids

Question 56

Can be used for surface and hypodermic embalming of the problem areas

Answer 56

Cavity fluids

Question 57

The temperature scale defined so that the freezing point of water is 0 degrees, and its boiling point is 100 degrees at 1 atmosphere of pressure

Answer 57

Celsius temperature

Question 58

A change in which a new substance or substances are produced that have entirely different properties from the original substance because the chemical composition has changed

Answer 58

Chemical change

Question 59

Characteristics that can be observed when a substance is interacting with other substances resulting in a change of chemical composition

Answer 59

Chemical properties

Question 60

Characteristics that can be observed when a substance is interacting with other substances resulting in a change of chemical composition

Answer 60

Chemical properties

Question 61

The branch of natural science that is concerned with the description and classification of matter, with the changes that matter undergoes, and with the energy associated with each of these changes

Answer 61

Chemistry

Question 62

The process of converting soluble protein to insoluble protein by heating or by contact with a chemical such as an alcohol or an aldehyde

Answer 62

Coagulation

Question 63

A solution-like system in which the size of the solute particle is between 1 and 100 nanometers

Answer 63

Colloid

Question 64

Particles of solute pass through filters but not membranes

Answer 64

Colloid

Question 65

The rapid oxidation or burning that produces heat and light

Answer 65

Combustion

Question 66

A substance consisting of two or more atoms combined chemically in definite proportions by mass

Answer 66

Compound

Question 67

A lipid whose hydrolytic products are fatty acids, an alcohol, and other substances

Answer 67

Compound lipid

Question 68

A solution containing a relatively large amount of solute

Answer 68

Concentrated solution

Question 69

The ratio of mass or volume of a solute to the mass or volume of the solution or solvent

Answer 69

Concentration

Question 70

A change of state of matter from a gas to a liquid

Answer 70

Condensation

Question 71

A chemical bond in which a pair of electrons is shared between two atoms

Answer 71

Covalent bond

Question 72

The process by which a substance is given definite form

Answer 72

Crystallization