chrysene

noun

chry·​sene

ˈkrīˌsēn

plural -s

: a white crystalline hydrocarbon C₁₈H₁₂ with violet fluorescence obtained from coal-tar fractions and from petroleum by cracking and prepared from indene by catalytic dehydrogenation; 1,2-benzo-phenanthrene

Word History

Etymology

French chrysène, from chrys- + -ène -ene

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