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potassium nitrate

noun

, Chemistry.
  1. a crystalline compound, KNO 3 , produced by nitrification in soil, and used in gunpowders, fertilizers, and preservatives; saltpeter; niter.


potassium nitrate

noun

  1. a colourless or white crystalline compound used in gunpowders, pyrotechnics, fertilizers, and as a preservative for foods, esp as a curing salt for ham, sausages, etc ( E252 ). Formula: KNO 3 Also calledsaltpetrenitre
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012


potassium nitrate

  1. A transparent, white, crystalline compound and strong oxidizing agent. It is used in gunpowder and fireworks, in making glass, and in fertilizer. Also called saltpeter. Chemical formula: KNO 3 .
  2. See also niter


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Word History and Origins

Origin of potassium nitrate1

First recorded in 1880–85
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Example Sentences

Add a few crystals of potassium nitrate and when cool dilute with water.

In the United States powder for blasting contains sodium nitrate instead of potassium nitrate.

Gelatine Dynamite: a mixture of blasting gelatine with potassium nitrate and wood-meal.

Pelosine or buxine is precipitated by a concentrated solution of HCl, by sal ammoniac, by potassium nitrate and potassium iodide.

One might assume that all that was necessary was to make up a solution of potassium nitrate and inject it.

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