kieselguhr
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of kieselguhr
1870–75; < German, equivalent to Kiesel flint + Gu ( h ) r earthy deposit
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The breakthrough came when he mixed nitroglycerin with the inert mineral powder kieselguhr, creating the much more stable dynamite.
From BBC • Jun. 6, 2014
An actual analysis of dynamite No. 1 made by the author at Hayle gave— Moisture, 0.92 per cent.; kieselguhr, 26.15 per cent.; and nitro- glycerine, 72.93 per cent., the last being obtained by difference.
From Nitro-Explosives: A Practical Treatise by Sanford, P. Gerald (Percy Gerald)
Fossil polishing-powders, as tripoli and bergmehl, are composed of them; also kieselguhr, which, impregnated with nitroglycerine, forms dynamite.
From The New Gresham Encyclopedia Volume 4, Part 1: Deposition to Eberswalde by Various
This name was originally applied to his mixture of nitroglycerin with kieselguhr, but now includes also other mechanical mixtures or chemical compounds which develop a high explosive force as compared with gunpowder.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 4, Slice 1 "Bisharin" to "Bohea" by Various
Among the porous substances used is kieselguhr, a silicious earth which consists chiefly of the skeletons of various species of diatoms.
From Nitro-Explosives: A Practical Treatise by Sanford, P. Gerald (Percy Gerald)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
