Meaning & use
siloxane
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Meaning
nouncountable or uncountablechemistrytechnical
A compound whose molecules have silicon and oxygen atoms linked one after another, forming the backbone of silicone materials.
Grammar: Countable for a particular compound (a siloxane, several siloxanes) and uncountable for the material in general.
Patterns
- siloxane bond
- siloxane polymer
The sealant is made from a siloxane polymer that stays flexible in cold weather.
Chemists studied how the siloxane chain bends and turns at high temperatures.
Some cosmetics contain a siloxane that makes hair feel smooth.
Word forms
| plural | siloxanes |
|---|
Common combinations
- siloxane bond
- A siloxane bond joins a silicon atom to an oxygen atom.
- siloxane polymer
- The rubber seal is a siloxane polymer.
- cyclic siloxane
- A cyclic siloxane forms a small ring instead of a long chain.
- siloxane backbone
- The siloxane backbone gives the oil its heat resistance.
- organosiloxane
- An organosiloxane has carbon groups attached to its silicon atoms.
Synonyms and how they differ
- silicone
- Silicone is the finished rubbery, oily or resin-like material, while siloxane names the chemical chain from which it is built.
- polysiloxane
- Polysiloxane stresses that the molecule is a long polymer, while siloxane can also refer to short or ring-shaped molecules.
Word family
- silicone noun
- a man-made material based on siloxane chains
- silicon noun
- the chemical element found in sand and used in chips
- silane noun
- a compound of silicon and hydrogen
- polysiloxane noun
- a long-chain siloxane polymer
Commonly confused: siloxane or silicone? siloxane or silicon?
siloxane vs silicone
Silicone is the everyday material, such as a kitchen spatula or sealant. Siloxane is the chemical unit inside it.
siloxane vs silicon
Silicon is a chemical element used in computer chips. Silicone and siloxane are compounds that contain silicon.
Practice
A chemist describes the chain of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms in a sealant as its ___ backbone.
Choose one answer.
A siloxane backbone is the Si-O-Si chain in silicones. Silicon is just the element and silica is the compound in sand, so neither names the chain.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “siloxane”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.