
Chemistry | Definition, Topics, Types, History, & Facts | Britannica
Nov 3, 2025 · The identification of pure substances and the analysis of chemical mixtures enable all other chemical disciplines to flourish. The importance of analytical chemistry has never …
Chemical compound | Definition, Examples, & Types | Britannica
Sep 26, 2025 · All the matter in the universe is composed of the atoms of more than 100 different chemical elements, which are found both in pure form and combined in chemical compounds.
Chemical reaction | Definition, Equations, Examples, & Types
Oct 10, 2025 · A chemical reaction is a process in which one or more substances, the reactants, are converted to one or more different substances, the products. Substances are either …
Chemical element | Definition, Origins, Distribution, & Facts
Oct 17, 2025 · A chemical element is any substance that cannot be decomposed into simpler substances by ordinary chemical processes. Elements are the fundamental materials of which …
Chemical formula | Definition, Types, Examples, & Facts | Britannica
Nov 1, 2025 · Chemical formula, any of several kinds of expressions of the composition or structure of chemical compounds. The forms commonly encountered are empirical, molecular, …
Chemical industry | Overview, Importance, & History | Britannica
Chemical industry, complex of processes, operations, and organizations engaged in the manufacture of chemicals and their derivatives. Raw materials include fossil fuels and …
Chemical energy | Definition & Facts | Britannica
Substances are either chemical elements or compounds. A chemical reaction rearranges the constituent atoms of the reactants to create different substances as products. Chemical …
Fluorine | Uses, Properties, & Facts | Britannica
Oct 27, 2025 · Fluorine is found in nature only in the form of its chemical compounds, except for trace amounts of the free element in fluorspar that has been subjected to radiation from …
Chemical bonding | Definition, Types, & Examples | Britannica
Oct 30, 2025 · This article begins by describing the historical evolution of the current understanding of chemical bonding and then discusses how modern theories of the formation …
Polyethylene glycol (PEG) | Description, History, & Uses | Britannica
Oct 29, 2025 · Polyethylene glycol (PEG), synthetic chemical compound derived from petroleum that is widely used as a laxative for the treatment of constipation and that has various other …