calcium carbide

American  

noun

1. a grayish-black, lumpy, crystalline powder, CaC 2 , usually derived from coke or anthracite by reaction with limestone or quicklime: used chiefly for the generation of acetylene, which it yields upon decomposing in water.

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calcium carbide British  

noun

1. Sometimes shortened to: carbide.  a grey salt of calcium used in the production of acetylene (by its reaction with water) and calcium cyanamide. Formula: CaC 2

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Etymology

Origin of calcium carbide

First recorded in 1885–90

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

calcium carbide

The Indian Coast Guard said that the ship was carrying 13 containers of hazardous cargo and 12 with calcium carbide - a chemical that reacts with seawater to release a flammable gas.

From BBC ● May 26, 2025

The freight train was carrying calcium carbide, a caustic, flammable chemical compound used in steel manufacturing, among other things.

From New York Times ● Jun. 6, 2024

Acetylene gas, C2H2, and solid calcium hydroxide were formed by the reaction of calcium carbide, CaC2, with water.

From Textbooks ● Feb. 14, 2019

It was storing mainly ammonium nitrate, potassium nitrate and calcium carbide at the time of the blasts, according to the police.

From Reuters ● Aug. 13, 2015

There is a third class of operations, exemplified by the manufacture of calcium carbide, in which electricity is employed solely as a heating agent; these are termed electrothermal, as distinguished from electrolytic.

From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 9, Slice 2 "Ehud" to "Electroscope" by Various