fractionation

American  

[frak-shuh-ney-shuhn] / ˌfræk ʃəˈneɪ ʃən /

noun

1. the act or process of fractionating.

2. the state of being fractionated.

3. Military. the division of a missile's payload into several warheads.

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fractionation Scientific  

/ frăk′shə-nā′shən /

1. The separation of a chemical compound into components by fractional crystallization or fractional distillation.

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Etymology

Origin of fractionation

First recorded in 1925–30; fractionate + -ion

Example Sentences

The study, titled "Extreme triple oxygen isotope fractionation in Equisetum," examines horsetails, which are hollow-stemmed plants that have existed on the planet for more than 400 million years.

From Science Daily • Nov. 13, 2025

“As a result, that kind of fractionation really doesn’t help you understand either the level of investment very directly, or the impact,” Wayburn said.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 11, 2024

The detailed proposal, obtained by the AP, sought $51.6 million to build a plasma fractionation facility in Atlanta or Raleigh, North Carolina.

From Washington Times • Nov. 1, 2020

At divergent boundaries and oceanic mantle plumes, where there is little interaction with crustal materials and magma fractionation to create felsic melts does not take place, the magma tends to be consistently mafic.

From Textbooks • Jan. 1, 2015

The big varieties came first, the little ones arose later by fractionation, although now the devotees of continuity could arrange them in a graduated series from white to deep purple.

From Hormones and Heredity by Cunningham, J. T.