fractionation

[frak-shuh-ney-shuhn]

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.

fractionation

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of fractionation¹

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.

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“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.

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It also plans to build two natural gas processing plants and a fractionation unit to separate the various components of NGLs.

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During the quarter, the company saw operational records for natural gas pipeline volumes and natural gas liquids fractionation volumes.

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But Santorum described the plasma fractionation industry as more interested in keeping shareholders happy than adopting new technologies that would require expensive modifications to their manufacturing lines.

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