Science & TechnologyGreek → English
Stoichiometry
/ˌstɔɪkiˈɑmɪtri/noun
The calculation of the quantities of substances consumed and produced in a chemical reaction.
The Greek roots
στοιχεῖον
stoicheîon
element, one of a row
μέτρον
métron
measure
Literally: “measuring of elements”
The story of the word
Jeremias Benjamin Richter coined Stöchyometrie in 1792 after finding that acids and bases neutralise each other in fixed proportions by weight. His first element, στοιχεῖον, originally meant one of a row: a letter of the alphabet, a mark on a sundial, a member of a series, all of it from στοῖχος, a rank of men standing in line. The word for chemical bookkeeping therefore starts with soldiers in formation.
- How it travelled
- Ancient Greek → German scientific coinage → English
- First recorded
- early 19th century
Same family
geometrysymmetrymetronomediameter
In a sentence
Balance the equation first, then let the stoichiometry tell you how much oxygen you need.
The reaction is run with a slight excess of the cheaper reagent, against stoichiometry.