From: theise@panix.com
On Sat, 30 Jun 2018 17:18:37 -0700,
Earle Jones wrote:
> On 2017-12-22 08:13:16 +0000, Libor 'Poutnik' St?????? said:
> > Dne 21/12/2017 v 03:21 Earle Jones napsal(a):
> >> *
> >> This series:
> >>
> >> Methane, ethane, propane, butane,...
> >>
> >> Do you call this the "methane series" or the "paraffin series" ?
> >
> > Do you call this the "homework question" or the "exam
> > question" ? The Usenet is an inferior search engine, if used
> > this way.
> >
> > You have not manifested any sign of your own effort like
> > referring to textbook reading nor simple Googling, that is
> > much faster and comprehensive.
>
> * Dear Poutnik the Wanderer:
>
> Neither homework nor exam. I am an 87-year-old electrical
> engineer, putting together a book on several subjects,
> including a somewhat gratuitous section on air pollution.
>
> About 70 years ago, in a high-school chemistry class, the
> series was called the "methane series." Someone recently
> corrected me and called it the "paraffin series."
>
> Douchiraga desuka? (Which is it?)
I would probably call it the "alkane series," pointing back to the
IUPAC definition. I've never heard either of the phrases you
mention used in this way--but that doesn't mean they are wrong, of
course.
I do know that this usage of "paraffin" would be understood mostly
in the UK, as it tends to be associated with the various *forms*
of alkanes in the U.S.:
* Paraffin wax, a white or colourless soft solid that is used as a
lubricant and for other applications
* Liquid paraffin (drug), a very highly refined mineral oil used
in cosmetics and for medical purposes
I suspect that "methane series" may be old terminology no longer
in use, but have no data to back up that suspicion.
Good luck with your book!
--
Ted Heise West Lafayette, IN, USA
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)
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