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Chemistry

Acetogenic Bacteria

The term acetogen refers to a bacterium that generates acetate as a product of anaerobic respiration. This process is different from acetate fermentation, although both occur in the absence of oxygen and produce acetate. These organisms are also referred to as acetogenic bacteria, because all known acetogens are bacteria.
 

Alginic acid

Alginic acid, also called algin or alginate, is a viscous gum that is abundant in the cell walls of brown algae. It ranges from white to yellowish-brown and takes filamentous, granular, and powdered forms.
 

Hydraulic retention time

Hydraulic retention time (HRT) is a measure of the average length of time that a soluble compound remains in a constructed reactor.
 

Methane

Methane is a chemical compound with the molecular formula CH4. It is the simplest alkane, and the principal component of natural gas.
 

Methanogens

Methanogens are microorganisms that produce methane as a metabolic byproduct in anoxic conditions. They were once classified as archaebacteria, but archaebacteria have now been reclassified as archaea—a group quite distinct from bacteria.
 

Monomers

A monomer is a small molecule that may become chemically bonded to other monomers to form a polymer. The most common natural monomer is glucose, which is linked by glycosidic bonds into polymers such as cellulose and starch, and constitutes over 33% of the weight of all plant matter.
   

Monosaccharides

Monosaccharides are the most basic unit of carbohydrates. They are the simplest form of sugar and are usually colorless, water-soluble, crystalline solids. Some monosaccharides have a sweet taste. Examples of monosaccharides include glucose (dextrose), fructose (levulose), galactose, xylose, and ribose.
   

Phenols

In organic chemistry, phenols, sometimes called phenolics, are a class of chemical compounds consisting of a hydroxyl group (-OH) bonded directly to an aromatic hydrocarbon group. The simplest of the class is phenol (C6H5OH).
   

Polyphenols

Polyphenols are a group of chemical substances found in plants, characterized by the presence of more than one phenol unit or building block per molecule. Polyphenols are generally divided into hydrolyzable tannins (gallic acid esters of glucose and other sugars) and phenylpropanoids, such as lignins, flavonoids, and condensed tannins.
   

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