Refining is the process of purification of a substance, usually used of a natural resource that is almost in a usable form, but which is more useful in its pure form. For instance, most types of natural petroleum will burn straight from the ground, but it will burn poorly and quickly clog an engine with residues and byproducts. The term is broad, and may include more drastic transformations, such as the reduction of ore to metal. Categories: Move to Wiktionary | Stub | Chemistry ... A chemical compound is a chemical substance formed from two or more elements, with a fixed ratio determining the composition. ... -1... Nodding donkey pumping an oil well near Sarnia, Ontario, 2001 Petroleum (from Greek petra – rock and oleum – oil), crude oil, sometimes colloquially called black gold, is a thick, dark brown or greenish flammable liquid, which exists in the upper strata of some areas of the Earths crust. ... An ore is a mineral deposit containing a metal or other valuable resource in economically viable concentrations. ... For alternative meanings see metal (disambiguation). ...

The refining of liquids is often accomplished by distillation or fractionation. Gases can be refined this way as well, by being cooled and/or compressed until they liquefy. Gases and liquids can also be refined by extraction with a selective solvent that dissolves away either the substance of interest, or the unwanted impurities. A liquid will assume the shape of its container. ... Distillation is a means of separating liquids through differences in their boiling points. ... Fractional distillation is the separation of a mixture of compounds by their boiling point, by heating to high enough temperatures. ... Gas (actually as, part of the Gnu Binutils package) is the default Gcc Back-end. ... In chemistry, liquid-liquid extraction is a useful method to separate components (compounds) of a mixture. ... A solvent is a liquid that dissolves a solid, liquid, or gaseous solute, resulting in a solution. ...

Many solids can be refined by growing crystals in a solution of the impure material; the regular structure of the crystal tends to favor the desired material and exclude other kinds of particles. A solid is a state of matter, characterized by a definite volume and a definite shape (i. ... Quartz crystal A crystal is a solid in which the constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are packed in a regularly ordered, repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions. ... This article or section should be merged with solvent, soluble, and solubility equilibrium Dissolving table salt in water In chemistry, a solution is one or more substance (the solute) dissolved in another substance (the solvent) forming a homogenous mixture. ...

Chemical reactions are often used to remove impurities of particular types. This article is in need of attention. ...

The use of silicon and other semiconductors in electronics is highly dependent on precise control of impurities, and a number of special techniques have been developed, such as zone refining. General Name, Symbol, Number silicon, Si, 14 Series metalloid Group, Period, Block 14 (IVA), 3, p Density, Hardness 2330 kg/m3, 6. ... A semiconductor is a material that is an insulator at very low temperature, but which has a sizable electrical conductivity at room temperature. ... Look up Electronic in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Electronic can refer to many things: Objects related to electronics The band Electronic. ... Zone melting is a method of separation by melting in which a series of molten zones traverses a long ingot of impure metal or chemical. ...

Types of materials that are usually refined:

• metals
• petroleum
• silicon
• sugar
• vegetable oil

For alternative meanings see metal (disambiguation). ... Nodding donkey pumping an oil well near Sarnia, Ontario, 2001 Petroleum (from Greek petra – rock and oleum – oil), crude oil, sometimes colloquially called black gold, is a thick, dark brown or greenish flammable liquid, which exists in the upper strata of some areas of the Earths crust. ... General Name, Symbol, Number silicon, Si, 14 Series metalloid Group, Period, Block 14 (IVA), 3, p Density, Hardness 2330 kg/m3, 6. ... This article deals with sugar as food and as an important, widely traded commodity; the word also has other uses; see Sugar (disambiguation) A sugar is a form of carbohydrate; the most commonly used sugar is a white crystalline solid, sucrose; used to alter the flavor and properties (mouthfeel, perservation... A vegetable oil or vegoil is an oil extracted from oilseeds or another plant source. ...

See also

• Vegoil refining, Petroleum refinery, Fractional distillation