monomerization
|mon-o-mer-i-za-tion|
🇺🇸
/ˌmɑnəməraɪˈzeɪʃən/
🇬🇧
/ˌmɒnəməraɪˈzeɪʃən/
making into single units (monomers)
Etymology
'monomerization' originates from modern English, specifically from the noun 'monomer' combined with the suffix '-ization' (from '-ize' + '-ation'), where 'monomer' itself is formed from Greek elements 'monos' and 'meros' meaning 'single' and 'part' respectively.
'monomer' comes from Greek 'monos' ('single') + 'meros' ('part'), passed into New Latin/modern scientific coinage as 'monomer', and later the English suffix '-ization' was added to create 'monomerization' denoting the process; thus Greek roots → scientific New Latin/English compound → 'monomerization'.
Initially the root elements referred simply to 'single' + 'part' (a single unit); over time the assembled scientific term came to mean specifically the process of making or recovering those single units (monomers) from larger assemblies or polymers.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the chemical or physical process of converting a polymer or larger molecular assembly into its constituent monomers (breaking polymer chains into monomer units).
The monomerization of the plastic under controlled conditions yielded the original monomers for reuse in new syntheses.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Noun 2
the process of producing monomeric units from oligomers or larger assemblies in a broader (not strictly polymer) chemical context—i.e., forming single units from aggregated structures.
In supramolecular chemistry, controlled monomerization can release functional monomers from a larger host assembly.
Synonyms
Antonyms
Last updated: 2025/11/21 19:55