ferrous adj : of or relating to or containing iron [syn: ferric]

English

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɛrəs

Adjective

ferrous

1. of, or containing iron
2. of compounds of iron in which it has a valence or oxidation number of 2

Derived terms

• ferrous chloride
• ferrous ferricyanide
• ferrous fumarate
• ferrous oxide
• ferrous phosphate
• ferrous sulfate, ferrous sulphate
• ferrous sulfide, ferrous sulphide

See also

• ferric

Ferrous, in the chemical science realm, indicates a bivalent iron compound (+2 oxidation state) (as opposed to ferric, which indicates a trivalent iron compound (+3 oxidation state)).

Outside of chemical science, ferrous is an adjective used to indicate the presence of iron. Ferrous metals include steel and pig iron (which contain a few percent of carbon) and alloys of iron with other metals (such as stainless steel.)

The term non-ferrous is used to indicate metals other than iron and alloys that do not contain an appreciable amount of iron.

See also

• Ferric
• Ferromagnetism
• Iron(II) oxide
• Steelmaking

References