phycite

English

Etymology

phyco- +‎ -ite

Noun

phycite (countable and uncountable, plural phycites)

1. (organic chemistry, obsolete) Erythritol, C₄H₆(OH)₄, that has been obtained from the alga Protococcus vulgaris.
   • 1853, William Francis, The Chemical Gazette, page 200:

     The elementary composition of phycite is as follows: — Carbon 39.33 Hydrogen 8.25 Oxygen 52.46 which is represented by the formula C¹² H¹⁵O¹², in consequence of its relations...

   • 1853, American Journal of Science:

     Phycite is a saccharine substance obtained from an Alga, the Protococcus vulgaris, known under the name “Phycie.”

   • 1854, Annual of Scientific Discovery, page 266:

     Although this new substance, phycite, (as he calls it) is very sweet, M. Lamy objects to its being called a sugar.