resomation

English

Etymology

re- +‎ soma +‎ -ation.

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: re‧so‧ma‧tion

Noun

resomation (countable and uncountable, plural resomations)

1. A process for the disposal of a corpse by submerging it in a strong base compound at a high pressure and temperature until it dissolves.
   • 2008, Paul J. McAuley, The Quiet War, page 186:

     […] bodies were dissolved by resomation and the fluid evaporated to a powder that was ceremoniously scattered around the roots of newly planted trees.

   • 2009, Clifton D. Bryant with Dennis L. Peck, Encyclopedia of Death and the Human Experience, Sage Publications, →ISBN:

     Many consumers opt for cremation for environmental reasons, though it too carries the risk for air pollution. Some in the industry are looking to alternatives of body disposal such as freeze-drying (promession) and dissolving (resomation).

   • 2009, Ruth Davis Konigsberg, “The 9th annual year in ideas”, in The New York Times Magazine‎^[1]:

     Enter resomation, an alternative to cremation for the eco-conscious cadaver. Resomation is a process that liquefies rather than burns body tissues.

Quotations

• For more quotations using this term, see Citations:resomation.

Synonyms

• alkaline hydrolysis, biocremation, flameless cremation, water cremation

Related terms

• resomate
• resomator

References

• “resomation”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “resomation”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• Romaniotes, aeronomist