carbon monoxide
Colourless, odourless gas formed when carbon is oxidized in a limited supply of air. It is a poisonous constituent of car exhaust fumes; it forms a stable compound with haemoglobin in the blood, thus preventing the haemoglobin from transporting oxygen to the body tissues.
In industry, carbon monoxide is used as a reducing agent in metallurgical processes – for example, in the extraction of iron in blast furnaces – and is a constituent of cheap fuels such as water gas. It burns in air with a luminous blue flame to form carbon dioxide:
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