Scavenger

Description

Any substance that actively absorbs or consumes unwanted impurities and pollutants in a system. For example, vapor phase inhibitors are used to scavenge hydrogen sulfide before it can tarnish silver. See hydrogen sulfide scavenger and oxygen scavenger.

Synonyms and Related Terms

getter; vapor phase inhibitor; activated charcoal; activated carbon; charcoal cloth; Purafilter; Pacific silvercloth; Ageless®; Scavengel [Art Preservation Services]

Authority

• Richard S. Lewis, Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 10th ed., 1993

• Pam Hatchfield, Pollutants in the Museum Environment, Archetype Press, London, 2002

• Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997

• The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998