Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun The development of new industrial chemical products from organic raw materials, especially from those of agricultural origin.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun chemistry a branch of applied chemistry that is concerned with preparing industrial products from agricultural raw materials.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

chemist + -urgy

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word chemurgy.

Examples

  • From the hard southern clay, he developed paints and pioneered a new science called chemurgy—the industrialization of agricultural products, like wallboard from pine cones, banana stems, and peanut shells.

    The Words That Inspired The Dreams Caron Loveless 2000

  • From the hard southern clay, he developed paints and pioneered a new science called chemurgy—the industrialization of agricultural products, like wallboard from pine cones, banana stems, and peanut shells.

    The Words That Inspired The Dreams Caron Loveless 2000

  • From the hard southern clay, he developed paints and pioneered a new science called chemurgy—the industrialization of agricultural products, like wallboard from pine cones, banana stems, and peanut shells.

    The Words That Inspired The Dreams Caron Loveless 2000

  • If hemp had not been banned over 70 years ago to protect profits of Big Oil and its petrochemical synthetics empire, plus many other powerful industries such as timber, paper, and cotton; and competition from chemurgy in general had not been stifled by ruthless manipulations (chemurgy is a branch of applied chemistry focused on using agricultural raw materials for industry), the biosphere could be in far better health — that includes you and me.

    See No Hemp, Hear No Hemp, Speak No Hemp, Part II 2008

  • Of all the damage and misery wrought by over a century of massive petroleum consumption, including global warming, ocean acidification and hypoxic dead zones, oil wars, national vulnerability, extreme concentration of wealth and power, devolution of American intellect ... perhaps the most strictly criminal because of purity of intent and the vast scope was the crushing of chemurgy — especially hemp.

    See No Hemp, Hear No Hemp, Speak No Hemp, Part II 2008

  • To the stupendous misfortune of virtually everything but Big Oil, the chemurgy movement was stifled by Big Oil.

    See No Hemp, Hear No Hemp, Speak No Hemp, Part I 2008

  • CRUSE, R.R. (1973) Desert plant chemurgy: A current review.

    Chapter 5 1953

  • CRUSE, R.R. (1959) Recent highlights in the chemurgy of xerophytic plants.

    Chapter 5 1953

  • Our friends, the Americans, have already shown us what can be done by means of chemurgy, where in the Midwestern States they have made synthetic rubber out of grain, they have made grain alcohol, they have made plastics, they have trade wheat syrup, they have made wheat starch and made them successfully.

    Saskatchewan's Postwar Plans 1945

  • Any serious mention of chemurgy should boldly list hemp as the absolute superstar, but as usual ... there’s the political stench of Big Oil and its petrochemical empire.

    See No Hemp, Hear No Hemp, Speak No Hemp, Part I 2008

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • "Chemurgy is a branch of applied chemistry that is concerned with preparing industrial products from agricultural raw materials. The word "chemurgy" was coined by chemist William J. Hale and first publicized in his 1934 book The Farm Chemurgic, the concept was mildly well-developed by the early years of the 20th century. For example, a number of products, including brushes and motion picture film, were made from cellulose."

    --Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chemurgy&oldid=401952887)

    January 5, 2012