Related Topics:
sulfuric acid
sulfate

vitriol, any of certain hydrated sulfates or sulfuric acid. Most of the vitriols have important and varied industrial uses. Blue, or roman, vitriol is cupric sulfate; green vitriol—also called copperas, a name formerly applied to all the vitriols—is ferrous sulfate. White vitriol is zinc sulfate; red, or rose, vitriol is cobalt sulfate; and uranvitriol is a native uranium sulfate. Oil of vitriol is concentrated sulfuric acid (q.v.).

This article was most recently revised and updated by Amy Tikkanen.
Britannica Chatbot logo

Britannica Chatbot

Chatbot answers are created from Britannica articles using AI. This is a beta feature. AI answers may contain errors. Please verify important information using Britannica articles. About Britannica AI.