Crossword clues for autocatalysis
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Autocatalysis \Au`to*ca*tal"y*sis\, n. [Auto- + catalysis.] (Chem.) Self-catalysis; catalysis of a substance by one of its own products, as of silver oxide by the silver formed by reduction of a small portion of it. -- Au`to*cat`a*lyt"ic, a.
Wiktionary
n. (context chemistry English) catalysis of a reaction by one of its products
WordNet
n. catalysis in which the catalyst is one of the products of the reaction
[also: autocatalyses (pl)]
Wikipedia
A single chemical reaction is said to have undergone autocatalysis, or be autocatalytic, if one of the reaction products is also a reactant and therefore a catalyst in the same or a coupled reaction. The reaction is called an autocatalytic reaction.
The rate equations for autocatalytic reactions are fundamentally nonlinear. This nonlinearity can lead to the spontaneous generation of order. A dramatic example of this order is that which is found in living systems. The spontaneous order creation corresponds to a decrease in the entropy of the system, which must be compensated by a larger increase in the entropy of the surroundings in order to satisfy the Second Law of Thermodynamics.
A set of chemical reactions can be said to be "collectively autocatalytic" if a number of those reactions produce, as reaction products, catalysts for enough of the other reactions that the entire set of chemical reactions is self-sustaining given an input of energy and food molecules (see autocatalytic set).
Usage examples of "autocatalysis".
But autocatalysis and homeostasis enabled simple structures to interact and spin off more complex structures still, until living things emerged, which combined into ever more complicated entities.