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Decomposition or rot is the process by which dead organic substances are broken down into simpler organic or inorganic matter such as carbon dioxide, water, simple sugars and mineral salts. The process is a part of the nutrient cycle and is essential for recycling the finite matter that occupies physical space in the biosphere .
Chemical decomposition, or chemical breakdown, is the process or effect of simplifying a single chemical entity (normal molecule, reaction intermediate, etc.) into two or more fragments. [1] Chemical decomposition is usually regarded and defined as the exact opposite of chemical synthesis. In short, the chemical reaction in which two or more ...
Decomposition in animals is a process that begins immediately after death and involves the destruction of soft tissue, leaving behind skeletonized remains. The chemical process of decomposition is complex and involves the breakdown of soft tissue, as the body passes through the sequential stages of decomposition . [ 2 ]
Elephant's toothpaste is a foamy substance caused by the quick decomposition of hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2) using potassium iodide (KI) or yeast and warm water as a catalyst. [1] How rapidly the reaction proceeds will depend on the concentration of hydrogen peroxide.
Decomposition is often erroneously conflated with this process of external digestion, probably because of the strong association between fungi, which are external digesters, and decomposition. The term "decomposer" refers to a role in an ecosystem, not to a particular class or type of organism, or even to a specific capacity of those organisms. [5]
The terms detritivore and decomposer are often used interchangeably, but they describe different organisms. Detritivores are usually arthropods and help in the process of remineralization. Detritivores perform the first stage of remineralization, by fragmenting the dead plant matter, allowing decomposers to perform the second stage of ...
Swine have been used repeatedly to understand the human decomposition process in terrestrial environments. [ 14 ] [ 15 ] Pigs are suitable for studying human decomposition because of their size, sparse hairs, and similar bacteria found in their GI tracts . [ 16 ]
Decomposition of dead plant material causes complex organic compounds to be slowly oxidized (lignin-like humus) or to decompose into simpler forms (sugars and amino sugars, and aliphatic and phenolic organic acids), which are further transformed into microbial biomass (microbial humus) or reorganized and further oxidized into humic assemblages ...