Gŭn'-cŏt'ton

m. A highly explosive substance obtained by soaking cotton, or any other vegetable fiber, in nitric and sulphuric acids, and then leaving it to dry. It is occasionally used as a substitute for gunpowder.

By dissolving it in a mixture of rectified ether and alcohol, an adhesive liquid called collodion is obtained, which is much used in surgery to keep the edges of wounds together, and as a coating for abrasions and burns.