1. Plural of lixivium; solutions obtained by leaching or filtering a substance, especially alkaline solutions produced by percolating water through wood ash.
Usage: archaic; chemistry; historical

Examples

• Medieval soap makers collected lixiviums from wood ash to use in their production process.
• The lixiviums obtained from filtering water through potash were essential to early industrial chemistry.
• Historical records describe the careful preparation of lixiviums for textile dyeing.
• Alchemists studied various lixiviums to understand the properties of alkaline solutions.