bitumen
noun
bi·tu·men bə-ˈtyü-mən 
bī-,
-ˈtü-,
especially British also ˈbit-yə-
1
: an asphalt of Asia Minor used in ancient times as a cement and mortar
2
: any of various mixtures of hydrocarbons (such as tar) often together with their nonmetallic derivatives that occur naturally or are obtained as residues after heat-refining natural substances (such as petroleum)
specifically : such a mixture soluble in carbon disulfide
bituminization
bə-ˌtyü-mə-nə-ˈzā-shən
noun bī-
-ˌtü-
bituminize
bə-ˈtyü-mə-ˌnīz
transitive verb bī-
-ˈtü-
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web As a result, the bitumen becomes softer and the asphalt surface stickier and more susceptible to being damaged by pressure from vehicles, as happened in July in Manchester in the UK and Lucerne in Switzerland. 
Wired, 31 July 2022 All that’s left today of an ancient boat discovered in 2018 in what was formerly Uruk is the bitumen, black tar that once coated its framework of reeds, palm leaves, or wood. Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, 8 Apr. 2022 That fragile organic material is long gone, leaving behind only ghostly imprints in the bitumen. Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, 8 Apr. 2022 There are still roughly 170 billion barrels of thick, tar-like bitumen under boreal forests in the Canadian province of Alberta, the largest amount outside of Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Iran. Vipal Monga, WSJ, 13 Jan. 2022 Cargo documents for the Asphalt Princess obtained by The Washington Post show that during 2021 the ship has also transported refined oil products, bitumen and rubber process oil — which are covered by U.S. sanctions — from Iran to Oman and China. Washington Post, 4 Jan. 2022 The rest were showing physical stuff — works made not only from paint, but also scrap metal, elephant dung, taxidermied pigeons, hairdressers’ endpapers, wax, wool, black soap and bitumen. Washington Post, 18 Dec. 2021 To extract bitumen from the sand, oil companies heat it and then treat it in a slurry of water and solvents. NBC News, 22 Nov. 2021 In other parts of Alberta, where the sands are too deep to mine, the bitumen is melted in place and extracted through wells by pumping high-pressure steam underground. NBC News, 22 Nov. 2021 See More
Wired, 31 July 2022 All that’s left today of an ancient boat discovered in 2018 in what was formerly Uruk is the bitumen, black tar that once coated its framework of reeds, palm leaves, or wood. Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, 8 Apr. 2022 That fragile organic material is long gone, leaving behind only ghostly imprints in the bitumen. Kiona N. Smith, Ars Technica, 8 Apr. 2022 There are still roughly 170 billion barrels of thick, tar-like bitumen under boreal forests in the Canadian province of Alberta, the largest amount outside of Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Iran. Vipal Monga, WSJ, 13 Jan. 2022 Cargo documents for the Asphalt Princess obtained by The Washington Post show that during 2021 the ship has also transported refined oil products, bitumen and rubber process oil — which are covered by U.S. sanctions — from Iran to Oman and China. Washington Post, 4 Jan. 2022 The rest were showing physical stuff — works made not only from paint, but also scrap metal, elephant dung, taxidermied pigeons, hairdressers’ endpapers, wax, wool, black soap and bitumen. Washington Post, 18 Dec. 2021 To extract bitumen from the sand, oil companies heat it and then treat it in a slurry of water and solvents. NBC News, 22 Nov. 2021 In other parts of Alberta, where the sands are too deep to mine, the bitumen is melted in place and extracted through wells by pumping high-pressure steam underground. NBC News, 22 Nov. 2021 See More Word History
Etymology
Middle English bithumen mineral pitch, from Latin bitumin-, bitumen
First Known Use
15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1