noun
- a product produced together with another product in the same manufacturing process, often as a byproduct or secondary output
- in mathematics and category theory, a construction that generalizes the notion of a disjoint union or direct sum
Usage: common in industrial and chemical manufacturing contexts
Usage: technical; used in abstract algebra and topology
Examples
- Glycerin is a valuable coproduct of biodiesel production.
- The refinery generates propane as a coproduct when processing crude oil.
- In the chemical process, acetone and phenol are coproducts.
- The coproduct from soap manufacturing can be used in other industries.
- Mathematicians use the coproduct to combine objects in category theory.