Oleyl alcohol in the context of Louis Bouveault

⭐ Core Definition: Oleyl alcohol

Oleyl alcohol /ˈoʊliˌɪl, ˈoʊliəl/, or cis-9-octadecen-1-ol, is an unsaturated fatty alcohol with the molecular formula C₁₈H₃₆O or the condensed structural formula CH₃(CH₂)₇−CH=CH−(CH₂)₈OH. It is a colorless oil, mainly used in cosmetics.

It can be produced by the hydrogenation of oleic acid esters by Bouveault–Blanc reduction, which avoids reduction of the C=C group (as would occur with usual catalytic hydrogenation). The required oleate esters are obtained from beef fat, fish oil, and, in particular, olive oil (from which it gains its name). The original procedure was reported by Louis Bouveault in 1904 and subsequently refined.

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Oleyl alcohol in the context of Fatty alcohol

Fatty alcohols (or long-chain alcohols) are usually high-molecular mass, straight-chain primary alcohols, but can also range from as few as 4–6 carbon atoms to as many as 22–26, derived from natural fats and oils. The precise chain length varies with the source. Some commercially important fatty alcohols are lauryl, stearyl, and oleyl alcohol. They are colourless oily liquids (for smaller carbon numbers) or waxy solids, although impure samples may appear yellow. Fatty alcohols usually have an even number of carbon atoms and a single alcohol group (–OH) attached to the terminal carbon. Some are unsaturated and some are branched. They are widely used in industry. As with fatty acids, they are often referred to generically by the number of carbon atoms in the molecule, such as "a C₁₂ alcohol", that is an alcohol having 12 carbon atoms, for example dodecanol.

View the full Wikipedia page for Fatty alcohol

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