NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Lauric acid

Lauric acid, or dodecanoic acid, is a saturated fatty acid with the structural formula CH₃(CH₂)₁₀COOH . It is the main acid in coconut oil and in palm kernel oil, and is believed to have antimicrobial properties. It is also found in human milk(5.8% of total fat), cows milk(2.2%), and goat milk(4.5%). It is a white, powdery solid with a faint odor of bay oil or soap. In chemistry, the standard state of a material is its state at 1 bar (100 kilopascals) and 25 degrees Celsius (298. ... Saturated fat is fat that consists of triglycerides containing only saturated fatty acids. ... In chemistry, especially biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid often with a long unbranched aliphatic tail (chain), which is either saturated or unsaturated. ... Coconut oil, also known as coconut butter, is a tropical oil extracted from copra (the dried inner flesh of coconuts) with many applications. ... Palm oil is a form of edible vegetable oil obtained from the fruit of the Oil palm tree. ...

Uses

Lauric acid, although slightly irritating to mucous membranes, has a very low toxicity and so is used in many soaps and shampoos. Sodium lauryl sulfate is the most common lauric-acid derived compound used for this purpose. Because lauric acid has a non-polar hydrocarbon tail and a polar carboxylic acid head, it can interact with polar solvents (the most important being water) as well as fats, allowing water to dissolve fats. This accounts for the abilities of shampoos to remove grease from hair. Another use is to raise metabolism, believed to derive from lauric acid's activation of 20% of thyroidal hormones, otherwise which lay dormant.^{[citation needed]} This is supposed from lauric acid's release of enzymes in the intestinal tract which activate the thyroid.^{[citation needed]} This could account the metabolism-raising properties of coconut oil. Sodium dodecyl sulfate (or sulphate) (SDS or NaDS) (C12H25NaO4S), also known as sodium lauryl sulfate (SLS), is an ionic surfactant that is used in household products such as toothpastes, shampoos, shaving foams and bubble baths for its thickening effect and its ability to create a lather. ...

Because lauric acid is inexpensive, has a long shelf-life, and is non-toxic and safe to handle, it is often used in laboratory investigations of melting-point depression. Lauric acid is a solid at room temperature but melts easily in boiling water, so liquid lauric acid can be treated with various solutes and used to determine their molecular masses.

Reduction of lauric acid yields 1-dodecanol. Dodecanol, also known by its IUPAC name 1-dodecanol or dodecan-1-ol, and by its trivial name dodecyl alcohol and lauryl alcohol, is a fatty alcohol. ...

Physical data

Vapor density: 6.20
Vapor pressure: 1 mm at 121 C
Flash point: >113°C (>235°F)
Viscosity: 7.30 mPa-s at 323 K

Stability

Stable. Combustible. Incompatible with bases, oxidizing agents, reducing agents. Although lauric acid will burn, it tends to melt and vaporize unless it is in contact with an oxidizing agent or has been heated extremely quickly.

Toxicology

Transport information

External links

Categories: All articles with unsourced statements | Articles with unsourced statements since June 2007 | Fatty acids | Nutrition A polyunsaturated triglyceride. ... In chemistry, especially biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid often with a long unbranched aliphatic tail (chain), which is either saturated or unsaturated. ... Saturated fat is fat that consists of triglycerides containing only saturated fatty acids. ... Butyric acid, (from Greek Î²Î¿Ï…Ï„Ï…ÏÎ¿Ï‚ = butter) IUPAC name n-Butanoic acid, or normal butyric acid, is a carboxylic acid with structural formula CH3CH2CH2-COOH. It is notably found in rancid butter, parmesan cheese, and vomit, and has an unpleasant odor and acrid taste, with a sweetish aftertaste (similar to ether). ... Hexanoic acid, also known as caproic acid, is the carboxylic acid derived from hexane with the formula C5H11COOH. It is an oily liquid smelling of cheese. ... Caprylic acid is the common name for the eight-carbon straight chain fatty acid known by the systematic name octanoic acid. ... Decanoic acid is a type of carboxylic acid. ... Myristic acid, also called Tetradecanoic acid, is a common saturated fatty acid found in dairy products. ... Palmitic acid, also called hexadecanoic acid, is one of the most common saturated fatty acids found in animals and plants. ... Stearic acid, also called octadecanoic acid, is one of the useful types of saturated fatty acids that comes from many animal and vegetable fats and oils. ... Arachidic acid also called eicosanoic acid is a saturated fatty acid found in peanut oil. ... Behenic acid, also docosanoic acid, is a normal carboxylic acid, a fatty acid with formula C21H43COOH. Reduction of behenic acid yields behenyl alcohol. ... It has been suggested that Fish oil, Oily fish be merged into this article or section. ... Linolenic acid Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) is a polyunsaturated omega-3 fatty acid with the molecular formula C18H30O2 and molar mass 278. ... Stearidonic acid is an Ï‰-3 essential fatty acid, sometimes called moroctic acid. ... Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA or also icosapentaenoic acid) is an omega-3 fatty acid. ... Docosahexaenoic acid (commonly known as DHA; 22:6(Ï‰-3), all-cis-docosa-4,7,10,13,16,19-hexaenoic acid; trivial name cervonic acid) is an omega-3 essential fatty acid. ... Omega-6 fatty acids are fatty acids where the term omega-6 signifies that the first double bond in the carbon backbone of the fatty acid, counting from the end opposite the acid group, occurs in the sixth carbon-carbon bond. ... Linoleic acid (LA) is an unsaturated omega-6 fatty acid. ... gamma-Linolenic acid (GLA) is an omega-6 essential fatty acid found primarily in vegetable oils. ... Dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid (DGLA) is 20-carbon Ï‰-3 fatty acid. ... Arachidonic acid (AA) is an omega-6 fatty acid 20:4(Ï‰-6). ... Omega-9 fatty acids are a class of unsaturated fatty acids which have a C=C double bond in the Ï‰-9 position. ... Oleic acid is a monounsaturated omega-9 fatty acid found in various animal and vegetable sources. ... Erucic acid Erucic acid is a fatty acid found in rapeseed, wallflower seed, and mustard seed, making up 40 to 50 percent of their oil. ...

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