This table gives the names and selected properties of some important fatty acids and their methyl esters. It includes most of the acids that are significant constituents of naturally occurring oils and fats. Compounds are listed first by number of carbon atoms and, second, by the degree of unsaturation. Column definitions for the table are as follows.
Column heading | Definition |
Systematic name | IUPAC systematic chemical name for compound |
Common name | Common or trivial name for compound |
Mol. form. | The molecular formula written in the Hill convention |
Acid code | Shorthand acid code commonly used; the first number in this code gives the number of carbon atoms; the number following the colon is the number of unsaturated centers (mainly double bonds); the location and orientation of the unsaturated centers follow. The symbols used are: c = cis; t = trans; a = acetylenic center; e = ethylenic center at end of chain; ep = epoxy; thus 9c,11t indicates a double bond with cis orientation at the No. 9 carbon and another with trans orientation at the No. 11 carbon. Additional details on the codes can be found in Ref. 1 |
CAS Reg. No. | Chemical Abstracts Service Registry Number for the compound |
Mol. wt. | Molecular weight (relative molar mass) as calculated with the 2016 IUPAC Standard Atomic Weights |
tmp/°C | Normal melting point, in °C |
ρ | Density, in g cm-3; at temperature in °C specified in superscript (Online Edition only) |
S | Aqueous solubility, in units of g fatty acid per kg water (Online Edition Only) |
Me ester tmp/°C | Normal melting point, in °C of the methyl ester of the acid when available |
Me ester tbp/°C | Normal boiling point in °C of the methyl ester of the acid when available; a superscript on the boiling point indicates the pressure in mmHg (torr); if there is no superscript, the value refers to one atmosphere (101.325 kPa or 760 mmHg) |
The references cover many other fatty acids beyond those listed here and give additional properties.
We are indebted to Frank D. Gunstone for advice on the content of the table.
Systematic name | Common name | Mol. form. | Acid code | CAS Reg. No. | Mol. wt. | tmp/ºC | ρ/g cm-3 | S/g kg-1 | Me ester tmp/ºC | Me ester tbp/ºC |
Continued on next page... | ||||||||||
Butanoic acid | Butyric acid | C4H8O2 | 4:0 | 107-92-6 | 88.106 | -5.12 | 0.952825 | -85.8 | 102.8 | |
Pentanoic acid | Valeric acid | C5H10O2 | 5:0 | 109-52-4 | 102.132 | -33.63 | 0.938920 | 45.1 | 69.8 | 127.4 |
3-Methylbutanoic acid | Isovaleric acid | C5H10O2 | 4:0 3-Me | 503-74-2 | 102.132 | -29.6 | 0.93120 | 43 | -31.5 | 116.5 |
Hexanoic acid | Caproic acid | C6H12O2 | 6:0 | 142-62-1 | 116.158 | -4.1 | 0.927420 | 10.2 | -71 | 149.5 |
Heptanoic acid | Enanthic acid | C7H14O2 | 7:0 | 111-14-8 | 130.185 | -7.17 | 0.918120 | 2.4 | -56 | 174 |
Octanoic acid | Caprylic acid | C8H16O2 | 8:0 | 124-07-2 | 144.212 | 16.51 | 0.910620 | 0.80 | -40 | 192.9 |
Nonanoic acid | Pelargonic acid | C9H18O2 | 9:0 | 112-05-0 | 158.238 | 12.38 | 0.905220 | 0.284 | -35 | 213.5 |
Decanoic acid | Capric acid | C10H20O2 | 10:0 | 334-48-5 | 172.265 | 31.39 | 0.885840 | 0.15 | -18 | 224 |
9-Decenoic acid | Caproleic acid | C10H18O2 | 10:1 | 14436-32-9 | 170.249 | 26.5 | 0.923815 | 12020 | ||
Undecanoic acid | Hendecanoic acid | C11H22O2 | 11:0 | 112-37-8 | 186.292 | 28.47 | 0.890720 | -15.2 | 12310 | |
Dodecanoic acid | Lauric acid | C12H24O2 | 12:0 | 143-07-7 | 200.318 | 43.82 | 0.867950 | 0.055 | 5.1 | 268 |
cis-9-Dodecenoic acid | Lauroleic acid | C12H22O2 | 12:1 9c | 2382-40-3 | 198.302 | 23 | ||||
Tridecanoic acid | Tridecylic acid | C13H26O2 | 13:0 | 638-53-9 | 214.344 | 41.85 | 0.845880 | 0.033 | 6.5 | 921 |
Tetradecanoic acid | Myristic acid | C14H28O2 | 14:0 | 544-63-8 | 228.371 | 54.16 | 0.862254 | 0.020 | 19.0 | 295; 1557 |
cis-9-Tetradecenoic acid | Myristoleic acid | C14H26O2 | 14:1 9c | 13147-06-3 | 226.355 | -4 | 0.901820 | |||
Pentadecanoic acid | Pentadecyclic acid | C15H30O2 | 15:0 | 1002-84-2 | 242.398 | 52.52 | 0.842380 | 0.012 | 18.5 | 153.5 |
Hexadecanoic acid | Palmitic acid | C16H32O2 | 16:0 | 57-10-3 | 256.424 | 62.49 | 0.848770 | 0.0072 | 29.6 | 324 |
cis-9-Hexadecenoic acid | Palmitoleic acid | C16H30O2 | 16:1 9c | 373-49-9 | 254.408 | 2 | 33.7 | 325 | ||
Heptadecanoic acid | Margaric acid | C17H34O2 | 17:0 | 506-12-7 | 270.451 | 61.08 | 0.853260 | 0.0042 | 30 | 1859 |