Lactic Acid

A carboxylic acid, C3H6O3, 90.078 g/mol. Boiling point 122 °C at 1.50E+01 mm Hg, melting point 16.8 °C, as published.

verified recordOrganic — carboxylic acid9 measured properties

Identifiers

Molecular formula: C₃H₆O₃
Molecular weight: 90.078 g/mol
Exact mass: 90.031694 g/mol
IUPAC name: 2-hydroxypropanoic acid
SMILES: CC(O)C(=O)O
InChI: InChI=1S/C3H6O3/c1-2(4)3(5)6/h2,4H,1H3,(H,5,6)
InChIKey: JVTAAEKCZFNVCJ-UHFFFAOYSA-N

Open in ReactionLens Use in reaction prediction

Measured properties

Published measurements, each with its source. Two readings of one property are both shown, in the units each used.

Boiling Point: 122 °C at 1.50E+01 mm Hgmeasured · DrugBank; 122 °C at 15 mm Hgmeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Melting Point: 16.8 °Cmeasured · DrugBank; 16.8 °Cmeasured · Haz-Map, Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases
Density: 1.2 at 68 °F (USCG, 1999) - Denser than water; will sinkmeasured · CAMEO Chemicals; 1.2060 g/cu cm at 21 °Cmeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Solubility: 1000000 mg/Lmeasured · DrugBank; Completely soluble in watermeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Vapor Pressure: 0.08 [mmHg]measured · Haz-Map, Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases; 0.0813 mm Hg at 25 °Cmeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
LogP: -0.72measured · DrugBank; log Kow = -0.72measured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Flash Point: 113 °C (235 °F) - closed cupmeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB); 110 °C c.c.measured · ILO-WHO International Chemical Safety Cards (ICSCs)
Viscosity: Viscosities of aqueous lactic acid at 25 °C: 1.042 mPa s (6.29 wt%), 1.752 mPa s (25.02 wt%), 4.68 mPa s (54.94 wt%), 36.9 mPa s (88.60 wt%)measured · Starr JN, Westhoff G; Lactic Acid. Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry. 7th ed. (1999-2016). New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons. Online Posting Date: 31 Jan 2014
Refractive Index: Index of refraction = 1.4392 at 20 °Cmeasured · Haynes, W.M. (ed.). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. 95th Edition. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton: FL 2014-2015, p. 3-336; 1.413-1.429measured · reference compound database

Calculated properties

Derived from the structure, not from a sample; kept apart from the measurements above.

Molecular weight: 90.08 g/molcalculated · reference compound database; Average mass of one molecule, from reference compound database.
Exact mass: 90.031694049 Dacalculated · reference compound database; Mass of the most common isotopic form.
XLogP3: -0.7calculated · reference compound database; Estimated oil/water partition, computed by reference compound database.
Polar surface area: 57.5 Å²calculated · reference compound database; Polar surface area as computed by reference compound database.
Complexity: 59calculated · reference compound database; A rough measure of how intricate the structure is.
H-bond donors: 2calculated · reference compound database
H-bond acceptors: 3calculated · reference compound database
logP: -0.5482calculated · chemistry engine; Estimated preference for oil over water. Higher means more oil-like.
Topological polar surface area: 57.53 Å²calculated · chemistry engine; Surface area from polar atoms; relates to how easily a molecule crosses membranes.
H-bond donors: 2calculated · chemistry engine; Atoms that can donate a hydrogen bond.
H-bond acceptors: 2calculated · chemistry engine; Atoms that can accept a hydrogen bond.
Rotatable bonds: 1calculated · chemistry engine; Single bonds the molecule can freely twist around.
Molar refractivity: 19.3166 cm³/molcalculated · chemistry engine; Relates to the molecule's polarisability.
Fraction sp³ carbons: 0.6667calculated · chemistry engine; Share of carbon atoms with tetrahedral bonding.
QED drug-likeness: 0.4539calculated · chemistry engine; Quantitative estimate of drug-likeness (0–1).

What it is made of

Elements

O Oxygen3 atoms · 53.3% by mass
C Carbon3 atoms · 40.0% by mass
H Hydrogen6 atoms · 6.7% by mass

Percentages are of the molecular weight above, worked out the same way the molar mass calculator does it.

Structure

Heavy atoms, hydrogen excluded: 6
Total atoms, hydrogen included: 12
Rings: 0
Aromatic rings: 0
Stereocentres: 1
Formal charge: 0

Functional groups

Carboxylic acid
A carbon double-bonded to oxygen and bonded to an –OH group; acidic.
Alcohol
An –OH group on a saturated carbon.

Matched by structural pattern, not by a measurement.

The molecule in three dimensions

Rotate and inspect the atoms. Loaded only when you ask, so the page stays light.

The drawing above is a diagram of what is bonded to what. A molecule is not flat, and the model here is one low-energy shape generated from the connectivity — useful for seeing which groups can reach each other, and not a measured structure. A real sample is a population of conformations, interconverting.

Reactions it appears in

No documented reaction with a written procedure and a source involves Lactic Acid yet.

Other names for it

The systematic name on this record is 2-hydroxypropanoic acid.

The sources also call it 2-hydroxypropanoic acid, DL-Lactic acid, 2-hydroxypropionic acid, Milk acid, Tonsillosan, Racemic lactic acid, Ordinary lactic acid, Acidum lacticum, Ethylidenelactic acid, Lactovagan, Milchsaeure.

Structurally related

Molecules sharing this formula, or whose fingerprint is at least 40% similar to this one. Similarity is Tanimoto on Morgan fingerprints over this library only — it is a measure of structural overlap, not of how alike they behave.

(+-)-2-Hydroxyisovaleric acid

C5H10O3

Where these values came from

reference compound database612
compound record
chemistry engine
structure perception

compound record.

What this page does not claim

Identifiers are copied from the source record, measured values are reported as published, and calculated values are marked as calculated. Nothing here is a hazard, purity or handling assessment — how the library is checked.