Levulinic Acid

A carboxylic acid, C5H8O3, 116.116 g/mol. Boiling point 245.5 °C, melting point 33 °C, as published.

verified recordOrganic — carboxylic acid6 measured properties

Identifiers

Molecular formula: C₅H₈O₃
Molecular weight: 116.116 g/mol
Exact mass: 116.047344 g/mol
IUPAC name: 4-oxopentanoic acid
SMILES: CC(=O)CCC(=O)O
InChI: InChI=1S/C5H8O3/c1-4(6)2-3-5(7)8/h2-3H2,1H3,(H,7,8)
InChIKey: JOOXCMJARBKPKM-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: 245.5 °Cmeasured · DrugBank; 245.00 to 246.00 °C. @ 760.00 mm Hgmeasured · Human Metabolome Database (HMDB)
Melting Point: 33 °Cmeasured · DrugBank; 30 - 33 °Cmeasured · Human Metabolome Database (HMDB)
Density: 1.136-1.147 (20 °C)measured · Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)
Solubility: soluble in water, alcohol, and oilmeasured · Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA); 1 mL in 1 mL 95% alcohol (in ethanol)measured · Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)
LogP: -0.49measured · DrugBank; -0.49measured · Human Metabolome Database (HMDB)
Refractive Index: 1.439-1.445measured · reference compound database

Calculated properties

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

Molecular weight: 116.11 g/molcalculated · reference compound database; Average mass of one molecule, from reference compound database.
Exact mass: 116.047344113 Dacalculated · reference compound database; Mass of the most common isotopic form.
XLogP3: -0.5calculated · reference compound database; Estimated oil/water partition, computed by reference compound database.
Polar surface area: 54.4 Å²calculated · reference compound database; Polar surface area as computed by reference compound database.
Complexity: 106calculated · reference compound database; A rough measure of how intricate the structure is.
H-bond donors: 1calculated · reference compound database
H-bond acceptors: 3calculated · reference compound database
logP: 0.4402calculated · chemistry engine; Estimated preference for oil over water. Higher means more oil-like.
Topological polar surface area: 54.37 Å²calculated · chemistry engine; Surface area from polar atoms; relates to how easily a molecule crosses membranes.
H-bond donors: 1calculated · chemistry engine; Atoms that can donate a hydrogen bond.
H-bond acceptors: 2calculated · chemistry engine; Atoms that can accept a hydrogen bond.
Rotatable bonds: 3calculated · chemistry engine; Single bonds the molecule can freely twist around.
Molar refractivity: 27.5508 cm³/molcalculated · chemistry engine; Relates to the molecule's polarisability.
Fraction sp³ carbons: 0.6calculated · chemistry engine; Share of carbon atoms with tetrahedral bonding.
QED drug-likeness: 0.5817calculated · chemistry engine; Quantitative estimate of drug-likeness (0–1).

What it is made of

Elements

C Carbon5 atoms · 51.7% by mass
O Oxygen3 atoms · 41.3% by mass
H Hydrogen8 atoms · 6.9% 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: 8
Total atoms, hydrogen included: 16
Rings: 0
Aromatic rings: 0
Stereocentres: 0
Formal charge: 0

Functional groups

Carboxylic acid
A carbon double-bonded to oxygen and bonded to an –OH group; acidic.
Ketone
A carbonyl bonded to two carbons.

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 Levulinic Acid yet.

Other names for it

The systematic name on this record is 4-oxopentanoic acid.

The sources also call it 4-Oxopentanoic acid, Laevulinic acid, Pentanoic acid, 4-oxo-, 4-Oxovaleric acid, Levulic acid, 4-Ketovaleric acid, gamma-Ketovaleric acid, LEVA, Acetopropionic acid, Levulinsaeure, Laevulic acid.

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.

(R)-Tetrahydro-3-furoic acid

C5H8O3

(Acetylmethylamino)acetic acid

C5H9NO3

Where these values came from

reference compound database11579
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.