Palmitic Acid

A carboxylic acid, C16H32O2, 256.43 g/mol. Boiling point 351.5 °C, melting point 61.8 °C, as published.

verified recordOrganic — carboxylic acid8 measured properties

Identifiers

Molecular formula: C₁₆H₃₂O₂
Molecular weight: 256.43 g/mol
Exact mass: 256.24023 g/mol
IUPAC name: hexadecanoic acid
SMILES: CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC(=O)O
InChI: InChI=1S/C16H32O2/c1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16(17)18/h2-15H2,1H3,(H,17,18)
InChIKey: IPCSVZSSVZVIGE-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: 351.5 °Cmeasured · DrugBank; 351.5 °Cmeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Melting Point: 61.8 °Cmeasured · DrugBank; 62.49 °Cmeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Density: Density: 0.8527 g/cu cm at 62 °Cmeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB); Relative density (water = 1): 0.85measured · ILO-WHO International Chemical Safety Cards (ICSCs)
Solubility: 0.04 mg/L (at 25 °C)measured · DrugBank; In water, 0.04 mg/L at 25 °Cmeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Vapor Pressure: 0.00000038 [mmHg]measured · Haz-Map, Information on Hazardous Chemicals and Occupational Diseases; 3.8X10-7 mm Hg at 25 °Cmeasured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
LogP: 7.17measured · DrugBank; log Kow = 7.17measured · Hazardous Substances Data Bank (HSDB)
Viscosity: 7.80 mPa.sec (cP) at 70 °Cmeasured · Bagby MO et al; Carboxylic Acids. Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology. (1999-2017). New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons. Online Posting Date: 17 Oct 2003.
Refractive Index: Index of refraction: 1.4309 at 70 °Cmeasured · Larranaga, M.D., Lewis, R.J. Sr., Lewis, R.A.; Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary 16th Edition. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Hoboken, NJ 2016., p. 1027; Index of refraction: 1.4335 at 60 °Cmeasured · Haynes, W.M. (ed.). CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics. 95th Edition. CRC Press LLC, Boca Raton: FL 2014-2015, p. 3-294

Calculated properties

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

Molecular weight: 256.42 g/molcalculated · reference compound database; Average mass of one molecule, from reference compound database.
Exact mass: 256.240230259 Dacalculated · reference compound database; Mass of the most common isotopic form.
XLogP3: 6.4calculated · reference compound database; Estimated oil/water partition, computed by reference compound database.
Polar surface area: 37.3 Å²calculated · reference compound database; Polar surface area as computed by reference compound database.
Complexity: 178calculated · reference compound database; A rough measure of how intricate the structure is.
H-bond donors: 1calculated · reference compound database
H-bond acceptors: 2calculated · reference compound database
logP: 5.5523calculated · chemistry engine; Estimated preference for oil over water. Higher means more oil-like.
Topological polar surface area: 37.3 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: 1calculated · chemistry engine; Atoms that can accept a hydrogen bond.
Rotatable bonds: 14calculated · chemistry engine; Single bonds the molecule can freely twist around.
Molar refractivity: 77.9478 cm³/molcalculated · chemistry engine; Relates to the molecule's polarisability.
Fraction sp³ carbons: 0.9375calculated · chemistry engine; Share of carbon atoms with tetrahedral bonding.
QED drug-likeness: 0.4135calculated · chemistry engine; Quantitative estimate of drug-likeness (0–1).

What it is made of

Elements

C Carbon16 atoms · 74.9% by mass
H Hydrogen32 atoms · 12.6% by mass
O Oxygen2 atoms · 12.5% 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: 18
Total atoms, hydrogen included: 50
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.

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 Palmitic Acid yet.

Other names for it

The systematic name on this record is hexadecanoic acid.

The sources also call it Hexadecanoic acid, Cetylic acid, n-Hexadecanoic acid, Hexadecylic acid, 1-Pentadecanecarboxylic acid, n-Hexadecoic acid, Hydrofol, Palmitinic acid, Pentadecanecarboxylic acid, hexaectylic acid, Industrene 4516.

Structurally related

Nothing structurally close to Palmitic Acid has a page here yet.

Seen alongside it in reaction records

Molecules that appear in the same recorded reactions as Palmitic Acid. This says nothing about structure: most of them are the bases, solvents, ligands and catalysts the chemistry needed, and they are here because somebody put them in the same flask.

1,3-Propanediol, 2-methylene-

used as a reactant

C₄H₈O₂, 88.106 g/mol.

Where these values came from

reference compound database985
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.