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Concept information

Preferred term

acetic acid  

Definition

  • Acetic acid, systematically named ethanoic acid, is an acidic, colourless liquid and organic compound with the chemical formula CH₃COOH (also written as CH₃CO₂H, C₂H₄O₂, or HC₂H₃O₂). Vinegar is at least 4% acetic acid by volume, making acetic acid the main component of vinegar apart from water and other trace elements. Interstellar acetic acid was discovered in 1996 by a team led by David Mehringer using the former Berkeley-Illinois-Maryland Association array at the Hat Creek Radio Observatory and the former Millimeter Array located at the Owens Valley Radio Observatory. It was first detected in the Sagittarius B2 North molecular cloud (also known as the Sgr B2 Large Molecule Heimat source). Acetic acid has the distinction of being the first molecule discovered in the interstellar medium using solely radio interferometers; in all previous ISM molecular discoveries made in the millimetre and centimetre wavelength regimes, single dish radio telescopes were at least partly responsible for the detections. (Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acetic_acid)

Broader concept

Entry terms

  • ethanoic acid

In other languages

URI

http://data.loterre.fr/ark:/67375/MDL-R31BNSSM-6

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