What is Alcohol: Definition and 159 Discussions

In chemistry, alcohol is an organic compound that carries at least one hydroxyl functional group (−OH) bound to a saturated carbon atom. The term alcohol originally referred to the primary alcohol ethanol (ethyl alcohol), which is used as a drug and is the main alcohol present in alcoholic drinks. An important class of alcohols, of which methanol and ethanol are the simplest members, includes all compounds for which the general formula is CnH2n+1OH. Simple monoalcohols that are the subject of this article include primary (RCH2OH), secondary (R2CHOH) and tertiary (R3COH) alcohols.
The suffix -ol appears in the IUPAC chemical name of all substances where the hydroxyl group is the functional group with the highest priority. When a higher priority group is present in the compound, the prefix hydroxy- is used in its IUPAC name. The suffix -ol in non-IUPAC names (such as paracetamol or cholesterol) also typically indicates that the substance is an alcohol. However, many substances that contain hydroxyl functional groups (particularly sugars, such as glucose and sucrose) have names which include neither the suffix -ol, nor the prefix hydroxy-.

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  1. T

    Organic Chemistry - Alcohol Synthesis Problem

    I have attached a file of the alcohol I need to synthesize and my futile attempt... I was thinking of using a hydration reaction to make the alcohol from the alkyne group. So basically I would mix the alkyne group with H2O and some how produce the alcohol group. Am I heading in the right...
  2. F

    Taste and sensation of alcohol

    I hope this isn't an inappropriate topic for this section, but I was curious if anyone knew what taste sensations are stimulated by alcohol. Of the four taste buds; sweet, salty, bitter, and sour, I'm not sure where alcohol would fit. There is also a burning sensation associated with alcohol...
  3. T

    Where would I shop for safe to drink lab alcohol?

    Hello. I am performing some biochemical process where the end product is going to be intended for human consumption. I am curious where I can buy large quantities of ethanol that is safe for drinking. I don't want to use the liquor store corn alcohol because it has some impurities...
  4. M

    Alcohol in beer would evaporate extremely slowly in cold temperatures?

    I'm guessing the alcohol in beer would evaporate extremely slowly in cold temperatures like a fridge. I hear a lot of people say otherwise, so I'm wondering if it even evaporates a noticeable amount in 24 hours?
  5. P

    Alcohol Drinking Habits Amongst Peers: Reflections on High School

    As I reflect back on my four awkward years of high school I still cringe at all the awkward times I had to turn down a drink. Among youths, choosing to abstain from alcohol was an easy way to put a target on your back and slowly alienate yourself. The pressure did get to a lot of kids. Even the...
  6. J

    Boric acid + Isopropyl alcohol = ?

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  7. reenmachine

    How Dangerous is Mixing Alcohol and Acetaminophen?

    Edit: sorry for the typo in the title , can't edit I looked around on google quite a bit and it's very hard to find precise information on the issue.All I can find is vague warnings like "acetaminophen and alcohol is bad for the liver". Anybody have knowledge on just how dangerous the mix can...
  8. K

    Understanding Alcohol as a Solvent in Halogenoalkane Reactions

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  9. S

    Absolute Alcohol Vs. Absolute alcohol

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  10. S

    Medical Is alcohol harmful for your brain?

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  11. N

    Find initial temp. of alcohol when copper and aluminum are added

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  12. E

    Synthesizing alkyne from alcohol

    If I have a end alcohol attached to a carbon chain, what would be a reaction or synthetic pathway that can be done to transform the alcohol to an alkyne? Thanks for your input.
  13. J

    Alcohol Solvents: Dissolving Herbs' Alkaloids & Resins

    Why is alcohol better at dissolving compounds in herbs than water? Such as alkaloids and resins. Can someone explain how it actually does this?
  14. N

    Is a licence required to make isopropyl alcohol?

    Is a license required to make isopropyl alcohol? I know at times making alcohol can be illegal such as making it for drinking, but what about isopropyl?
  15. A

    Chlorine (bleach) and alcohol (ethanol?).

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  16. Q

    Can alcohol (ethanol) remove or destroy dishwasher liqiud?

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  17. L

    Find an Alcohol Bottle that Looks Like Apple Juice

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  18. Rapier

    Buoyancy (A Boat in Water vs Alcohol)

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  19. J

    Medical Is Giving Up Alcohol the Key to Achieving My Goals?

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  20. S

    Any evidence to suggest alcohol could improve brain function for short periods?

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  21. T

    Acetone v. Alcohol for cleaning a pipe.

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  22. G

    Understanding the Role of Zinc Ion in Alcohol Dehydrogenase Catalysis

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  23. K

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  24. Ivan Seeking

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  25. Q_Goest

    Medical Alcohol and testosterone levels in men

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  26. D

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  27. S

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  28. Z

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  29. N

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  30. B

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  31. J

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  32. Ivan Seeking

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  33. S

    Preserving Food in Alcohol: What Could Go Wrong?

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  34. O

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  35. L

    Natural preservatives. vinegar, alcohol, sugar, salt, oil.

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  36. F

    Why can't alcohol react with aqueous NaOH?

    Hi, alcohol is able to react with Na (s), but not NaOH (aq) Why is it so? In aqueous NaOH, there are mobile Na+ and OH-, so shouldn't alcohol be able to react with Na+ to form salt too? Many thanks!
  37. G

    Medical Risk of cancer from smoking or alcohol?

    Does anyone have a number or source how much the chance of dying of cancer increases if you smoke or drink? The actual question is: How many people from a group of smokers die additionally compared to a group of non-smokers? Somehow most press statements don't seem sufficient to answer...
  38. K

    Calculating Specific Heat of Alcohol Using a Copper Calorimeter

    Homework Statement A mass of 200 grams of copper, whose specific heat is 0.095, is heated to 100° C, and placed in 100 grams of alcohol at 8° C contained in a copper calorimeter, whose mass is 25 grams, and the temperature rises 28.5°C. Find the specific heat of the alcohol. Homework...
  39. icystrike

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  40. xunxine

    Oxidation of Alcohol - Ethanol & Acids in Exposed Alcoholic Drinks

    What happens when alcoholic beverages are left exposed to air? i read that they are oxidised to ethanoic acid. Strictly only ethanoic acid? Why not say, propanoic acid? Or a mixture of acids possible to be present? Is it because only ethanol is present in alcoholic drinks? If so, only ethanol then?
  41. C

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  42. M

    Does all alcohol undergo halogenation and controlled oxidation?

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  43. K

    Oxidation reaction from alcohol to aldehyde

    My original question: Why do oxidation reactions from primary alcohols to aldehydyes/carboxylic acids, or secondary alcohols to ketones require an acid (positive hydrogen ion)? I can see that the reason we have an oxidizing agent is to take away two hydrogen ions from the alcohol, but why do...
  44. B

    Find the mass of ethyl alcohol

    Homework Statement What is the initial temperature of copper if, 11 g aluminum at 200 C and 21 g of copper are dropped into 46 cm^3 of ethyl alcohol at 15 C. The final temperature of the system is 22 C. Homework Equations Q=McT The Attempt at a Solution My work ...
  45. JaredJames

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    Right, I'm putting this here first to get some general opinions and if it eventually gets moved to a biology/medical section, that would be good. Basically there has been a lot of debate between my housemates about whether or not cannabis and marijuana are better for you to consume than...
  46. L

    Is this a reliable way to determine the alcohol %?

    Alcohol (ethanol) has a freezing point of -114 degrees Celcius. Can this be used to determine the alcohol percentage in a drink? Last week i put a glass of whiskey mixed with some water (about 1:1) and the surface was just frozen after i left it a night in the freezer, which was somewhere...
  47. X

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    Hi. I was to plan and conduct the reduction of 4-t-butylcyclohexanone into 4-t-butylcyclohexanol using NaBH4 as reducing agent, MeOH as solvent, and NH4Cl. My question is about the use of NH4Cl. How does it act as a quenching agent? I've figured out that it acts as a quenching agent by removing...
  48. D

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    Homework Statement The boiling points (ºC) of methanol, ethanol, 1-propanol, 1-butanol, and 1-pentanol are 64.7, 78.5, 97.2, 117 to 118, 137.5, respectively. The melting points are -97.8, -114.1, -1277.0, -90.0, and -79.0, respectively. Explain these trends with reference to molecular...
  49. P

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  50. M

    How Does the Body Metabolize Alcohol and Where Do the Protons Go?

    In the metabolism of alcohol, where do the protons produced go? ie. CH3CH2OH + NAD+ -----> CH3CHO + NADH + H+
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