Cetyl alcohol

• Cetyl alcohol
• Palmityl

White waxy flakes with a faint odor

Fixed

0.84 g · cm -3

49 ° C

344 ° C

Practically insoluble in water

1.4283 (79 ° C)

Template: Infobox chemical / molecular formula search available

1 -hexadecanol, also known as palmityl alcohol, cetyl alcohol, or is a long chain monohydric alcohol, which is included in the group of fatty alcohols.

History

Cetyl alcohol was discovered in 1817 by French chemist Michel Eugène Chevreul. When he heated spermaceti with potash, fused Cetylalkoholplättchen. From Latin = Cetacea whale, the name cetyl derives.

Production and representation

With the decline of whaling also lost the manufacture of spermaceti important. Today, cetyl alcohol is obtained as a final product in petroleum refining or is produced from palm oil or coconut oil by hydrogenation of the fatty acid palmitic acid.

Use

Cetyl alcohol is used in the cosmetic industry as a surfactant in shampoos. For the production of facial creams, it is used either as an emulsifier or as a thickener. Cetyl alcohol is converted to the fatty alcohol sulfate or alkyl ether sulfates to which are used as anionic surfactants in detergents and cosmetic products in application.