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Stearic acid

Authors:Prof. Dr. med. Peter Altmeyer, Prof. Dr. med. Martina Bacharach-Buhles

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Last updated on: 29.10.2020

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Synonym(s)

Acicum stearicum PhEur 7; acidum stearinicum; C18H36 O2; CAS No 57-11-4; n-octadic acid; Octadecanoic acid

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DefinitionThis section has been translated automatically.

Stearic acid is a colourless, odourless carboxylic acid melting at 69.3°C, which is waxy solid at normal ambient temperature and insoluble in ether, soluble in hot ethanol, and insoluble in water.

Stearic acid is a mixture of (mainly) palmitic acid (syn. hexadecanoic acid) and stearic acid (octadecanoic acid ure). The salts of stearic acid are called stearates.

OccurrenceThis section has been translated automatically.

As glyceryl stearate, stearic acid is a natural component in almost all animal and vegetable fats and oils. Thus in coconut oil, in hazelnuts or cocoa butter. In the EU palmitic acid is generally approved as a food additive (E 570) for foodstuffs.

Authors

Last updated on: 29.10.2020

Authors: Prof. Dr. med. Peter Altmeyer Prof. Dr. med. Martina Bacharach-Buhles