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butanol

[byoot-n-awl, -ol]
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noun Chemistry.
  1. butyl alcohol.
  2. butanol that is made from fossil fuels (petrobutanol) or from certain plants or algae (biobutanol), and which is used as an alternative to gasoline.

Origin of butanol

First recorded in 1890–95; butane + -ol1
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
British Dictionary definitions for butanol

butanol

noun
  1. a colourless substance existing in four isomeric forms. The three liquid isomers are used as solvents for resins, lacquers, etc, and in the manufacture of organic compounds. Formula: C 4 H 9 OHAlso called: butyl alcohol

Word Origin

C19: from butan (e) + -ol 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
butanol in Science

butanol

[byōō′tə-nôl′, -nōl′, nŏl′]
  1. Either of the two butyl alcohols that are derived from butane and have a straight chain of carbon atoms. Butanols are used as solvents and in organic synthesis. Chemical formula: C4H10O.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.