ricinoleic acid

noun

, Chemistry.

1. a colorless to yellow, viscous, liquid, water-insoluble, unsaturated hydroxyl acid, C 1 8 H 3 4 O 3 , occurring in castor oil in the form of the glyceride: used chiefly in soaps and textile finishing.

ricinoleic acid

/ ˌrɪsɪnəʊˈliːɪk; -ˈnəʊlɪɪk /

noun

1. an oily unsaturated carboxylic acid found, as the glyceride, in castor oil and used in the manufacture of soap and in finishing textiles; 12-hydroxy-9-octadecanoic acid. Formula: C 18 H 34 O 3
2. the mixture of fatty acids obtained by hydrolysing castor oil

Word History and Origins

Origin of ricinoleic acid¹

First recorded in 1840–50

Word History and Origins

Origin of ricinoleic acid¹

C19: from ricin + oleic acid

Example Sentences

It contains palmitic and several other fatty acids, among which there is one—ricinoleic acid—peculiar to itself.

From Project Gutenberg