Acetic acid
Acetic acid is the colorless carboxylic acid CH₃COOH. It gives vinegar its sour taste and pungent odor and is widely used as a chemical feedstock.
Carboxylic acid: An organic compound containing a carboxyl group, –COOH, which can donate a proton. Acetic acid is the simplest widely encountered member of this functional-group family.
Vinegar: A sour liquid made by fermenting ethanol into acetic acid, typically diluted with water. Vinegar is the familiar food mixture in which acetic acid is the defining acid.
Vinyl acetate: An organic compound used chiefly to make polyvinyl acetate and other polymers. Acetic acid is a feedstock in industrial routes to vinyl acetate.
Formic acid: The simplest carboxylic acid, HCOOH, found naturally in some insects and plants. It is a smaller carboxylic acid and stronger acid than acetic acid.
Acid dissociation constant: A measure of the strength of an acid in solution, expressed by its equilibrium constant for proton donation. Its pKa quantifies how readily acetic acid donates a proton in water.
Acetic acid fermentation: The aerobic microbial conversion of ethanol into acetic acid, carried out by acetic acid bacteria. This process produces vinegar from alcoholic liquids.
Cellulose acetate: A cellulose-derived polymer used in fibers, films, coatings, and filters. Acetic acid and its derivatives are used to acetylate cellulose during its manufacture.
Propionic acid: A three-carbon carboxylic acid, CH₃CH₂COOH, used in food preservation and chemical production. It differs from acetic acid by one additional carbon and has distinct industrial uses.
Acetate: The anion CH₃COO⁻ formed when acetic acid loses a proton; the name also applies to its salts and esters. Acetate is the conjugate base produced when acetic acid dissociates.
Acetobacter: A genus of aerobic bacteria that oxidize ethanol into acetic acid. Acetobacter species carry out the oxidation central to traditional vinegar production.