Hentriacontane, also called ''untriacontane'', is a solid, long-chain
alkane
In organic chemistry, an alkane, or paraffin (a historical trivial name that also has other meanings), is an acyclic saturated hydrocarbon. In other words, an alkane consists of hydrogen and carbon atoms arranged in a tree structure in which ...
hydrocarbon
In organic chemistry, a hydrocarbon is an organic compound consisting entirely of hydrogen and carbon. Hydrocarbons are examples of group 14 hydrides. Hydrocarbons are generally colourless and hydrophobic, and their odors are usually weak or ex ...
with the
structural formula
The structural formula of a chemical compound is a graphic representation of the molecular structure (determined by structural chemistry methods), showing how the atoms are possibly arranged in the real three-dimensional space. The chemical bondi ...
CH
3(CH
2)
29CH
3. It is the main component of
Paraffin wax
Paraffin wax (or petroleum wax) is a soft colorless solid derived from petroleum, coal, or oil shale that consists of a mixture of hydrocarbon molecules containing between 20 and 40 carbon atoms. It is solid at room temperature and begins to m ...
.
It is found in a variety of plants, including
pea
The pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the flowering plant species ''Pisum sativum''. Each pod contains several peas, which can be green or yellow. Botanically, pea pods are fruit, since they contain seeds and d ...
s (''Pisum sativum''), ''
Acacia senegal
''Senegalia senegal'' (also known as ''Acacia senegal'') is a small thorny deciduous tree from the genus '' Senegalia'', which is known by several common names, including gum acacia, gum arabic tree, Sudan gum and Sudan gum arabic. In parts of I ...
'', ''
Gymnema sylvestre
''Gymnema sylvestre'' is a perennial woody vine native to Asia (including the Arabian Peninsula), Africa and Australia. It has been used in Ayurvedic medicine. Common names include gymnema, Australian cowplant, and Periploca of the woods, and the ...
'' and others, and also comprises about 8–9% of
beeswax
Beeswax (''cera alba'') is a natural wax produced by honey bees of the genus ''Apis''. The wax is formed into scales by eight wax-producing glands in the abdominal segments of worker bees, which discard it in or at the hive. The hive workers ...
. It has 10,660,307,791
constitutional isomer
In chemistry, a structural isomer (or constitutional isomer in the IUPAC nomenclature) of a compound is another compound whose molecule has the same number of atoms of each element, but with logically distinct bonds between them. The term meta ...
s.
References
External links
Hentriacontaneat Dr. Duke's Phytochemical and Ethnobotanical Databases
{{Alkanes
Alkanes