Phenol
chemical compound C6H5OH
Phenol (also known as carbolic acid, phenolic acid, or benzenol) is an aromatic organic compound with the molecular formula C6H5OH. It is a white crystalline solid that is volatile and can catch fire.
The molecule consists of a phenyl group (−C6H5) bonded to a hydroxy group (−OH). Mildly acidic, it requires careful handling because it can cause chemical burns. It is acutely toxic and is considered a health hazard.
Phenol was first extracted from coal tar, but today is produced on a large scale (about 7 million tonnes a year) from petroleum-derived feedstocks. It is an important industrial commodity as a precursor to many materials and useful compounds, and is a liquid when manufactured. It is primarily used to synthesize plastics and related materials. Phenol and its chemical derivatives are essential for production of polycarbonates, epoxies, explosives such as picric acid, Bakelite, nylon, detergents, herbicides such as phenoxy herbicides, and numerous pharmaceutical drugs.
Properties
Phenol is an organic compound appreciably soluble in water, with about 84.2 g dissolving in 1 litre (0.895 M). Homogeneous mixtures of phenol and water at phenol to water mass ratios of ~2.6 and higher are possible.
“Phenol” enters the record as chemical compound C6H5OH. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Phenol, chemical and compound can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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“Phenol” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Phenol, chemical and compound provides the most credible route into that argument.
Stable identifiers, scientific names and standards terminology offer the best bridge between this overview and specialist evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 3, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q130336. The Library of Congress control number is sh85020087. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
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This entry incorporates text from “Phenol” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.