Saturated fatty acid is a fatty acid carrying the maximum possible number of hydrogen atoms (It doesn’t have any double bounds in the alkyl chain). The most important of these are:
Butyric (butanoic acid) | CH3(CH2)2COOH |
Lauric (dodecanoic acid) | CH3(CH2)10COOH |
Myristic (tetradecanoic acid) | CH3(CH2)12COOH |
Palmitic (hexadecanoic acid) | CH3(CH2)14COOH |
Stearic (octadecanoic acid) | CH3(CH2)16COOH |
Arachidic (eicosanoic acid) | CH3(CH2)18COOH |
Unsaturated fatty acid is a fatty acid whose carbon chain can absorb additional hydrogen atoms. Their carbon chain has one or more double or triple valence bond per molecule. The most important of these are:
Oleic (9-octadecenoic acid) | CH3(CH2)7CH=CH(CH2)7COOH |
Linoleic (9,12-octadecadienoic acid) | CH3(CHCH2)3(CH2CH=CH)2(CHCH2)7COOH |
Linolenic (9,12,15-octadecatrienoic acid) | CH3(CH2CH=CH)3(CHCH2)7COOH |
Acid dissociation constant (Ka) is the equilibrium constant for the dissociation of an acid HA through the reaction
The quantity pKa = -log Ka is often used to express the acid dissociation constant.
Carboxylic acids are organic compounds characterized by the presence of one or more RC(=O)OH groups (the carboxyl group). In the systematic chemical nomenclature carboxylic acids names end in the suffix -oic (e.g. ethanoic acids, CH3COOH). The carbon of the terminal group being counted as part of the chain. They are generally weak acids. Carboxylic acids include a large and important class of fatty acids and may be either saturated or unsaturated. There are also some natural aromatic carboxylic acids (benzoic, salicylic).
Omega-3 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fatty acids, meaning they contain more than one double bond. The name omega-3 indicates that the first double bond occurs on the third carbon atom (n-3) from the methyl (-CH3) end of the molecule (omega position). The three main omega-3 fatty acids are alpha-linolenic acid (ALA, 18:3n-3), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3), and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3). ALA comes from plants. EPA and DHA come from fish.
Similarly, the first double bond in omega-6 fatty acids is located between the sixth and seventh carbon atom (n-6) from the methyl end of the fatty acid (omega end).
Polyprotonic acids are acids which dissolve in more than one degree.
Acid halide is organic compound containing the group -COX where X is a halogen atom.
Acid radical is an anion left after removal of hydrogen atoms from an acid.
Generalic, Eni. "Dezoksiribonukleinska kiselina." Croatian-English Chemistry Dictionary & Glossary. 29 June 2022. KTF-Split. 27 Apr. 2025. <https://glossary.periodni.com>.
Glossary
Periodic Table