2-Hydroxy-2-methylpropanal

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  • Identifiers

    CAS number
    20818-81-9

    Molecular formula
    C4H8O2

    SMILES
    CC(C)(C=O)O

    Safety labels

  • Odor profile

    Fragrance
    Fruity 46.38%
    Sweet 41.1%
    Ethereal 40.49%
    Nutty 37.36%
    Pungent 35.66%
    Green 32.2%
    Musty 31.89%
    Earthy 30.99%
    Oily 30.25%
    Fermented 29.88%

     

    Flavor
    Sweet 43.9%
    Pungent 43.45%
    Herbal 39.77%
    Fruity 35.93%
    Oily 35.48%
    Ethereal 33.16%
    Herb 30.38%
    Bitter 30.14%
    Musty 27.08%
    Creamy 24.1%

     

    Odor impact est.
    High

  • Properties

    XLogP3-AA
    -0.3

    pKa est.
    7.79 (neutral)

    Molecular weight
    88.11 g/mol

    Vapor pressure est.

    • hPa @ 20°C
    • hPa @ 25°C

    Evaporation rate
    Very fast

    Boiling point est.
    142°C

    Flash point

    • 43.29 ˚C est.

  • Synonyms

    • 2-hydroxy-2-methylpropanal
    • 20818-81-9
    • 2-Hydroxy-2-methylpropionaldehyde
    • 2-hydroxyisobutyraldehyde
    • CHEBI:131846
    • DTXSID70174929
    • RefChem:87359
    • GlyTouCan:G71585SL
    • DTXCID3097420
    • G71585SL
    • 244-059-2
    • Propanal, 2-hydroxy-2-methyl-
    • 2-Methyl-2-hydroxypropanal
    • Hydroxyisobutyraldehyde
    • a-Oxyisobutyraldehyd
    • EINECS 244-059-2
    • LJH3K4JA7C
    • SCHEMBL188748
    • SCHEMBL188749
    • SCHEMBL17707871
    • SCHEMBL23388285
    • HNVAGBIANFAIIL-UHFFFAOYSA-N
    • MFCD19707126
    • AKOS015382034
    • 2-METHYL-3-BUTEN-2-OL with GC
    • AT39028
    • SY483370
    • NS00026745
    • C21291
    • EN300-1248049
    • Q27225276
    • 20818-81-9

  • Applications

    2-Hydroxy-2-methylpropanal (CAS 20818-81-9) is primarily used as a reactive aldehyde building block in chemical synthesis. In perfumery and cosmetics, it functions as a fragrance intermediate and odorant, enabling downstream derivatives such as esters and acetals that shape aroma profiles. It is also explored as a starting material for specialty chemicals in industrial manufacturing and as a functionalized monomer or precursor for polymers and coatings. In coatings, inks and adhesives, its aldehyde and hydroxyl functionality supports resin formation and post-polymerization modification. Use is subject to local regulations and formulation limits.

    gpt-5-nano

  • Solubility @25˚C

    Solvent Solubility (g/L)
    ethanol 265.85
    methanol 486.32
    isopropanol 161.53
    water 402.12
    ethyl acetate 41.86
    n-propanol 166.1
    acetone 69.09
    n-butanol 132.13
    acetonitrile 65.67
    DMF 182.78
    toluene 7.78
    isobutanol 101.46
    1,4-dioxane 96.71
    methyl acetate 58.33
    THF 97.41
    2-butanone 59.53
    n-pentanol 62.09
    sec-butanol 138.11
    n-hexane 10.66
    ethylene glycol 261.13
    NMP 171.47
    cyclohexane 7.43
    DMSO 94.36
    n-butyl acetate 31.38
    n-octanol 53.43
    chloroform 68.53
    n-propyl acetate 28.75
    acetic acid 345.83
    dichloromethane 46.45
    cyclohexanone 63.17
    propylene glycol 246.28
    isopropyl acetate 26.02
    DMAc 183.6
    2-ethoxyethanol 132.72
    isopentanol 79.26
    n-heptane 11.19
    ethyl formate 51.87
    1,2-dichloroethane 23.62
    n-hexanol 82.83
    2-methoxyethanol 257.81
    isobutyl acetate 20.47
    tetrachloromethane 19.65
    n-pentyl acetate 25.45
    transcutol 204.28
    n-heptanol 50.03
    ethylbenzene 9.13
    MIBK 27.53
    2-propoxyethanol 140.05
    tert-butanol 158.3
    MTBE 58.75
    2-butoxyethanol 90.59
    propionic acid 175.21
    o-xylene 13.71
    formic acid 416.9
    diethyl ether 42.77
    m-xylene 11.03
    p-xylene 12.75
    chlorobenzene 12.4
    dimethyl carbonate 26.52
    n-octane 4.66
    formamide 219.7
    cyclopentanone 74.37
    2-pentanone 39.76
    anisole 29.17
    cyclopentyl methyl ether 43.23
    gamma-butyrolactone 97.91
    1-methoxy-2-propanol 155.33
    pyridine 39.22
    3-pentanone 36.71
    furfural 98.19
    n-dodecane 4.16
    diethylene glycol 167.93
    diisopropyl ether 14.81
    tert-amyl alcohol 147.47
    acetylacetone 36.77
    n-hexadecane 4.08
    acetophenone 33.81
    methyl propionate 47.89
    isopentyl acetate 30.32
    trichloroethylene 47.52
    n-nonanol 44.25
    cyclohexanol 82.31
    benzyl alcohol 38.06
    2-ethylhexanol 43.61
    isooctanol 37.57
    dipropyl ether 32.19
    1,2-dichlorobenzene 16.29
    ethyl lactate 42.94
    propylene carbonate 61.53
    n-methylformamide 145.64
    2-pentanol 80.36
    n-pentane 11.85
    1-propoxy-2-propanol 92.01
    1-methoxy-2-propyl acetate 42.28
    2-(2-methoxypropoxy) propanol 88.96
    mesitylene 9.7
    ε-caprolactone 70.74
    p-cymene 13.53
    epichlorohydrin 59.58
    1,1,1-trichloroethane 26.19
    2-aminoethanol 304.95
    morpholine-4-carbaldehyde 162.74
    sulfolane 102.17
    2,2,4-trimethylpentane 9.81
    2-methyltetrahydrofuran 69.3
    n-hexyl acetate 43.61
    isooctane 6.06
    2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethanol 105.12
    sec-butyl acetate 21.25
    tert-butyl acetate 31.99
    decalin 5.85
    glycerin 337.74
    diglyme 137.67
    acrylic acid 182.03
    isopropyl myristate 18.98
    n-butyric acid 121.03
    acetyl acetate 29.35
    di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate 29.39
    ethyl propionate 30.14
    nitromethane 177.3
    1,2-diethoxyethane 36.77
    benzonitrile 27.22
    trioctyl phosphate 22.67
    1-bromopropane 17.61
    gamma-valerolactone 112.17
    n-decanol 32.31
    triethyl phosphate 22.36
    4-methyl-2-pentanol 42.49
    propionitrile 53.1
    vinylene carbonate 56.94
    1,1,2-trichlorotrifluoroethane 130.29
    DMS 30.07
    cumene 10.89
    2-octanol 31.92
    2-hexanone 32.0
    octyl acetate 28.15
    limonene 20.53
    1,2-dimethoxyethane 114.63
    ethyl orthosilicate 22.31
    tributyl phosphate 25.34
    diacetone alcohol 70.19
    N,N-dimethylaniline 32.4
    acrylonitrile 66.25
    aniline 33.45
    1,3-propanediol 230.73
    bromobenzene 8.02
    dibromomethane 30.14
    1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane 46.75
    2-methyl-cyclohexyl acetate 33.46
    tetrabutyl urea 32.89
    diisobutyl methanol 24.82
    2-phenylethanol 40.26
    styrene 8.83
    dioctyl adipate 31.03
    dimethyl sulfate 41.48
    ethyl butyrate 29.53
    methyl lactate 70.65
    butyl lactate 40.38
    diethyl carbonate 21.83
    propanediol butyl ether 107.06
    triethyl orthoformate 26.8
    p-tert-butyltoluene 14.15
    methyl 4-tert-butylbenzoate 52.55
    morpholine 128.64
    tert-butylamine 97.56
    n-dodecanol 24.66
    dimethoxymethane 76.66
    ethylene carbonate 44.28
    cyrene 82.37
    2-ethoxyethyl acetate 32.71
    2-ethylhexyl acetate 24.14
    1,2,4-trichlorobenzene 22.46
    4-methylpyridine 34.86
    dibutyl ether 24.35
    2,6-dimethyl-4-heptanol 24.82
    DEF 68.28
    dimethyl isosorbide 93.34
    tetrachloroethylene 42.63
    eugenol 61.63
    triacetin 50.19
    span 80 79.41
    1,4-butanediol 101.93
    1,1-dichloroethane 27.93
    2-methyl-1-pentanol 52.67
    methyl formate 93.56
    2-methyl-1-butanol 91.89
    n-decane 6.37
    butyronitrile 43.9
    3,7-dimethyl-1-octanol 44.6
    1-chlorooctane 16.79
    1-chlorotetradecane 7.88
    n-nonane 6.21
    undecane 4.91
    tert-butylcyclohexane 8.07
    cyclooctane 3.83
    cyclopentanol 95.22
    tetrahydropyran 58.62
    tert-amyl methyl ether 54.89
    2,5,8-trioxanonane 109.33
    1-hexene 19.93
    2-isopropoxyethanol 79.82
    2,2,2-trifluoroethanol 175.64
    methyl butyrate 39.84

    Scent© AI

1 4

IFRA standard 51

Recommendation
No restriction
Maximum acceptable concentrations in the finished product (%)
Category 1
Products applied to the lips
 No restriction Category 7A
Rinse-off products applied to the hair with some hand contact
 No restriction
Category 2
Products applied to the axillae
 No restriction Category 7B
Leave-on products applied to the hair with some hand contact
 No restriction
Category 3
Products applied to the face/body using fingertips
 No restriction Category 8
Products with significant anogenital exposure
 No restriction
Category 4
Products related to fine fragrance
 No restriction Category 9
Products with body and hand exposure, primarily rinse off
 No restriction
Category 5A
Body lotion products applied to the body using the hands (palms), primarily leave on
 No restriction Category 10A
Household care products with mostly hand contact
 No restriction
Category 5B
Face moisturizer products applied to the face using the hands (palms), primarily leave on
 No restriction Category 10B
Household care products with mostly hand contact, including aerosol/spray products (with potential leave-on skin contact)
 No restriction
Category 5C
Hand cream products applied to the hands using the hands (palms), primarily leave on
 No restriction Category 11A
Products with intended skin contact but minimal transfer of fragrance to skin from inert substrate without UV exposure
 No restriction
Category 5D
Baby Creams, baby Oils and baby talc
 No restriction Category 11B
Products with intended skin contact but minimal transfer of fragrance to skin from inert substrate with potential UV exposure
 No restriction
Category 6
Products with oral and lip exposure
 No restriction Category 12
Products not intended for direct skin contact, minimal or insignificant transfer to skin
 No restriction