Trivial name

In chemistry, a trivial name is a non-systematic name for a chemical substance. That is, the name is not recognized according to the rules of any formal system of chemical nomenclature such as IUPAC inorganic or IUPAC organic nomenclature. A trivial name is not a formal name and is usually a common name. Generally, trivial names are not useful in describing the essential properties of the thing being named. Properties such as the molecular structure of a chemical compound are not indicated. And, in some cases, trivial names can be ambiguous or will carry different meanings in different industries or in different geographic regions (for example, a trivial name such as white metal can mean various things). Trivial names are simpler. As a result, a limited number of trivial chemical names are retained names, an accepted part of the nomenclature. Trivial names often arise in the common language; they may come from historic usages in, for example, alchemy. Many trivial names pre-date the institution of formal naming conventions. Names can be based on a property of the chemical, including appearance (color, taste or smell), consistency, and crystal structure; a place where it was found or where the discoverer comes from; the name of a scientist; a mythological figure; an astronomical body; the shape of the molecule; and even fictional figures. All elements that have been isolated have trivial names. In scientific documents, international treaties, patents and legal definitions, names for chemicals are needed that identify them unambiguously. This need is satisfied by systematic names. One such system, established by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), was established in 1950. Other systems have been developed by the American Chemical Society, the International Organization for Standardization, and the World Health Organization. However, chemists still use many names that are not systematic because they are traditional or because they are more convenient than the systematic names.

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Acetic acid

Acetic acid əˈsiːtᵻk, systematically named ethanoic acid ˌɛθəˈnoʊᵻk, is an acidic, colourless liquid and organic compound with the chemical formula (also written as , , or ). Vinegar is at least 4% acetic acid by volume, making acetic acid the main component of vinegar apart from water and other trace elements. Acetic acid is the second simplest carboxylic acid (after formic acid). It is an important chemical reagent and industrial chemical, used primarily in the production of cellulose acetate for photographic film, polyvinyl acetate for wood glue, and synthetic fibres and fabrics.

Trivial name

Butyl group

In organic chemistry, butyl is a four-carbon alkyl radical or substituent group with general chemical formula , derived from either of the two isomers (n-butane and isobutane) of butane.