Alcohol

Alcohols are a rather diverse group of organic compounds that are characterized by the presence of a hydroxyl group, also known as alcoholic group, linked to one of the carbon atoms in the chain, which is usually a saturated one. Alcohols can be divided into two major categories, simple and higher alcohols. On one hand, where the former have a relatively simple chain structure and are known to possess inert rendering and denaturing properties, while on the other hand, the latter group of alcohols have a branched structure and usually have 10 or more carbon atoms in the main chain.

Some of the common areas where alcohols are utilized are solvent (medical drugs, perfumes and essence of edible items), anti-freeze, preservative and antiseptics to name a few

1) Isoamyl alcohol is one of the several well known isomers of amyl alcohol, and usually occurs as a clear, colorless alcohol
2) One of the main ingredients used in the formation of banana oil, a naturally occurring ester, is isoamyl alcohol, and is widely used as a flavoring agent in the food industry
3) It is also known to be a very potent anti-foaming agent, and is also widely used in formation of phenol-chloroform extraction mix, which is used in inhibition of RNase activity