BUTYRIC ACID

HC 4 H 7 O 2 . Syn. Acidum Buty̆̆r′icum , L.; Acide butyrique , Fr.; Buttersäure , Ger. An oily acid, first obtained by Chevreul from butter. Prep. From butyrate of barium or magnesium, by adding sulphuric acid in quantity not quite sufficient to decompose the whole of the salt; the clear liquid, filtered and distilled, yields butyric acid, from which the water may be removed by digestion with chloride of calcium. Prop. A thin colourle liquid, of pungent rancid odour, and sour taste, miscible with water and alcohol. It boils and distils unchanged at 327° Fahr. Sp. gr. ·963. See Ethers .