Acetone vs Isopropyl alcohol: what is the difference?
Acetone is rubbing alcohol, isopropyl alcohol, with two hydrogens removed, one oxidation step apart, and acetone is by far the harsher solvent of the two.
Acetone has a ketone where isopropyl alcohol has a hydroxyl group.
Sources and notes
- The sentence under the titlefrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notesThe pair's answer line.
- The two drawingscomputedMoleculeFinder rule (RDKit MCS)Drawn the same way round on the skeleton they share; the amber marks where the two differ.
- The captionfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curated
- What is highlightedfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curatedOne line under each drawing, written from the atoms the amber marks.
Side by side
| Acetone | Isopropyl alcohol | |
|---|---|---|
| Molecular weightCalculated PubChem | 58.08 g/molC3H6O | 60.1 g/molC3H8O |
| Hydrogen-bond donorsCalculated PubChem | 0 | 1 |
| Where each turns upEditorial MoleculeFinder food and product lists |
|
|
| FamilyEditorial MoleculeFinder curated | Ketones | Alcohols |
| Everyday groupEditorial MoleculeFinder curated | Everyday chemistry | Everyday chemistry |
| Chemical groupsCalculated Found by rule (RDKit) | Ketones | Alcohols |
| Hazard labelReported ECHA, EU CLP Regulation, Safe Work Australia, HSDB via PubChem; ECHA, EU CLP Regulation, Safe Work Australia via PubChem | Danger | Danger |
| The supplier-filed hazard label's signal word, not a statement about ordinary use. | ||
| Oral LD50Measured HSDB via PubChem | 5,800 mg/kgpure acetone, rat, oral | 4,797 mg/kgpure isopropyl alcohol, dog, oral |
| A single acute animal measure, here in two different species. It ranks nothing about human safety. | ||
Sources and notes
- Molecular weightcomputedPubChemComputed from the structure; the formula is under each weight.
- Hydrogen-bond donorscomputedPubChemThe hydrogens on nitrogen or oxygen that each molecule can lend to a hydrogen bond, counted from its structure.
- Where each turns upfrom sourceMoleculeFinder food and product listsEach amount is an editorial figure from our lists, not a measurement of any one product. Each mark is set by hand on the list, never inferred.
- Familyfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curated
- Everyday groupfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curated
- Chemical groupscomputedFound by rule (RDKit)Each group is found in the structure by a chemical pattern.
- Hazard labelfrom sourceECHA, EU CLP Regulation, Safe Work Australia, HSDB via PubChem; ECHA, EU CLP Regulation, Safe Work Australia via PubChem
- Oral LD50from sourceHSDB via PubChem
- ECHAfrom sourceAttributionSource: European Chemicals Agency, echa.europa.eu.
- EU CLP Regulationfrom sourceAttributionSource: EUR-Lex, Regulation (EC) No 1272/2008, © European Union.
- Safe Work Australiafrom sourceAttributionSource: Safe Work Australia, Hazardous Chemical Information System, © Commonwealth of Australia, CC BY 4.0.
- Identifiersfrom sourcePubChemPubChem CID 180 (Acetone) and 3776 (Isopropyl alcohol).
In more detail
That oxidation step is exactly what the liver does to isopropyl alcohol. That is why acetone shows up on the breath after isopropyl alcohol exposure, and also why the body produces acetone on its own when it burns fat for fuel. As solvents they behave differently: acetone is a ketone and dissolves plastics, resins and nail polish that isopropyl alcohol leaves alone, which is why acetone is the aggressive one. Both are highly flammable and both carry a GHS Danger signal word. Weights are close at 58.08 and 60.1, so the difference is entirely in the functional group.
Sources and notes
- The paragraphfrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notes
Questions
- What is the difference between Acetone and Isopropyl alcohol?
- Acetone is rubbing alcohol, isopropyl alcohol, with two hydrogens removed, one oxidation step apart, and acetone is by far the harsher solvent of the two.
- Is Acetone bigger than Isopropyl alcohol?
- Isopropyl alcohol is the heavier molecule, 60.1 g/mol against 58.08 g/mol for Acetone. Acetone is C3H6O and Isopropyl alcohol is C3H8O.
- Which has the lower reported LD50, Acetone or Isopropyl alcohol?
- Isopropyl alcohol, at 4,797 mg/kg (oral, dog), against 5,800 mg/kg (oral, rat) for Acetone. An LD50 is one acute animal measurement, and the two here were not necessarily measured in the same species, so it is a data point rather than a ranking of how dangerous either is to a person.
Sources and notes
- The answersfrom sourceMoleculeFinderThe first is the pair's answer line; the others are read off the table above.