Saturday, October 15, 2011 at 12:19PM
Drew Wolfe

Benzaldehyde

"Benzaldehyde (C6H5CHO) is an organic compound consisting of a benzene ring with a formyl substituent. It is the simplest aromatic aldehyde and one of the most industrially useful. This colorless liquid has a characteristic pleasant almond-like odor. In fact, benzaldehyde is the primary component of bitter almond oil and can be extracted from a number of other natural sources.[1]"

"Almonds, apricots, apples and cherry kernels, contain significant amounts of amygdalin. This glycoside breaks up under enzyme catalysis into benzaldehyde, hydrocyanic acid and two molecules of glucose:"

amygdalin
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