mercaptan

Borrowed from German Mercaptan, from Danish mercaptan; coined by organic chemist William Christopher Zeise in 1832 from mer(curius) (“mercury”) +‎ captan(s) (“capturing”), because the thiolate group bonds very strongly with mercury compounds.

• (UK) IPA^(key): /məˈkapt(ə)n/

• Audio (US):

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mercaptan (plural mercaptans)

1. (chemistry) Any of a class of organic compounds of sulphur, ( R₁.S.R₂ ); they tend to be foul-smelling. When R₂ is a hydrogen atom, they are termed thiols or thioalcohols.
   • 2022 April 25, AlfredCamera, “Spotting Gas Leak Symptoms and Staying Safe”, in Home Security Expert‎^[1]:

     Though this might come as a surprise, gas actually has no odor; gas companies are obligated to odorize it to make it safer for use in homes.
     
     Mercaptan, a harmless chemical, is added to create the distinct smell in both natural gas (methane) and liquid petroleum gas (propane, butane).

• mercapto

Ultimately from Danish mercaptan, which see.

mercaptan m (plural mercaptans)

1. (chemistry) mercaptan

• “mercaptan”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Borrowed from French mercaptan.

mercaptan m (plural mercaptani)

1. mercaptan