Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
There was no clear view on the relationship between carbolic acid and creosote; Runge described it as having similar caustic and antiseptic properties, but noted that it was different, in that it was an acid and formed salts. Nonetheless, Reichenbach argued that creosote was also the active element, as it was in pyroligneous acid.
In 1834, German chemist Friedlieb Ferdinand Runge discovered a phenol, also known as carbolic acid, which he derived in an impure form from coal tar.In August 1865, Joseph Lister applied a piece of lint dipped in carbolic acid solution to the wound of an eleven-year-old boy at Glasgow Royal Infirmary, who had sustained a compound fracture after a cart wheel had passed over his leg.
Phenol (also known as carbolic acid, phenolic acid, or benzenol) is an aromatic organic compound with the molecular formula C 6 H 5 OH. [5] It is a white crystalline solid that is volatile . The molecule consists of a phenyl group ( −C 6 H 5 ) bonded to a hydroxy group ( −OH ).
The antiseptic properties of phenol discovered by Jules Lemaire were put to good use by the British surgeon Joseph Lister (1827–1912), pioneer of the antiseptic method in operative surgery, who had the idea of putting all his surgical tools and gowns in carbolic acid, as well as the wounds of the operated, thus reducing the postoperative mortality rate from 40% to 15%.
Lifebuoy was originally, and for much of its history, a carbolic soap containing phenol (carbolic acid, a compound extracted from coal tar). The soaps manufactured today under the Lifebuoy brand do not contain phenol. Currently, there are many varieties of Lifebuoy.
The residue remaining in the autoclave vessel is a dark, syrupy mass called creosote, which is composed mainly of phenolic acid and cresylic acid. The original composition of creolin is a creosote tar oil, caustic soda, soaps, and very little water. It is of low technology and a very powerful disinfectant. [1]
Joseph Lister, 1st Baron Lister, OM, PC, FRS, FRCSE, FRCPGlas, FRCS (5 April 1827 – 10 February 1912 [1]) was a British surgeon, medical scientist, experimental pathologist and pioneer of antiseptic surgery [2] and preventive healthcare. [1]
Carbolic soap, 19th-century. The original Lysol formulation, essentially a water solution of carbolic soap. [11] "Lysol" has been used as a generic trademark to refer to such a cresol soap solution and remains used as such in some professional settings. The CAS number is 12772-68-8.