Hexanoic acid

Hexanoic acid (common name caproic acid), is the carboxylic acid derived from hexane with the general formula C5H11COOH. It is a colorless oily liquid with an odor reminiscent of goats or other barnyard animals. It is a fatty acid found naturally in various animal fats and oils, and is one of the chemicals that gives the decomposing fleshy seed coat of the ginkgo its characteristic unpleasant odor.

The salts and esters of this acid are known as hexanoates or caproates.