Formaldehyde vs. Formol — What's the Difference?

Formaldehyde ( (listen) fer-mal-duh-hahyd, also (listen) for-) (systematic name methanal) is a naturally occurring organic compound with the formula CH2O (H−CHO). The pure compound is a pungent-smelling colorless gas that polymerises spontaneously into paraformaldehyde (refer to section Forms below), hence it is stored as an aqueous solution (formalin).

(organic chemistry) A 10% solution of formaldehyde in water.

A pungent colorless flammable gaseous compound, CH2O, the simplest and most reactive aldehyde, used for manufacturing melamine and phenolic resins, fertilizers, dyes, and embalming fluids and in aqueous solution as a preservative and disinfectant.

A 10% solution of formaldehyde in water; used as a disinfectant or to preserve biological specimens

(organic compound) The simplest aldehyde, HCHO, a colourless gas that has many industrial applications; it dissolves in water to give formol (10%) and formalin.

A colorless, volatile liquid, H2CO, resembling acetic or ethyl aldehyde, and chemically intermediate between methyl alcohol and formic acid.

A colorless poisonous gas; made by the oxidation of methanol