ABSTRACT
Phenol, monohydrobenzene, or carbolic acid discovered in 1834 by F. Runge is the parent compound of a homologous series of compounds with the hydroxy (–OH) group attached to the benzene ring.
Cresols are an isomeric mixture of the simplest of alkyl phenols, i.e., monomethyl phenol or monohydroxy-toluenes. Similarly xylenols are the next higher homologues of cresols and are known as dimethyl phenols or hydroxy xylenes.
