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EntityQ132298· pop 66· linked from 1,315 articles

potassium hydroxide

Also known as KOH, caustic potash, lye, potassium hydrate, potash lye, E525

inorganic compound with the formula KOH

OverviewAI-generated

Potassium hydroxide is a chemical compound with the formula KOH, also represented as HKO. It has a molar mass of 56.106 and a density of 2.04. The substance exhibits a melting point of 716 and a boiling point of 2415. Its vapor pressure is 1, and it has a solubility of 107. The standard enthalpy of formation is -425.8, while the molar fusion enthalpy is 7.5 and the molar enthalpy of vaporization is 128.9.

The compound has a refractive index of 1.421 and a ceiling exposure limit of 2. It contains one hydrogen bond donor and one hydrogen bond acceptor, with a total polar surface area of 1. The canonical SMILES notation is [OH-].[K+]. Potassium hydroxide is referenced by 1,315 other encyclopedia articles and has 3666 associated PubMed entries.

Synthesized by Vinony from 27 facts across 4 sources: Wikidata, PubChem, PubMed, Vinony graph. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.

Chemical data

Formula: HKO
Molecular weight: 56.106 g/mol
IUPAC name: potassium hydroxide
SMILES: [OH-].[K+]
InChIKey: KWYUFKZDYYNOTN-UHFFFAOYSA-M
Polar surface area: 1 Å²
H-bond donors: 1
H-bond acceptors: 1
Formal charge: 0

via PubChem

Research

3,666 papers

Skin scraping and a potassium hydroxide mount.ReviewIndian journal of dermatology, venereology and leprology · 2006Kurade SM, Amladi SA, Miskeen AKDOI: 10.4103/0378-6323.25794
Potassium hydroxide mount as an easy bedside test for early detection of cutaneous mucormycosis.Journal of cosmetic dermatology · 2022Agrawal I, Panda M, Sahoo D et al.DOI: 10.1111/jocd.14649
Dermatophyte infections.ReviewAmerican family physician · 2003Hainer BL
Potassium Hydroxide-Mediated Pretreatment of Sugarcane Bagasse: High-Efficiency Enzymatic Hydrolysis and Excellent Sugar Recovery.Applied biochemistry and biotechnology · 2025Wang Z, Chi X, Feng H et al.DOI: 10.1007/s12010-025-05225-0
Comparison of topical potassium hydroxide 5% solution with cryotherapy in the treatment of patients with genital warts: A randomized controlled clinical trial.International journal of STD & AIDS · 2025Javame Ghazvini F, Yazdanpanah MJ, Nahidi Y et al.DOI: 10.1177/09564624241300776
Abnormal cutaneous reaction to potassium hydroxide in molluscum contagiosum in children.Italian journal of dermatology and venereology · 2022DI Brizzi EV, Russo T, Alfano R et al.DOI: 10.23736/S2784-8671.20.06653-5
Potassium hydroxide 5% for the treatment of molluscum contagiosum.Drug and therapeutics bulletin · 2014DOI: 10.1136/dtb.2014.10.0285
Agricultural waste biochar after potassium hydroxide activation: Its adsorbent evaluation and potential mechanism.Bioresource technology · 2023Guan J, Zhu M, Zhou J et al.DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2023.129793

via PubMed

~10 min read

Encyclopedic overview

Potassium hydroxide is an inorganic compound with the formula KOH, and is commonly called caustic potash.

Along with sodium hydroxide (NaOH), KOH is a prototypical strong base. It has many industrial and niche applications, most of which utilize its caustic nature and its reactivity toward acids. About 2.5 million tonnes were produced in 2023. KOH is noteworthy as the precursor to most soft and liquid soaps, as well as numerous potassium-containing chemicals. It is a white solid that is dangerously corrosive.

Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “potassium hydroxide” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.