Formic acid is a colorless liquid having a pungent, penetrating odor at room temperature, comparable to the related acetic acid. It is miscible with water and most polar organic solvents, and is somewhat soluble in hydrocarbons.

Formic acid is the simplest carboxylic acid, containing a single carbon. Occurs naturally in various sources including the venom of bee and ant stings, and is a useful organic synthetic reagent. Principally used as a preservative and antibacterial agent in livestock feed.

CH₂O₂
Formic acid/Formula

Formic acid is a colorless, fuming liquid with a pungent acrid odor with the chemical formula HCOOH. Formic acid is systematically named as methanoic acid. The common names for simple carboxylic acids come from the Latin or Greek names of their source.

severely irritate and burn the skin and eyes with possible eye damage. exposures may cause a build-up of fluid in the lungs (pulmonary edema), a medical emergency. ► Exposure to Formic Acid can cause headache, dizziness, nausea and vomiting.

ants
noun. : a colorless pungent fuming vesicant liquid acid CH2O2 found especially in ants and in many plants and used chiefly in dyeing and finishing textiles.

The determination of formic acid concentration in urine may be an important means to quantify the degree of exposure to or intoxication of persons with methanol, formaldehyde and acetone.

Formic acid was first isolated from certain ants and was named after the Latin formica, meaning “ant.” It is made by the action of sulfuric acid upon sodium formate, which is produced from carbon monoxide and sodium hydroxide.

Uses. The principal use of formic acid is as a preservative and antibacterial agent in livestock feed. When sprayed on fresh hay or other silage, it arrests certain decay processes and causes the feed to retain its nutritive value longer, and so it is widely used to preserve winter feed for cattle.

Formic acid is a weak acid and hydrochloric acid is a strong acid.

The physical properties of formic acid, however, give rise to early warning signs of exposure. Formic acid is a sour, pungent smelling liquid that is unlikely to be accidentally consumed orally and, even at low concentrations, direct contact with skin produces a stinging sensation.

D.R. Lycke, S.L. Blair, in Encyclopedia of Electrochemical Power Sources, 2009 Formic acid is the root cause of methanol toxicity as the build up of partially oxidized methanol (i.e., formic acid) in the body results in acidosis. Both methanol and formic acid are toxic through oral and dermal exposure.

Formic acid was long considered a chemical compound of only minor interest in the chemical industry. In the late 1960s, however, significant quantities became available as a byproduct of acetic acid production. It now finds increasing use as a preservative and antibacterial in livestock feed.

The first person to describe the isolation of this substance (by the distillation of large numbers of ants) was the English naturalist John Ray, in 1671. Ants secrete the formic acid for attack and defense purposes. Formic acid was first synthesized from hydrocyanic acid by the French chemist Joseph Gay-Lussac.