A colorless, flammable liquid also known as methyl ethyl ketone (MEK), used as a solvent in manufacturing and paint products.
From 'butyl' (four carbons) combined with '-one,' the suffix for ketones (organic compounds with a carbon-oxygen double bond). Named in early 20th century systematic nomenclature.
Butanone is MEK on every industrial label—chemists renamed it for clarity, but the old name stuck in industry, showing how economics often defeats even official chemical naming systems.
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