Any of various chemical compounds made by combining chlorine with phenol, used as disinfectants and antimicrobials.
From chlorine + phenol, both chemical compound names. Created in the late 1800s when chemists started systematically adding halogens to organic compounds.
Chlorphenols were among the first synthetic antimicrobial chemicals created, and they're still used today, but they became infamous because some chlorphenol products were contaminated with dioxins—one of the most toxic substances known!
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