This entry presents L-menthol (C10H20O; CAS 2216-51-5; PubChem CID 16666) as a 3D-printable ball-and-stick model in which every atom carries its engraved element symbol (C, H, O), so the model can be read without a colour key. Atomic coordinates come from the PubChem-computed 3D conformer (not an experimental crystal structure); coordinates and connectivity are unchanged.

Biological relevance: L-menthol has a recorded use as a medication (source: Wikidata Q407418, retrieved 2026-10-10).

Structure at a glance

• 31 atoms: 10 C, 20 H, 1 O

• 31 bonds, all single

• One 6-membered ring

• Functional group: one hydroxyl group (-OH)

• Three stereocentres with CIP labels R, S, R — IUPAC name (1R,2S,5R)-5-methyl-2-propan-2-ylcyclohexan-1-ol

• One hydrogen-bond donor and one acceptor (computed)

• Every carbon atom is sp3-hybridised (tetrahedral)

Use in teaching

• Counting task: students tally the engraved symbols (10 C, 20 H, 1 O; 31 atoms) and rebuild the formula C10H20O from the model alone.

• Stereochemistry: locate the three stereocentres on the printed model and confirm the R, S, R assignment with the CIP priority rules.

• Functional groups: find the hydroxyl group (-OH) on the model and name it.

File and printing

STL mesh of 329,522 triangles, a closed (watertight) single solid. Coordinates are in ångström and STL stores no unit, so scale the model deliberately in your slicer. Measured bounding box: 7.632 × 7.577 × 5.651 Å; at scale factor 10 (1 Å to 10 mm, file read in millimetres) the print measures about 76.3 × 75.8 × 56.5 mm. SHA-256: cd008dfa58058aaef8069ef45ca3878a6e85ddcdd0e10002c4b621d810bf0ea9.

Validation

• InChIKey identical to the PubChem record (PubChem FTP SDF, file dated 2026-10-08), including the stereo layer: NOOLISFMXDJSKH-KXUCPTDWSA-N

• Molecular formula and hydrogen-bond donor/acceptor counts identical to PubChem

• Stereocentres in PubChem: 3 defined, 0 undefined; the defined count matches this record

• Mesh: triangle count in the header equals the actual count; 0 edges not shared by exactly two triangles; 1 connected solid; SHA-256 equal to the published file

Source, licence and identifiers

Full record: molgod.org/molecule/2216-51-5 · Licence and provenance record: molgod.org/licenses/stl/2216-51-5 · Same file on Wikimedia Commons: File:L-menthol-3D-molecular-model-engraved-CAS-2216-51-5.stl

• MolGod ID: MG_954-696-860-97

• Wikidata: Q407418

• EC number: 218-690-9

• ChemSpider ID: 15803

• InChIKey: NOOLISFMXDJSKH-KXUCPTDWSA-N

• SMILES: C[C@@H]1CC[C@H]([C@@H](C1)O)C(C)C

• Molar mass 156.26 g/mol (exact mass 156.151415257)

Licence: CC BY-SA 4.0 (licence text). Required attribution: "L-menthol 3D model by MolGod.org — https://molgod.org/molecule/2216-51-5/ — CC BY-SA 4.0".