| Designation | Prepared From | Carbon Number | Branching |
| Natural | Hydrogenolysis of triglycerides (Natural) | Even only C8 to C18 | Essentially none |
| Oxo | Hydroformylation of alpha olefin (Synthetic) | Odd or even | Present sometimes |
| Ziegler | Aluminum alkyl oxidation of ethylene | Even | Extensive little present |