1,2-Butanediol is a vic-diol (glycol) first described by Charles-Adolphe Wurtz in 1859. It is produced industrially as a byproduct of the production of 1,4-butanediol from butadiene, and is also a byproduct of the catalytic hydrocracking of starches and sugars such as sorbitol to ethylene glycol and propylene glycol. It is used to produce polyester resins and plasticizers, and is a potential feedstock for the industrial production of a-ketobutyric acid, a precursor to many amino acids.