The molecule is a monocarboxylic acid amide resulting from the formal condensation of the carboxy group of m-toluic acid with the nitrogen of diethylamine. First developed by the U.S. Army in 1946 for use by military personnel in insect-infested areas, it is the most widely used insect repellent worldwide. It has a role as an insect repellent, an environmental contaminant and a xenobiotic. It is a monocarboxylic acid amide and a member of benzamides. It derives from a m-toluic acid.
N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide