Secodehydroabietic acid is a naturally occurring organic compound classified as a diterpenoid with the molecular formula .
Secodehydroabietic acid is an abietane-type diterpenoid resin acid derivative. The compound features a modified structure compared to dehydroabietic acid, often arising from oxidation or degradation processes in coniferous tree resins.
The acid appears in environmental analyses of sediments and bile from aquatic organisms exposed to resin acids from pulp mill effluents, alongside dehydroabietic acid. It forms as a degradation product of abietane diterpenoids in coniferous resins during oxidation or microbial breakdown.