Acetic Acid → Phthalic Acid

Participants

Reaction Conditions

Reaction Steps

In this example, a solution of 0.1117 g (0.9705 mmol) of N-hydroxysuccinimide, 0.5199 g (4.90 mmol) of o-xylene and 0.1251 g (0.50 mmol) of CAT in 40 ml of acetic acid was heated to 60° C. in a Parr Hastelloy reactor with temperature and pressure transducer. After the temperature reached 60° C., 233 psi of air was slowly introduced into the reactor. The mixture was stirred under pressure for one hour at 60° C., then the pressure was released, and the mixture was cooled to room temperature. A rapid temperature rise (due to heat generated by the exothermic oxidation) within roughly 20 minutes following O2 introduction, accompanied by a drop in reactor pressure (due to consumption of O2 in the liquid phase reaction) indicated rapid reaction. The white solid was filtered, and the filtrate analyzed by HPLC using biphenyl as the internal standard. The solid product was washed with acetic acid (20 ml) and dried in an oven at 120° C. for six hours to yield phthalic acid (75%).

Provenance & Evidence