Acetic Acid
Acetic Acid
Acetic Acid is a colorless, liquid organic compound with a distinctive odor, sour taste, and smell. It is one of the simplest carboxylic acids. Acetic acid is a significant chemical reagent and industrial chemical used in the production of soft drink bottles, polyvinyl acetate for wood glue, and many synthetic fibers and fabrics, as well as a host of household, food, and other applications that are essential to everyday life.
Categories All Products, Mining
Description
Acetic Acid is a corrosive, flammable, liquid organic compound with the chemical formula C2H4O2. Its CAS number is 64-19-7. After formic acid, acetic acid is the second simplest carboxylic acid. The acetyl group, which is derived from acetic acid, is fundamental to the biochemistry of virtually all life forms.
Production
Acetic acid is produced naturally when excreted by certain bacteria such as Acetobacter genus and Clostridium acetobutylicum. These bacteria are found in foodstuffs, water, and soil. Acetic acid is also produced naturally when fruits and other foods spoil.
Industrially, acetic acid is produced both synthetically and by bacterial fermentation. Approximately 75% of acetic acid used in the chemical industry is made by the carbonylation of methanol. The biologic method accounts for only 10% of world production, but is important for the manufacture of vinegar because many food purity laws require vinegar used in food to be of biological origin.
Most acetic acid is made by methanol carbonylation, where methanol and carbon monoxide react to produce acetic acid. The compound is miscible with ethanol, ethyl ether, acetone, and benzene, and is soluble in carbon tetrachloride and carbon disulfide.
CAS: 64-19-7