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Terephthalic acid

From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Chemical model of terephthalic acid, showing two COOH groups on opposite sides of a benzene ring.

Terephthalic acid, also known by its systematic name benzene-1,4-dicarboxylic acid, is an organic chemical compound. It is one of the most important dicarboxylic acids, used to make plastics like polyethylene terephthalate (PET).

Production

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Terephthalic acid was first found by distillation of turpentine.

Most terephthalic acid today is made from p-xylene by oxidation. This is called the AMOCO process.[1]

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Terephthalic acid has two isomers, phthalic acid and isophthalic acid.

References

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  1. ↑ Fadzil, Nor Aqilah Mohd; Rahim, Mohd Hasbi Ab.; Maniam, Gaanty Pragas (2014). "A brief review of para-xylene oxidation to terephthalic acid as a model of primary C–H bond activation". Chinese Journal of Catalysis. 35 (10): 1641–1652. doi:10.1016/S1872-2067(14)60193-5.
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