Ethanic acid. Physical properties, production and use

Ethanic acid (also called acetic acid) is an organic substance that is extremely basic, weak, carboxylic acid. Derivatives of this acid are called acetates. With the help of this substance, it is possible to produce ethanolic methyl ester: ethanal + ethanoic acid = methyl ester.
Physical properties of ethanic acid

1. Ethanic acid (formula - CH3COOH) is a liquid without color with a specific odor and an unpleasant sour taste.
2. It is hygroscopic. In water it is unlimitedly soluble.
3. Ethanic acid is mixed with most solvents. It dissolves inorganic gases and compounds, such as HI (hydrogen hydride), HF (hydrogen fluoride), HBr (hydrobromide), HCl (hydrochloric acid) and many others.
4. It exists in the form of linear and cyclic dimers.
5. The dielectric constant is 6.1.
6. The autoignition temperature in air is 454 degrees.
7. Ethanoic acid forms azeotropic mixtures with carbon tetrachloride, benzene, cyclohexane, toluene, heptane, ethylbenzene, trichlorethylene, o-xylene, p-xylene and bromophor.

Ethanoic acid can be obtained in several ways:

1. By oxidizing acetaldehyde with oxygen from the air. This process is possible only in the presence of a manganese acetate catalyst at a temperature of 50 to 60 degrees. The reaction looks like this:

2CH3CHO (acetaldehyde) + O2 (oxygen) = 2CH3COOH (ethanoic acid)

2. In the industry, oxidative processes are used. Previously, the oxidation of butane and acetaldehyde was used to produce ethanoic acid.

Acetylaldehyde was oxidized only in the presence of manganese acetate at elevated pressure and temperature. At the same time, the yield of ethanic acid was about ninety-five percent.

2CH3CHO + O2 = 2CH3COOH

N-butane was oxidized at a temperature of 150 to 200 degrees. In this case, cobalt acetate served as a catalyst.

2C4H10 + 5O2 = 4CH3COOH + 2H2O

But as a result of a significant increase in oil prices, both these methods became unprofitable and were soon replaced by more efficient methods of carbonylation of methanol.

3. Carbonylation of methanol catalytic is an important method for the synthesis of ethane. It occurs according to the conditional equation:

CH3OH + CO = CH3COOH

4. There is also a biochemical method of production, which uses the ability of microorganisms to oxidize ethanol. This process is called acetic fermentation. In this case, the raw material used is an aqueous ester of ethyl alcohol or ethanol-containing liquids (fermented juices). This is a multi-step complicated process. It can be described by the following equation:
CH3CH2OH (ether of alcohol) + O2 (oxygen) = CH3COOH (ethanoic acid) + H2O
Application

- aqueous solutions of ethanic acid are used in the food industry, cooking and canning;

- Ethane acid is used to create fragrant substances and medicines (acetone, acetylcellulose);

- used in dyeing and printing;

- as a reaction medium for the oxidation of certain organic substances (oxidation of sulfides by hydrogen peroxide);

- Since the vapors of ethanic acid have an unpleasant sharp odor, it can be used instead of ammonia.