In organic chemistry, a carboxylic acid is an organic acid that contains a carboxyl group ()
Examples and nomenclature
Carboxylic acids are commonly identified by their
. They often have the suffix
-ic acid.
IUPAC-recommended names also exist; in this system, carboxylic acids have an
-oic acid suffix.
[ Recommendations 1979. Organic Chemistry IUPAC Nomenclature. Rules C-4 Carboxylic Acids and Their Derivatives.] For example,
butyric acid () is butanoic acid by IUPAC guidelines. For nomenclature of complex molecules containing a carboxylic acid, the carboxyl can be considered position one of the
parent chain even if there are other
, such as 3-chloropropanoic acid. Alternately, it can be named as a "carboxy" or "carboxylic acid" substituent on another parent structure, such as 2-carboxyfuran.
The carboxylate anion ( or ) of a carboxylic acid is usually named with the suffix -ate, in keeping with the general pattern of -ic acid and -ate for a conjugate acid and its conjugate base, respectively. For example, the conjugate base of acetic acid is acetate.
Carbonic acid, which occurs in bicarbonate buffer systems in nature, is not generally classed as one of the carboxylic acids, despite that it has a moiety that looks like a COOH group.
+Straight-chain, saturated carboxylic acids (alkanoic acids)
!Carbon
atoms
!Common name
!IUPAC name
!Chemical formula
!Common location or use |
| Insect stings |
| Vinegar |
| Preservative for stored grains, body odour, milk, butter, cheese |
| Butter |
| Valerian plant |
| Goat fat |
| Fragrance |
| Coconuts |
| Pelargonium plant |
| Coconut oil and Palm kernel oil |
| Anti-fungal agent |
| Coconut oil and hand wash soaps |
| Plant metabolite |
| Nutmeg |
| Milk fat |
| Palm oil |
| Pheromone in various animals |
| Chocolate, waxes, soaps, and oils |
| Fats, vegetable oils, pheromone |
| Peanut oil |
| + Other carboxylic acids
! Compound class
! Members |
| acrylic acid (2-propenoic acid) – , used in polymer synthesis |
| medium to long-chain saturated and unsaturated monocarboxylic acids, with even number of carbons; examples: docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid (nutritional supplements) |
| the building-blocks of |
| acids of biochemical significance that contain a ketone group; examples: acetoacetic acid and pyruvic acid |
| containing at least one aromatic ring; examples: benzoic acid – the sodium salt of benzoic acid is used as a food preservative; salicylic acid – a beta-hydroxy type found in many skin-care products; phenyl alkanoic acids – the class of compounds where a phenyl group is attached to a carboxylic acid |
| containing two carboxyl groups; examples: adipic acid the monomer used to produce nylon and aldaric acid – a family of sugar acids |
| containing three carboxyl groups; examples: citric acid – found in and isocitric acid |
| containing a hydroxy group in the first position; examples: glyceric acid, glycolic acid and lactic acid (2-hydroxypropanoic acid) – found in sour milk, tartaric acid – found in wine |
| containing a hydroxy group in the second position |
| containing a hydroxy group beyond the first or second position |
| containing a doubly unsaturated carbon chain attached via an ether bond to a fatty acid, found in some plants |
Physical properties
Solubility
Carboxylic acids are polar. Because they are both hydrogen-bond acceptors (the
carbonyl ) and hydrogen-bond donors (the
hydroxyl ), they also participate in
. Together, the hydroxyl and carbonyl group form the functional group carboxyl. Carboxylic acids usually exist as dimers in nonpolar media due to their tendency to "self-associate". Smaller carboxylic acids (1 to 5 carbons) are soluble in water, whereas bigger carboxylic acids have limited solubility due to the increasing hydrophobic nature of the alkyl chain. These longer chain acids tend to be soluble in less-polar solvents such as ethers and alcohols.
Aqueous sodium hydroxide and carboxylic acids, even hydrophobic ones, react to yield water-soluble sodium salts. For example,
enanthic acid has a low solubility in water (0.2 g/L), but its sodium salt is very soluble in water.
Boiling points
Carboxylic acids tend to have higher boiling points than water, because of their greater surface areas and their tendency to form stabilized dimers through
. For boiling to occur, either the dimer bonds must be broken or the entire dimer arrangement must be vaporized, increasing the enthalpy of vaporization requirements significantly.
- |alt=|none]]
Acidity
Carboxylic acids are Brønsted–Lowry acids because they are proton (H
+) donors. They are the most common type of
organic acid.
Carboxylic acids are typically , meaning that they only partially dissociate into and Carboxylate in neutral aqueous solution. For example, at room temperature, in a 1-molarity solution of acetic acid, only 0.001% of the acid are dissociated (i.e. 10−5 moles out of 1 mol). Electron-withdrawing substituents such as trifluoromethyl () give stronger acids (the p Ka of acetic acid is 4.76 whereas trifluoroacetic acid, with a trifluoromethyl substituent, has a p Ka of 0.23). Electron-donating substituents give weaker acids (the p Ka of formic acid is 3.75 whereas acetic acid, with a Methyl group, has a p Ka of 4.76)
|
| 3.75 |
0.27 |
| 4.76 |
| 2.34 |
| 2.586 |
| 1.33 |
| 0.23 |
| 2.86 |
| 1.29 |
| 0.65 |
| 4.2 |
| 2.16 |
| Oxalic acid () (first dissociation) | 1.27 |
| Hydrogen oxalate () (second dissociation of oxalic acid) | 4.14 |
|
Deprotonation of carboxylic acids gives carboxylate anions; these are resonance stabilized, because the negative charge is delocalized over the two oxygen atoms, increasing the stability of the anion. Each of the carbon–oxygen bonds in the carboxylate anion has a partial double-bond character. The carbonyl carbon's partial positive charge is also weakened by the −
1/
2 negative charges on the 2 oxygen atoms.
Odour
Carboxylic acids often have strong sour odours.
of carboxylic acids tend to have fruity, pleasant odours, and many are used in
perfume.
Characterization
Carboxylic acids are readily identified as such by infrared spectroscopy. They exhibit a sharp band associated with vibration of the C=O carbonyl bond (
νC=O) between 1680 and 1725 cm
−1. A characteristic
νO–H band appears as a broad peak in the 2500 to 3000 cm
−1 region.
Occurrence and applications
Many carboxylic acids are produced industrially on a large scale. They are also frequently found in nature. Esters of fatty acids are the main components of lipids and polyamides of amino acid are the main components of .
Carboxylic acids are used in the production of polymers, pharmaceuticals, solvents, and food additives. Industrially important carboxylic acids include acetic acid (component of vinegar, precursor to solvents and coatings), acrylic acid (precursors to polymers, adhesives), adipic acid (polymers), citric acid (a flavor and preservative in food and beverages), ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (chelating agent), (coatings), maleic acid (polymers), propionic acid (food preservative), terephthalic acid (polymers). Important carboxylate salts are soaps.
Synthesis
Industrial routes
In general, industrial routes to carboxylic acids differ from those used on a smaller scale because they require specialized equipment.
-
Carbonylation of alcohols as illustrated by the Cativa process for the production of acetic acid. Formic acid is prepared by a different carbonylation pathway, also starting from methanol.
-
Oxidation of with air using cobalt and manganese catalysts. The required aldehydes are readily obtained from alkenes by hydroformylation.
-
Oxidation of hydrocarbons using air. For simple alkanes, this method is inexpensive but not selective enough to be useful. Allylic and benzylic compounds undergo more selective oxidations. Alkyl groups on a benzene ring are oxidized to the carboxylic acid, regardless of its chain length. Benzoic acid from toluene, terephthalic acid from para-xylene, and phthalic acid from ortho-xylene are illustrative large-scale conversions. Acrylic acid is generated from propene.
[.]
-
Oxidation of ethene using silicotungstic acid catalyst.
-
Base-catalyzed dehydrogenation of alcohols.
-
Carbonylation coupled to the addition of water. This method is effective and versatile for alkenes that generate secondary and tertiary , e.g. isobutylene to pivalic acid. In the Koch reaction, the addition of water and carbon monoxide to alkenes or alkynes is catalyzed by strong acids. Hydrocarboxylations involve the simultaneous addition of water and Carbon monoxide. Such reactions are sometimes called "Walter Reppe."
-
Hydrolysis of obtained from plant or animal oils. These methods of synthesizing some long-chain carboxylic acids are related to soap making.
-
Fermentation of ethanol. This method is used in the production of vinegar.
-
The Kolbe–Schmitt reaction provides a route to salicylic acid, precursor to aspirin.
Laboratory methods
Preparative methods for small scale reactions for research or for production of fine chemicals often employ expensive consumable reagents.
-
Oxidation of primary alcohols or with strong Oxidizing agent such as potassium dichromate, Jones reagent, potassium permanganate, or sodium chlorite. The method is more suitable for laboratory conditions than the industrial use of air, which is "greener" because it yields less inorganic side products such as chromium or manganese oxides.
-
Oxidative cleavage of by ozonolysis, potassium permanganate, or potassium dichromate.
-
Hydrolysis of , , or , usually with acid- or base-catalysis.
-
Carbonation of a Grignard reagent and organolithium reagents:
-
Halogenation followed by hydrolysis of in the haloform reaction
-
Base-catalyzed cleavage of non-enolizable ketones, especially aryl ketones:
Less-common reactions
Many reactions produce carboxylic acids but are used only in specific cases or are mainly of academic interest.
-
Disproportionation of an aldehyde in the Cannizzaro reaction
-
Rearrangement of diketones in the benzilic acid rearrangement
-
Involving the generation of benzoic acids are the von Richter reaction from nitrobenzenes and the Kolbe–Schmitt reaction from .
Reactions
Acid-base reactions
Carboxylic acids react with bases to form carboxylate salts, in which the hydrogen of the hydroxyl (–OH) group is replaced with a metal cation. For example, acetic acid found in vinegar reacts with sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) to form sodium acetate, carbon dioxide, and water:
Conversion to esters, amides, anhydrides
Widely practiced reactions convert carboxylic acids into esters, amides, Carboxylate, acid chlorides, and alcohols.
Their conversion to is widely used, e.g. in the production of . Likewise, carboxylic acids are converted into , but this conversion typically does not occur by direct reaction of the carboxylic acid and the amine. Instead esters are typical precursors to amides. The conversion of into is a significant biochemical process that requires ATP.
Converting a carboxylic acid to an amide is possible, but not straightforward. Instead of acting as a nucleophile, an amine will react as a base in the presence of a carboxylic acid to give the ammonium carboxylate salt. Heating the salt to above 100 °C will drive off water and lead to the formation of the amide. This method of synthesizing amides is industrially important, and has laboratory applications as well.[Wade 2010, pp. 964–965.] In the presence of a strong acid catalyst, carboxylic acids can condense to form acid anhydrides. The condensation produces water, however, which can hydrolyze the anhydride back to the starting carboxylic acids. Thus, the formation of the anhydride via condensation is an equilibrium process.
Under acid-catalyzed conditions, carboxylic acids will react with alcohols to form via the Fischer esterification reaction, which is also an equilibrium process. Alternatively, diazomethane can be used to convert an acid to an ester. While esterification reactions with diazomethane often give quantitative yields, diazomethane is only useful for forming methyl esters.
Reduction
Like , most carboxylic acids can be reduced to alcohols by hydrogenation, or using hydride transferring agents such as lithium aluminium hydride. Strong alkyl transferring agents, such as organolithium compounds but not Grignard reagents, will reduce carboxylic acids to ketones along with transfer of the alkyl group.
The Vilsmaier reagent ( N, N-Dimethyl(chloromethylene)ammonium chloride; ) is a highly chemoselective agent for carboxylic acid reduction. It selectively activates the carboxylic acid to give the carboxymethyleneammonium salt, which can be reduced by a mild reductant like lithium tris( t-butoxy)aluminum hydride to afford an aldehyde in a one pot procedure. This procedure is known to tolerate reactive carbonyl functionalities such as ketone as well as moderately reactive ester, olefin, nitrile, and halide moieties.
Conversion to acyl halides
The hydroxyl group on carboxylic acids may be replaced with a chlorine atom using thionyl chloride to give . In nature, carboxylic acids are converted to . Thionyl chloride can be used to convert carboxylic acids to their corresponding acyl chlorides. First, carboxylic acid 1 attacks thionyl chloride, and chloride ion leaves. The resulting oxonium ion 2 is activated towards nucleophilic attack and has a good leaving group, setting it apart from a normal carboxylic acid. In the next step, 2 is attacked by chloride ion to give tetrahedral intermediate 3, a chlorosulfite. The tetrahedral intermediate collapses with the loss of sulfur dioxide and chloride ion, giving protonated acyl chloride 4. Chloride ion can remove the proton on the carbonyl group, giving the acyl chloride 5 with a loss of HCl.
Phosphorus(III) chloride (PCl3) and phosphorus(V) chloride (PCl5) will also convert carboxylic acids to acid chlorides, by a similar mechanism. One equivalent of PCl3 can react with three equivalents of acid, producing one equivalent of H3PO3, or phosphorus acid, in addition to the desired acid chloride. PCl5 reacts with carboxylic acids in a 1:1 ratio, and produces phosphorus(V) oxychloride (POCl3) and hydrogen chloride (HCl) as byproducts.
Reactions with carbanion equivalents
Carboxylic acids react with Grignard reagents and organolithiums to form ketones. The first equivalent of nucleophile acts as a base and deprotonates the acid. A second equivalent will attack the carbonyl group to create a geminal alkoxide dianion, which is protonated upon workup to give the hydrate of a ketone. Because most ketone hydrates are unstable relative to their corresponding ketones, the equilibrium between the two is shifted heavily in favor of the ketone. For example, the equilibrium constant for the formation of acetone hydrate from acetone is only 0.002. The carboxylic group is the most acidic in organic compounds.[Wade 2010, p. 838.]
Specialized reactions
-
As with all carbonyl compounds, the protons on the alpha-carbon are labile due to keto–enol tautomerization. Thus, the α-carbon is easily halogenated in the Hell–Volhard–Zelinsky halogenation.
-
The Schmidt reaction converts carboxylic acids to .
-
Carboxylic acids are decarboxylated in the Hunsdiecker reaction.
-
The Dakin–West reaction converts an amino acid to the corresponding amino ketone.
-
In the Barbier–Wieland degradation, a carboxylic acid on an aliphatic chain having a simple methylene bridge at the alpha position can have the chain shortened by one carbon. The inverse procedure is the Arndt–Eistert synthesis, where an acid is converted into acyl halide, which is then reacted with diazomethane to give one additional methylene in the aliphatic chain.
-
Many acids undergo oxidative decarboxylation. that catalyze these reactions are known as (EC 6.4.1) and (EC 4.1.1).
-
Carboxylic acids are reduced to via the ester and DIBAL, via the acid chloride in the Rosenmund reduction and via the thioester in the Fukuyama reduction.
-
In ketonic decarboxylation carboxylic acids are converted to ketones.
-
Organolithium reagents (>2 equiv) react with carboxylic acids to give a dilithium 1,1-diolate, a stable tetrahedral intermediate which decomposes to give a ketone upon acidic workup.
-
The Kolbe electrolysis is an electrolytic, decarboxylative dimerization reaction. It gets rid of the carboxyl groups of two acid molecules, and joins the remaining fragments together.
Carboxyl radical
The carboxyl free radical, •COOH, only exists briefly.[The value is p Ka = −0.2 ± 0.1. ] The carboxyl group tends to dimerise to form oxalic acid.
See also
External links
