Benzoic acid, C7H6O2 (or C6H5COOH), is a colorless crystalline solid and the simplest aromatic carboxylic acid. The name derived from gum benzoin, which was for a long time the only source for benzoic acid. This weak acid and its salts are used as a food preservative. Benzoic acid is an important precursor for the synthesis of many other organic substances.
Benzoic acid was discovered in the 16th century. The dry distillation of gum benzoin first...
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Benzoic acid, C7H6O2 (or C6H5COOH), is a colorless crystalline solid and the simplest aromatic carboxylic acid. The name derived from gum benzoin, which was for a long time the only source for benzoic acid. This weak acid and its salts are used as a food preservative. Benzoic acid is an important precursor for the synthesis of many other organic substances.
Benzoic acid was discovered in the 16th century. The dry distillation of gum benzoin first described by Nostradamus (1556), and subsequently by Alexius Pedemontanus (1560) and Blaise de Vigenère (1596).
Justus von Liebig and Friedrich Wöhler determined the structure of benzoic acid in 1832. They also investigated how hippuric acid is related to benzoic acid.
In 1875 Salkowski discovered the antifungal abilities of benzoic acid, which was used for a long time in the preservation of benzoate-containing cloudberry fruits.
Benzoic acid is produced commercially by partial oxidation of toluene with oxygen. The process is catalyzed by...
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