Trimellitic anhydride is an
organic compound
Some chemical authorities define an organic compound as a chemical compound that contains a carbon–hydrogen or carbon–carbon bond; others consider an organic compound to be any chemical compound that contains carbon. For example, carbon-co ...
with the formula HO
2CC
6H
3(C
2O
3). It is the cyclic anhydride of
trimellitic acid
Trimellitic acid (benzene-1,2,4-tricarboxylic acid) is a chemical compound with the molecular formula C6H3(СООН)3. Like the other isomers of benzenetricarboxylic acid, trimellitic acid is a colorless solid. It is prepared by oxidation of 1,2 ...
. The compound is a colorless to white solid. It's primarily used in the production of various polymers, polyesters, agricultural chemicals and dyes. Several thousand tons of this compound are produced annually as a precursor to plasticizers for
polyvinyl chloride
Polyvinyl chloride (alternatively: poly(vinyl chloride), colloquial: vinyl or polyvinyl; abbreviated: PVC) is the world's third-most widely produced synthetic polymer of plastic (after polyethylene and polypropylene). About 40 million tons of ...
. It is produced by air-oxidation of
1,2,4-trimethylbenzene.
[{{Ullmann, doi=10.1002/14356007.a05_249, title=Carboxylic Acids, Aromatic, year=2000, last1=Röhrscheid, first1=Freimund]
References
Tricarboxylic acids