Dodecanedioic acid


Dodecanedioic acid is a dicarboxylic acid mainly used in antiseptics, top-grade coatings, painting materials, corrosion inhibitors, surfactants, and engineering plastics such as nylon 612.
Experimental work with dodecanedioic acid in type 2 diabetic patients has demonstrated that IV infusion helps to maintain normal blood sugar and energy levels without increasing the blood glucose load in the process.

Production

DDDA is currently produced by both chemical and biological routes.

Chemical process

It has traditionally been produced from butadiene using a multi-step chemical process. Butadiene is first converted to cyclododecatriene through a cyclotrimerization process.
Cyclododecatriene is converted to dodecanedioic acid by hydrogenation to cyclododecane followed by air oxidation in the presence of boric acid at elevated temperatures to a mixture of the alcohol and the ketone. In the final step, this mixture oxidized further by nitric acid.

Biological process

can be converted into DDDA with a special strain of Candida tropicalis yeast in a multi-step process. Renewable plant-oil feedstocks sourced from switchgrass can also be used to produce DDDA.