DIMERIZATION OF SOME CARBOXYLIC ACIDS IN ORGANIC PHASES

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Abstract
The partition coefficients and organic-phase dimerization constants of benzoic acid and three short-chain congeners of aliphatic carboxylic acids were investigated. In order to determine them, the “standard potential strength”was introduced for the first time. In low concentrations a carboxy-lie acid has been generally assumed to be almost exclusively monomeric in an organic phase, but the amount of its dimer form was not found to be negligible even in rather low concentrations. As its concentration increased, a proportion of the dimer form increased. In the cases of some nonpolar solvents, a nearly complete dimerization could occur at high concentrations. Although the partition coefficient and dimerization constant of an organic acid have been considered constant irrespective of acid concentrations in an organic phase, a closer observation suggested they should not be constant. This paper also reports the results of a comparative investigation on the degree of self-association (v) the modified potential strength and the half-dimerization concentration (Ch)among the carboxylic acids.