2458-55-1

Usage

Chemical structure

A benzene ring with two hydroxyl (OH) groups and two hydrogen sulfate (HSO4) groups attached.

Common uses

Production of polymers
Dyes
Pharmaceuticals

Antioxidant properties

Frequently used in the formulation of skincare and hair care products.

Environmental applications

Potential use in environmental remediation due to its ability to break down organic pollutants.

Safety precautions

Harmful if ingested or inhaled
May cause skin and eye irritation upon contact
Handle with caution

Upstream product

• 123-31-9 hydroquinone 

Relevant academic research and scientific papers

Reactions of the dihydroxybenzenes and their methyl ethers with sulfur trioxide. The effect of initial sulfation on the sulfonation product distribution

The sulfation and sulfonation resulting from the reaction of the dihydroxybenzenes and their mono- and dimethyl ethers with SO3 in nitromethane have been studied, and their product distributions are reported.As to the non-hydroxy-substituent-containing substrates, 1,2-dimethoxybenzene (3) yields the 4-sulfonic acid (3-4-S) which, upon further sulfonation, yields a 1:4 mixture of the 3,5- and 4,5-S2.The 1,3- (6) and 1,4-isomer (9) yield initially the 4- and 2-S, respectively, and subsequently exclusively 6-4,6- and 9-2,5-S2, respectively.With the substrates containing one hydroxy substituent, the sulfonation isomer distribution is dependent on the SO3 to substrate ratio if the OH and OMe substituents are in ortho or para orientation, due to increasing sulfonation of the corresponding methoxyphenyl hydrogen sulfate.Thus, 2-methoxy- (2) and 4-methoxyphenol (8) with one equiv of SO3 at 0 deg C yield a 3:1 mixture of 2-4-S and 2-5-S and a 9:1 mixture of 8-2-S and 8-3-S, respectively, but, with >/= 4 equiv of SO3, the former reactant yields only 2-5-S and the latter only 8-3-S. 3-Methoxyphenol (5) yields initially a 1:1 mixture of the 4- and 6-sulfonic acid.Further sulfonation yields only 5-O,4,6-S3 which slowly cyclizes to the 1,3,2,4-benzodioxadithiin 2,2,4,4-tetraoxide derivative 11.As to the dihydroxy-containing substrates, 1,2-dihydroxybenzene (1) with 1 equiv of SO3 first yields the hydrogen sulfate 1-O-S which rearranges to 1-4-S; on using an excess of SO3, the eventual product is 1-O(2),4-S2.Similarly, the 1,4-isomer (7) with 1 equiv of SO3 yields initially 7-O-S which isomerizes to 7-2-S.With 6 equiv of SO3, initially 7-O,O-S2 is formed and subsequently its 2-sulfonic acid, which eventually cyclizes slowly to the 1,3,2,4-benzodioxadithiin 2,2,4,4-tetraoxide derivative 12.The 1,3-isomer 4 with 1 equiv of SO3 yields the 4-sulfonic acid.With 4 equiv of SO3, initially 4-O,O-S2 is formed and subsequently 4-4,O,O-S3, which is converted into both 4-O,O,4,6-S4 and the cyclization product 10.Eventually, small amounts of 4-O,2,4,6-S4 and 14-2,6-S2 are formed by transsulfonation.