New method can efficiently transform phenol to a key ingredient for manufacturing food preservatives, pharmaceuticals & polymers

What is the news?

Indian researchers have found that electrolysis is an effective method for the oxidative transformation of phenol to 1,4 hydroquinone.

What is Phenol and its products used for?

Phenols is an organic compound. The oxidative products of phenols like 1,4 hydroquinone, catechol or resorcinol play an important role in the synthesis of medicinal and industrial organic compounds.

The product 1,4 hydroquinone is used as an intermediate in the manufacturing of food preservatives, pharmaceuticals and polymers. 

What was the issue?

Currently, phenol oxidation is carried out by chemical methods using catalysts involving precious metals, metal oxides, and enzymes along with hazardous oxidants. 

But these methods suffer from many disadvantages, including incomplete conversion of starting material and lack of product selectivity, along with environmental hazards.

Due to lack of efficient processes for conversion of Phenol, India currently imports 1,4 hydroquinone at a heavy cost.

What have Indian researchers found out?

Indian researchers have found that electrolysis is an effective method for the oxidative transformation of phenol to 1,4 hydroquinone.

What is the significance of this method?

This research can be industrially adopted to reduce the dependence of India on other countries for oxidised phenol compounds. 

Moreover, the electrolysis method does not involve the release of environmentally hazardous agents, and it is more efficient than the chemical methods. 

Source: This post is based on the article “New method can efficiently transform phenol to a key ingredient for manufacturing food preservatives, pharmaceuticals & polymers” published in PIB on 3rd Feb 2022.