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Updated: Apr 19, 2026

Depolymerizable Olefinic Polymers Based on Fused-Ring Cyclooctene Monomers
Published on: December 16, 2022
One-pot room-temperature conversion of cyclohexane to adipic acid by ozone and UV light
Kuo Chu Hwang1, Arunachalam Sagadevan2
1Department of Chemistry, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan, Republic of China. kchwang@mx.nthu.edu.tw.
Abstract:
Nitric acid oxidation of cyclohexane accounts for ~95% of the worldwide adipic acid production and is also responsible for ~5 to 8% of the annual worldwide anthropogenic emission of the ozone-depleting greenhouse gas nitrous oxide (N2O). Here we report a N2O-free process for adipic acid synthesis. Treatment of neat cyclohexane, cyclohexanol, or cyclohexanone with ozone at room temperature and 1 atmosphere of pressure affords adipic acid as a solid precipitate. Addition of acidic water or exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light irradiation (or a combination of both) dramatically enhances the oxidative conversion of cyclohexane to adipic acid.
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