Dicarboxylic acid

In organic chemistry, a dicarboxylic acid is an organic compound containing two carboxyl groups (). The general molecular formula for dicarboxylic acids can be written as , where R can be aliphatic or aromatic. In general, dicarboxylic acids show similar chemical behavior and reactivity to monocarboxylic acids. Dicarboxylic acids are used in the preparation of copolymers such as polyamides and polyesters. The most widely used dicarboxylic acid in the industry is adipic acid, which is a precursor in the production of nylon. Other examples of dicarboxylic acids include aspartic acid and glutamic acid, two amino acids in the human body. The name can be abbreviated to diacid. The general formula for acyclic dicarboxylic acid is HO2C(CH2)nCO2H. The PubChem links gives access to more information on the compounds, including other names, ids, toxicity and safety. Acids from the two-carbon oxalic acid to the ten-member sebacic acid may be remembered using the mnemonic 'Oh My Son, Go And Pray Softly And Silently', and also 'Oh my! Such great Apple Pie, sweet as sugar!'. {| class="wikitable" |+