Prepn. of tartaric acid by oxidative conversion of 5-keto-gluconate

摘要

The invention concerns a method of preparing tartaric acid from 5-ketogluconate. The aim of the invention is to provide a simple method which maximizes the conversion of 5-ketogluconate to tartaric acid. This is achieved by oxidizing 5-ketogluconate to tartaric acid in a carbonate buffer solution at an alkaline pH. The reaction is carried out in particular using vanadate and preferably in the pH range 8 to 10.