Separating maleic acid from tartaric acid - using anion exchange resin to give food grade purity synthetic tartaric acid

摘要

Maleic acid is separated from a tartaric/maleic acid mixture by passing a solution of crude tartaric acid, in free acid form, through a basic anion exchanger. Natural tartaric acid is widely used in the food industry. In order to use synthetic material prepared by hydroxylation of maleic acid, the product must be very pure and free both of maleic acid and the catalyst used in the hydroxylation.