Collection of Czechoslovak Chemical Communications - digital archive 

Abstract

The anions of ethylenediphosphinetetraacetic acid are hydrolyzed in aqueous solutions at 80 °C in the two following reactions: ((OOCCH₂)₂PCH₂CH₂P(CH₂COO)₂)^4- → (OOCCH₂(O)HPCH₂CH₂PH(O)CH₂COO)^2- → (O(O)HPCH₂CH₂PH(O)O)^2-. Both reactions are acid and base catalyzed so that, at pH < 12, the first reaction is much faster than the second. The reaction course was studied by ¹H NMR spectroscopy and by isolation and characterization of the products. The effect of both reactions on the stability of solutions of ethylenediphosphinetetraacetic acid and their salts is negligible at laboratory temperature.