This presentation will help you in commercial preparation of formic acid.

2. Commercial Production of formic Acid
By
Mr. Muhammad Ullah Afridi
Institute of Chemical Sciences, University of Peshawar.

3. Formic Acid

4. Introduction
 Pure formic acid is a colourless,
fuming liquid with a pungent odour
 It irritates the mucous membranes
and blisters the skin.
 Formic acid (systematically called
methanoic acid) is the simplest
carboxylic acid.
 Its chemical formula is
HCOOH or HCO2H.

5. Properties
 Formic acid is a colorless liquid having
a highly pungent, penetrating odor at
room temperature.
 It is miscible with water and most polar
organic solvents, and is somewhat
soluble in hydrocarbons.

6. Properties
 In hydrocarbons and in the vapor
phase, it consists of hydrogen-bonded
dimmers rather than individual
molecules.
 Solid formic acid consists of an
effectively endless network of
hydrogen-bonded formic acid
molecules.

7. Natural Occurrence
 In nature, it is found in the venom of
ants.
 Formic acid is a naturally occurring
component of the atmosphere due
primarily to forest emissions.

8. Production Process
 It is made by the action of sulfuric acid
upon sodium formate, which is produced
from carbon monoxide and sodium
hydroxide.

9. Production Process
From methyl formate and formamide
When methanol and carbon monoxide are combined in the
presence of a strong base, the result is methyl formate
CH3OH + CO → HCO2CH3
HCO2CH3 + H2O → HCOOH + CH3OH
In industry, this reaction is performed in the liquid phase at
elevated pressure. Typical reaction conditions are 80 °C and 40
atm. The most widely used base is sodium methoxide.
Hydrolysis of the methyl formate produces formic acid:

10. Production Process
From methyl formate and formamide
HCO2CH3 + NH3 → HC(O)NH2 + CH3OH
2 HC(O)NH2 + 2H2O + H2SO4 → 2HCO2H + (NH4)2SO4
Efficient hydrolysis of methyl formate requires a large
excess of water. Some routes proceed indirectly by first
treating the methyl formate with ammonia to give
formamide, which is then hydrolyzed with sulfuric acid

11. Production
 In 2009, the worldwide capacity for
producing formic acid was 720,000
tonnes/annum, roughly equally divided
between Europe (350,000, mainly in
Germany) and Asia (370,000, mainly
in China) while production was below
1000 tonnes/annum in all other
continents.

12. Applications
 A major use of formic acid is as a
preservative and antibacterial agent in
livestock feed.
 Use as preservative for silage and
(other) animal feed constituted 30% of
the global consumption in 2009.
 used in processing textiles and leather.