Saccharic acid or glucaric acid is a chemical compound with the formula C<sub>6</sub>H<sub>10</sub>O<sub>8</sub>. It is an aldaric acid, naturally occurring in fruits and vegetables.
The salts of saccharic acid are called saccharates or glucarates.
Synthesis
Saccharic acid can be prepared by oxidizing both the aldehydic and primary alcohol groups in an aldose, such as glucose, forming the dicarboxylic acid. A suitable reagent for this transformation is boiling 30% nitric acid, resulting in a yield of 50% to 65%.
Uses
Detergents
The sodium salt has found use in dishwasher detergents, where it acts as a chelating agent for calcium and magnesium ions.
Dietary supplement
Saccharic acid salts have found use in dietary supplements, where they act as precursors to the β-glucuronidase inhibitor saccharolactone (d-glucaro-1,4-lactone).
See also
- Disaccharides
- Gluconic acid
- Isosaccharinic acid
- Monosaccharides
- Mucic acid
- Saccharide