Esters are usually synthesized from an alcohol and an acid, most frequently, a carboxylic acid. In some cases, an epoxide is used instead of the alcohol; or an acid halide or anhydride replaces the ...

Cellulose acetate was first prepared by Paul Schützenberger in 1865. It took another 29 years before Charles Cross and Edward Bevan patented a process for its manufacture. At about the same time, ...

Without sulfur in the form of sulfuric acid, industries would struggle to produce the phosphorus fertilisers that raise farm yields or extract the essential metals used in everything from solar panels ...