Isethionic acid
| Skeletal formula | |
| ball-and-stick model Isethionic acid
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| Names | |
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| IUPAC name
2-hydroxyethanesulfonic acid
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| Identifiers | |
107-36-8  |
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| ChEBI | CHEBI:1157 |
| ChemSpider | 7578 |
| Jmol 3D model | Interactive image |
| KEGG | C05123 |
| PubChem | 7866 |
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| Properties | |
| C2H6O4S | |
| Molar mass | 126.13 g/mol |
| Density | 1.63 g/cm3 |
| Melting point | 191 to 194 °C (376 to 381 °F; 464 to 467 K) |
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Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa).
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| Infobox references | |
Isethionic acid is an organosulfur compound. It is classified as an alkylsulfonic acid containing hydroxy group. It is a white water-soluble solid that used in the manufacture of mild, biodegradable and high-foaming anionic surfactants for skin cleansing.[1]
Isethionic acid is used in some pharmaceutical salt formulations, including the antimicrobials hexamidine and pentamidine are available as diisethionates.[2]
Synthetic isethionic acid is obtained from the reaction of ethylene oxide with aqueous sodium bisulfite, and is used for the industrial production of taurine. It is also prepared by hydrolysis of carbyl sulfate, obtained by sulfonation of ethylene. Dehydration of isethionic acid gives vinylsulfonic acid.[3]
Biological importance
Studies made on dog heart slices suggested that heart tissue may be capable of converting taurine to isethionic acid, further experiments demonstrated that this tissue may synthetize taurine from cystine.[4]
