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Lactic ACID powder is an organic acid with the molecular formula C3H6O3.
In its solid state, Lactic ACID powder is white and in its liquid state is miscible with water.
When dissolved, Lactic ACID powder forms a colorless solution.
CAS: 50-21-5
MF: C3H6O3
MW: 90.08
EINECS: 200-018-0
Synonyms
DL-ALPHA-HYDROXYPROPIONIC ACID;DL-Lactic acid, ACS reagent, 85+%;dl-lactic acid, acs;LACTICACID,RACEMIC,USP;2-Hydroxy-2-methylacetic acid;Biolac;Chem-Cast;E 270
Production includes both artificial synthesis and natural sources.
Lactic ACID powder is an alpha-hydroxy acid (AHA) due to the presence of a hydroxyl group adjacent to the carboxyl group.
Lactic ACID powder is a synthetic intermediate in many organic synthesis industries and in various biochemical industries.
The conjugate base of Lactic ACID powder is called lactate (or the lactate anion).
The name of the derived acyl group is lactoyl.
In solution, Lactic ACID powder can ionize by a loss of a proton to produce the lactate ion CH3CH(OH)CO2–, also known as 2-hydroxypropanoate.
Compared to acetic acid, its pKa is 1 unit less, meaning that Lactic ACID powder is ten times more acidic than acetic acid.
This higher acidity is the consequence of intramolecular hydrogen bonding between the α-hydroxyl and the carboxylate group.
Lactic ACID powder is chiral, consisting of two enantiomers.
One is known as L-lactic acid, (S)-lactic acid, or (+)-lactic acid, and the other, its mirror image, is D-lactic acid, (R)-lactic acid, or (−)-lactic acid.
A mixture of the two in equal amounts is called DL-lactic acid, or racemic lactic acid.
Lactic acid is hygroscopic.
Lactic ACID powder is miscible with water and with ethanol above its melting point, which is 16–18 °C (61–64 °F).
Lactic ACID powder has a higher melting point.
Lactic ACID powder produced by fermentation of milk is often racemic, although certain species of bacteria produce solely D-lactic acid.
On the other hand, Lactic ACID powder produced by fermentation in animal muscles has the (L) enantiomer and is sometimes called "sarcolactic" acid, from the Greek sarx, meaning "flesh".
In animals, Lactic ACID powder is constantly produced from pyruvate via the enzyme lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) in a process of fermentation during normal metabolism and exercise.
Lactic ACID powder does not increase in concentration until the rate of lactate production exceeds the rate of lactate removal, which is governed by a number of factors, including monocarboxylate transporters, concentration and isoform of LDH, and oxidative capacity of tissues.
This reaction is reversible and redox-linked: LDH reduces pyruvate to lactate using NADH as an electron donor, simultaneously regenerating NAD⁺ required for glycolysis under anaerobic conditions.
The concentration of blood lactate is usually 1–2 mMTooltip millimolar at rest, but can rise to over 20 mM during intense exertion and as high as 25 mM afterward.
In addition to other biological roles, L-lactic acid is the primary endogenous agonist of hydroxycarboxylic acid receptor 1 (HCA1), which is a Gi/o-coupled G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR).
In industry, Lactic ACID powder fermentation is performed by lactic acid bacteria, which convert simple carbohydrates such as glucose, sucrose, or galactose to lactic acid.
These bacteria can also grow in the mouth; Lactic ACID powder they produce is responsible for the tooth decay known as cavities.
In medicine, lactate is one of the main components of lactated Ringer's solution and Hartmann's solution.
These intravenous fluids consist of sodium and potassium cations along with lactate and chloride anions in solution with distilled water, generally in concentrations isotonic with human blood.
Lactic ACID powder is most commonly used for fluid resuscitation after blood loss due to trauma, surgery, or burns.
Lactic ACID powder is produced in human tissues when the demand for oxygen is limited by the supply.
This occurs during tissue ischemia when the flow of blood is limited as in sepsis or hemorrhagic shock.
Lactic ACID powder may also occur when demand for oxygen is high, such as with intense exercise.
The process of lactic acidosis produces Lactic ACID powder, which results in an oxygen debt, which can be resolved or repaid when tissue oxygenation improves.
Lactic ACID powder Chemical Properties
Melting point: 18°C
Boiling point: 122 °C/15 mmHg (lit.)
alpha: -0.05 º (c= neat 25 ºC)
density: 1.209 g/mL at 25 °C (lit.)
vapor density: 0.62 (vs air)
vapor pressure: 19 mm of Hg (@ 20°C)
FEMA: 2611 | LACTIC ACID
refractive index: n20/D 1.4262
Fp: >230 °F
storage temp.: 2-8°C
solubility: Miscible with water and with ethanol (96 per cent).
form: syrup
pka: 3.08(at 100℃)
color: Colorless to yellow
Specific Gravity: 1.209
PH: 3.51(1 mM solution);2.96(10 mM solution);2.44(100 mM solution);
Odor: at 100.00 %. odorless
Odor Type: odorless
Water Solubility: SOLUBLE
Merck: 14,5336
JECFA Number: 930
BRN: 1209341
Henry's Law Constant: 1.2×102 mol/(m3Pa) at 25℃, Duchowicz et al. (2020)
Dielectric constant: 22.0（16℃）
Stability: Stable. Combustible. Incompatible with strong oxidizing agents.
Cosmetics Ingredients Functions: SKIN CONDITIONING
HUMECTANT
BUFFERING
Cosmetic Ingredient Review (CIR): Lactic acid (50-21-5)
InChI: 1S/C3H6O3/c1-2(4)3(5)6/h2,4H,1H3,(H,5,6)
InChIKey: JVTAAEKCZFNVCJ-UHFFFAOYSA-N
LogP: -0.72
CAS DataBase Reference: 50-21-5(CAS DataBase Reference)
NIST Chemistry Reference: Lactic ACID powder(50-21-5)
EPA Substance Registry System: Lactic ACID powder(50-21-5)
Uses
In 2023, lactate was the 289th most commonly prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 500,000 prescriptions.
Polymer precursor
Main article: polylactic acid
Two molecules of lactic acid can be dehydrated to the lactone lactide.
In the presence of catalysts lactide polymerize to either atactic or syndiotactic polylactide (PLA), which are biodegradable polyesters.
PLA is an example of a plastic that is not derived from petrochemicals.
Pharmaceutical and cosmetic applications
Lactic ACID powder is also employed in pharmaceutical technology to produce water-soluble lactates from otherwise-insoluble active ingredients.
Lactic ACID powder finds further use in topical preparations and cosmetics to adjust acidity and for its disinfectant and keratolytic properties.
Lactic ACID powder containing bacteria have shown promise in reducing oxaluria with its descaling properties on calcium compounds.
Foods
Fermented food
Main article: Lactic ACID powder fermentation § Applications
Lactic acid is found in many fermented foods.
Sour milk products, such as kumis, laban, yogurt, kefir, and some cottage cheeses, derive their flavor from lactic acid.
The casein in fermented milk is coagulated (curdled) by Lactic ACID powder.
Lactic ACID powder is also responsible for the sour flavor of sourdough bread.
Some beers (sour beer) purposely contain lactic acid, one such type being Belgian lambics.
Most commonly, Lactic ACID powder is produced naturally by various strains of bacteria.
These bacteria ferment sugars into acids, unlike the yeast that ferment sugar into ethanol.
After cooling the wort, yeast and bacteria are allowed to "fall" into the open fermenters. Brewers of more common beer styles would ensure that no such bacteria are allowed to enter the fermenter.
Other sour styles of beer include Berliner weisse, Flanders red and American wild ale.
In winemaking, a bacterial process, natural or controlled, is often used to convert the naturally present malic acid to lactic acid, to reduce the sharpness and for other flavor-related reasons.
This malolactic fermentation is undertaken by lactic acid bacteria.
Pickling vegetables in brine creates a sour flavor as bacteria convert sugars into lactic acid.
Fermented sausages
In lists of nutritional information Lactic ACID powder might be included under the term "carbohydrate" (or "carbohydrate by difference") because this often includes everything other than water, protein, fat, ash, and ethanol.
If this is the case then the calculated food energy may use the standard 4 kcal/g (17 kJ/g) that is often used for all carbohydrates.
But in some cases lactic acid is ignored in the calculation.
The actual energy density of lactic acid is 3.62 kcal/g (15.1 kJ/g).
While not normally found in significant quantities in fruit, Lactic ACID powder is the primary organic acid in akebia fruit, making up 2.12% of the juice.
Separately added
As a food additive Lactic ACID powder is approved for use in the EU, United States and Australia and New Zealand; Lactic ACID powder is listed by its INS number 270 or as E number E270.
Lactic ACID powder is used as a food preservative, curing agent, and flavoring agent.
Lactic ACID powder is an ingredient in processed foods and is used as a decontaminant during meat processing.
Lactic ACID powder is produced commercially by fermentation of carbohydrates such as glucose, sucrose, or lactose, or by chemical synthesis.
Carbohydrate sources include corn, beets, and cane sugar.
Forgery
Lactic ACID powder has historically been used to assist with the erasure of inks from official papers to be modified during forgery.
Cleaning products
Lactic ACID powder is used in some liquid cleaners as a descaling agent for removing hard water deposits such as calcium carbonate.
Lactic ACID powder is also used as an antibacterial agent in some hard surface liquid cleaners.
Production
Lactic ACID powder is produced industrially by bacterial fermentation of carbohydrates, or by chemical synthesis from acetaldehyde.
As of 2009, Lactic ACID powder was produced predominantly (70–90%) by fermentation.
Production of racemic lactic acid consisting of a 1:1 mixture of D and L stereoisomers, or of mixtures with up to 99.9% Lactic ACID powder, is possible by microbial fermentation.
Industrial production of the Lactic ACID powder enantiomer is technically more challenging because most naturally occurring Lactic ACID powder bacteria preferentially produce the L-form; obtaining high optical purity ofLactic ACID powder therefore requires genetically engineered microorganisms or specific D-lactate dehydrogenases.
Fermentative production
Fermented milk products are obtained industrially by fermentation of milk or whey by Lactobacillus bacteria: Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lacticaseibacillus casei (Lactobacillus casei), Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus (Lactobacillus bulgaricus), Lactobacillus helveticus, Lactococcus lactis, Bacillus amyloliquefaciens, and Streptococcus salivarius subsp. thermophilus (Streptococcus thermophilus).
As a starting material for industrial production of Lactic ACID powder, almost any carbohydrate source containing C
5 (pentose sugar) and C
6 (hexose sugar) can be used.
Pure sucrose, glucose from starch, raw sugar, and beet juice are frequently used.
Lactic ACID powder producing bacteria can be divided in two classes: homofermentative bacteria like Lactobacillus casei and Lactococcus lactis, producing two moles of lactate from one mole of glucose, and heterofermentative species, producing one mole of lactate from one mole of glucose, as well as carbon dioxide and acetic acid/ethanol.
Chemical production
Lactic ACID powder is synthesized industrially by reacting acetaldehyde with hydrogen cyanide and hydrolysing the resultant lactonitrile.
When hydrolysis is performed by hydrochloric acid, ammonium chloride forms as a by-product; the Japanese company Musashino is one of the last big manufacturers of lactic acid by this route.
Synthesis of both racemic and enantiopure lactic acids is also possible from other starting materials (vinyl acetate, glycerol, etc.) by application of catalytic procedures.
