In an earlier publication1 from these laboratories, it has been demonstrated that formic, glycolic, malic, malonic and tartaric acids can be oxidized completely to carbon dioxide and water by ceric sulphatc in the presence of sulphuric acid.
WILLARD AND YOUNG~ studied the oxidation of various other organic acids also. They found that acetic and succinic acids arc not oxidized at all by boiling ccric sulphate solutions, malcic and fumaric acids consume only slight amounts of the reagent, while benzoic, salicylic and phthalic acids are oxidized to an appreciable extent by ceric sulphate at go-IOOO C, but the oxidation of the last three acids also was variable. Accordingly the method could not be employed for their quantitative estimation. In view of the success achieved in the complete oxidation of acids like formic, glycolic, malic, malonic and tartaric acids, it was considered of intcrcst to make a careful study of the oxidizability of the other acids also. It was confirmed that acetic and succinic acids arc not affected by ceric sulphatc even on boiling in the presence of higher concentrations of sulphuric acid. However, it has been possible to oxidize the other acids completely to carbon dioxide and water by ceric sulphatc in the prescncc of sulphuric acid. Table summarizes the results obtained.