M-Toluic acid explained

m-Toluic acid, (IUPAC: 3-methylbenzoic acid), is an aromatic carboxylic acid, with formula (CH₃)C₆H₄(COOH). It is an isomer of p-toluic acid and o-toluic acid.

Preparation

m-toluic acid is often prepared in the laboratory by refluxing m-xylene with either nitric acid or potassium permanganate, oxidizing one of the methyl groups to COOH.

Uses

It serves, among other purposes, as a precursor to DEET (N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide), the well-known insect repellent.^{[1] [2]}

Notes and References

1. An interesting and successful organic experiment (CEC) . 631 . . Wang, Benjamin J-S. . 1974 . 51 . 10 . 10.1021/ed051p631.2.
2. Book: Introduction to organic laboratory techniques . Donald L. Pavia . 978-0-534-40833-6 . Cengage Learning . 2004 . 370–376 . Google Books excerpt.