L-Aspartic Acid
CAS 56-84-8 C4H7NO4
- CAS number
- 56-84-8
- EC number
- 200-291-6
- Formula
- C4H7NO4
- Molar mass
- 133.10 g/mol
- HS code
- 2922.49
Supply of L-Aspartic Acid
- Grades
- Food grade meeting Food Chemicals Codex test requirements, pharmacopoeial grades to USP and EP, and technical grade for polymer and industrial use, with assay typically ≥98.5%. The L-form is the biological one. Racemic DL-aspartic acid (CAS 617-45-8) is a separate, cheaper product used mainly where chirality does not matter. Specify form and grade.
- Packaging
- 25 kg kraft bags or fibre drums with PE liner · 500–1000 kg bulk bags for technical grade · Foil packs
- Documents
- CoA, SDS and TDS on request; certificate of origin where the destination requires it.
- Delivery
- Worldwide, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and the rest of the EU, the United Arab Emirates, India, Singapore, Malaysia and Australia. Quoted EXW, FOB, CIF or DAP.
L-Aspartic acid is an amino acid best known as one of the two ingredients of the sweetener aspartame. It is also used in supplements, medicines and cell-growth media, and it is the starting material for polyaspartate, a biodegradable ingredient that prevents limescale in water systems and detergents.
Technical details
L-Aspartic acid is the smaller of the two acidic amino acids, one carbon shorter than glutamic acid, and one of the two building blocks of aspartame. It is made differently from most amino acids. Instead of fermenting sugar, industry usually builds it with an enzyme, adding ammonia to fumaric acid over aspartase, which is fast, clean and gives only the L-form. Like glutamic acid it carries a second carboxyl group, so it dissolves poorly, about 5 g per litre at 25 °C, and least of all near its isoelectric point around pH 2.8. Heated dry it condenses into polysuccinimide, which opens into biodegradable polyaspartate scale inhibitors. Ehlinar supplies food, pharmacopoeial and technical grades, and racemic DL-aspartic acid for polymer work.
Appearance: White crystalline powder, odourless with a slightly acidic taste. Only slightly soluble in water, about 5 g per litre at 25 °C, and insoluble in ethanol. It decomposes rather than melts, near 270 °C.
Applications
How we supply
- Certificate of Analysis (CoA), lot-specific where available
- Safety Data Sheet (SDS / MSDS)
- Technical Data Sheet (TDS)
- Certificate of Origin / Certificate of Conformity
Independent third-party inspection can be arranged on request, with the agency and scope agreed per trade. Representative samples can be requested for qualification, subject to supplier availability. We recommend incoming quality control against the agreed CoA.
Quoted on standard Incoterms (e.g. EXW, FOB, CIF, DAP) as agreed per trade. Delivery region, packaging and grade are confirmed per quote.
Documents and services above are subject to supplier availability and confirmed per quote; nothing here is an offer.
Typical / indicative values — not a binding specification
| Property | Typical |
|---|---|
| Assay | ≥98.5% |
| Water solubility (25 °C) | ~5 g/L |
| Isoelectric point | ~pH 2.8 |
| Decomposition | ~270 °C |
| Forms | L-aspartic acid; racemic DL-aspartic acid (CAS 617-45-8) is a separate product |
Also known as
L-Asp · (S)-2-aminobutanedioic acid · L-aspartate · Asparagic acid · L-Aminosuccinic acid
Frequently asked questions
- What is the difference between L-aspartic acid and DL-aspartic acid?
- Chirality. L-aspartic acid is the form living things make and use, and it is the one specified for food, pharmaceuticals, aspartame and cell culture. DL-aspartic acid (CAS 617-45-8) is a racemic mixture of both mirror-image forms, made synthetically and usually cheaper. It suits uses where the shape of the molecule does not matter, such as some polyaspartate production. The two are not interchangeable for anything biological, so state which one you need.
- How is L-aspartic acid made?
- Mostly by enzyme rather than fermentation. Ammonia is added across the double bond of fumaric acid by aspartase, usually as an immobilised enzyme or immobilised cells that can run continuously. The reaction is highly selective, gives only the L-form and leaves little to purify, which is why the route has been used industrially since the 1970s. Fermentation routes also exist.
- Why does it dissolve so poorly in water?
- The same reason glutamic acid does. The second carboxyl group gives the molecule a low isoelectric point, around pH 2.8, where it carries no net charge and packs tightly into a crystal. Solubility in water is only about 5 g per litre at 25 °C. It dissolves readily in dilute acid or alkali, and as its sodium or potassium salt, so making a solution is a question of pH rather than heat.
- How does aspartic acid relate to polysuccinimide and polyaspartate?
- Heat aspartic acid dry and it loses water and polymerises into polysuccinimide, a water-insoluble powder. Treat that with alkali and the rings open into sodium polyaspartate, a biodegradable polymer that holds calcium in solution and stops scale forming, used in cooling water, detergents and as a fertiliser synergist. Polysuccinimide can also be made from maleic anhydride and ammonia; which route a producer uses depends on cost and the purity required.
- Which grade: food, pharmaceutical or technical?
- Food grade meeting Food Chemicals Codex test requirements for food and supplement use, USP or EP grade for pharmaceutical use, and technical grade for polymer and other industrial work. Meeting a monograph's test requirements and being manufactured under GMP are separate things, so confirm both against the supplier documentation where your application needs them.
- How is it stored and shipped?
- Cool, dry and sealed, away from strong oxidisers. It is stable and is not a dangerous good for transport, so it moves as ordinary cargo.
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Related products
Figures and identifiers here are compiled from public references and provided for general information; they are indicative, not a specification. See all products.