Iranian Journal of Chemical Engineering, Vol. 21, No. 2, 30-43, (2024) * Corresponding author: s.ovaysi@gmail.com 30 Iranian Journal of Chemical Engineering pISSN: 1735-5397 eISSN: 2008-2355 Journal Homepage: www.ijche.com Low-Cost and Green Synthesis of the Disodium Salt of Hydroquinone: the Investigation of its Physical and Chemical Properties and Crystal Structure Reza Pirdadeh Beiranvand, Saeed Ovaysi * Faculty of Petroleum and Chemical Engineering, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Article type: Research article A low cost and environmentally friendly process for the synthesis of the disodium salt of hydroquinone (DSH) is presented. This novel synthesis technique employs water as solvent. Compared to the well-established synthesis techniques which utilize methanol, the presented technique is safer and environmentally friendly. First, a DSH sample is synthesized using the customary synthesis technique by employing methanol as solvent. Then, the technique introduced in this study is implemented under three different scenarios differing in the way the drying step is performed. The resulting DSH powders are then compared using FTIR analyses. It is shown that all the synthesis techniques yield acceptable results, However, drying at higher temperatures yield better results. Furthermore, the crystal structure of the DSH sample is investigated using an XRD analysis and compared to the simulated diffraction pattern of DSH. The results indicate the correct synthesis of DSH. Finally, a DSC-TGA test is performed to further confirm the correct synthesis of DSH. DOI: 10.22034/ijche.2024.434337.1510 URL: https://www.ijche.com/article_194822.html Article history: Received: 2024-01-06 Revised: 2024-04-03 Accepted: 2024-04-24 Available online: 2024-04-24 Keywords: Disodium salt of hydroquinone, Chemical synthesis, FTIR analysis, XRD analysis. 1. Introduction The Disodium Salt of Hydroquinone (DSH), as an alkali metal phenolate [1] which is produced through the reaction of a phenolic compound with an alkali metal, lends itself to the transfer of carbon dioxide onto its carboxylate C-H bonds [2]. As such, it is a starting point for the production of 2,5- dihydroxyterephthalic acid which in turn is used in the production of polymers [3, 4], polyesters [5, 6], and metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) [7, 8, 9]. Although, both disodium and dipotassium salts of hydroquinone (DPH) are used to produce MOFs, the use of DSH is preferable in terms of supply, cost, and reactivity [1].