Industrial Production of Acetic Acid: A Patent Landscape

Abstract

This work presents an overview of the patent activity and filing trends on acetic acid industrial processes. Data were obtained with Orbit Intelligence patent database, using both keywords and classification codes (IPC, CPC, and C-sets). The complete search strategy has been reported. Data analysis reveals that methanol carbonylation is the most patented process, while fermentation methods are the most attractive technologies. The filing of new patent applications shows a decreasing trend in the period comprising 2016 and 2020 for all technologies.

Keywords: acetic acid, industrial production, technology landscape, patent analysis

JEL Classification: L65, O31, O32