Chemo-Catalyzed Pathways to Lactic Acid and Lactates

Lactic acid is an important building block for the production of biodegradable polymers (PLLA, PDLA, etc.) as well as starting material for the pharmaceutical industry. The current production of this chiral compound is dominated by fermentation processes. However many catalytic reactions that could be used for manufacturing lactic acid were developed in the past three decades. High reaction rates and simple separation of products in comparison to fermentation characterize many of these processes. Excellent stereoselectivities up to 99% ee could be achieved. This review aims to give a critical overview of chemical processes applying catalysis as an alternative for the production of both enantiomerically pure and racemic lactic acid and lactates. The efficiency and economy of these processes are analyzed.