Kinetics of liquid‐phase oxidation of anthracene to anthraquinone with nitrogen dioxide in acetic acid as solvent has been studied. The reaction takes place through the anthrone as intermediate compound. The first and second reactions are first order with respect to anthracene and anthrone concentration, respectively. The values of the rate constants in the temperature range 60–95°C have been reported.
According to the reaction system developed, an industrial process for the manufacture of anthraquinone of high purity has been proposed.