The synthesis of the Acrylonitrile monomer was first reported by the French chemist François Charles Léon Moureu (1863–1929) in 1893. Charles Moureu was a pioneer in the research of acrylic acid and its derivatives. He published the first description of the synthesis of acrylonitrile in the article "Nitrile acrylique, cyanure de vinyle (propène-nitrile)" in Bulletin de la Société Chimique de France. 3 (9): 424–427



Charles Moureu obtained acrylonitrile from dehydration of acrylamide with phosphorus pentoxide, following Dumas’ method.




Since its discovery, acrylonitrile only started to have importance from 1930 on, when its polymer, polyacrylonitrile, started to be studied for the production of synthetic fibers and rubber.

It is not found naturally in nature, but it was detected in the atmosphere of Titan, a moon of Saturn, as there are conditions for its formation there.

Currently, the acrylonitrile monomer is obtained mainly by catalytic ammoxidation of propylene (obtained from cracking oil) by the process that was developed by Standard Oil of Ohio and for this reason it was named SOHIO.

Approximately 3% of the worldwide production of acrylonitrile is obtained by another process that uses propane ammoxidation.

Its worldwide production is approximately 6 million tons per year, and in addition to being used in the manufacture of acrylic fibers that responds to almost 33% of consumption, it is used in the production of ABS plastic (acrylonitrile-butanediene-styrene) widely used in equipment electronics. It is also used in the production of Polyacrylamide, used as a flocculation agent in water treatment.

Adiponitrile, an intermediate in the manufacture of Nylon 6.6, is produced from acrylonitrile.
Rubbers resistant to organic solvents such as gasoline, lubricating oils and that withstand heat, known as Nitrile Rubbers, use acrylonitrile in their manufacture.





The main producers in the world in 2020 are:





In Brazil, Acrylonitrile is produced by the company Unigel, which is located in the Petrochemical Complex of Camaçari in Bahia and also has a production plant in Mexico.