The stable conformation of this molecule has the carboxylic acid groups rotated out of the plane of the central benzene ring.

The molecule adopts a propeller-like conformation in which the tilt of each carboxylic acid group relative to the central benzene ring varies due to intramolecular hydrogen bonding.

The precipitated alumina is filtered off, the filtrate evaporated, and the ammonium salt of the acid purified by recrystallization.

The high stability of mellitic acid salts and their presence as an endproduct of the oxidation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, which are present in the solar system, make them a possible organic substance in Martian soil.

[7] Mellitates (and salts of other benzene polycarboxylic acids) of iron and cobalt have interesting magnetic properties.