BUTYL GLYCOL

  • Cas No: 111-76-2
  • EINESC No: 203-905-0
  • Molecular weight: 118.176 g/mol

Tin

-

Barrel

190 Kg

IBC

900 Kg

Pouring

5-25 Ton

Physical characteristics

  • General Properties:  Clear, Colorless liquid
  • Odor: Ether-like
  • Density: 0.90 g/cm3
  • Boiling Point: 125.8 °C
  • Melting Point: -77 °C
  • Flash Point: 67 °C
  • Vapor Pressure: 0.8 mmHg
  • Refractive Index: 1.4196 nD
  • Solubility (in water): Completely miscible.

production

Butyl glycol is generally obtained by two different processes. One of them is the reaction of butanol and ethylene oxide in the presence of a catalyst. This is called ethoxylation reaction. The other method is the etherification of 2-chloroethanol.

General features

Butyl glycol; It is a colorless, liquid organic chemical with a high boiling point. It is miscible in many proportions, both with water and with a wide variety of organic molecules. It is produced from glycol ethers and therefore it is a butyl ether of ethylene glycol with a smell similar to ether. Since it is a relatively non-volatile, low-cost solvent, it has a widespread industrial use. It is also a good surfactant. Because of all these features, butyl glycol is one of the most produced chemicals and the annual production is estimated to be between 200 and 500 kilotons.

Usage areas

Butyl glycol is a glycol ether with surfactant properties and is soluble in both water and organic substances. Therefore, it is a very good solvent for paints, surface coatings, cleaning products and inks. It is used in very high amounts, especially in paints, due to its non-volatility. Widely used in resins, asphalt release agents, degreasers, lacquers, varnishes. It is one of the main components of many household and industrial cleaning agents. It also has a wide range of uses in the petroleum industry. It is an important component of the oil spill dispersant product Corexit 9527.

Safety Precautions and Toxicity

Butyl glycol has a low acute toxicity value. (25 g/kg LD50). However, as a result of studies conducted in animals, it has been shown that it can cause tumors in the adrenal glands at high concentrations. But these studies have been done in rodents and may not be carcinogenic in humans. Again, studies on animals have shown that it adversely affects many biological systems, including the nervous system. It is metabolized by the alcohol dehydrogenase enzyme in mammals.

For Butyl glycol, which is listed as a dangerous substance in California, an average exposure limit of 8 hours has been determined at 25 ppm in the air. At the same time, it has been decided to use it under a certain concentration in some products in Canada.