Alcohols

Classes and Uses

Ethyl alcohol
One of the most important industrial chemicals is
ethyl alcohol. It is also known as ethanol, grain
alcohol, pure alcohol, and drinking alcohol.
Ethyl alcohol a colorless liquid that is soluble in
water. It also has a very slight odor and is a bit
sweet when diluted.
• There are many different ways to use ethyl alcohol.
The medical field, alcohol beverage manufacturers,
and oil extractors all use ethyl alcohol in various
forms.
• In the medical field, they use it for a disinfectant or
sanitizer. Medical wipes and antibacterial hand
sanitizer contain alcohol to prevent the spreading of
harmful bacteria in hospitals and medical center.
• Ethyl alcohol is also used to clean the skin before
injection or taking blood. Medical centers use this
alcohol for the sterilization of the medical equipment
before and after use.
• Ethyl alcohol is known as a drinking alcohol;
therefore, the production of alcoholic beverages
uses this alcohol. It is used at a particular
percentage to manufacture such alcohol. Though
people cannot drink it in it initial concentration
so, it gets diluted to some degree for the
industrial production.
• Tinctures, essential oils, extracts, and
concentrations all use ethyl alcohol.
The uses of Isopropyl Alcohol
• A solvent is a liquid, solid, or gas that dissolves
another solid, liquid, or gaseous solute. The
largest use for isopropyl alcohol is as a solvent,
and usually as a cleaner. It can be used as an
industrial cleaner for machinery and parts.
Isopropyl alcohol is also found in many everyday
products such as paint thinners, inks, general-
purpose cleaners, disinfectants and windshield
thawing agents.
• 99% isopropyl alcohol is used to clean surfaces
and also to prevent infection from minor
surface wounds like scrapes and cuts. It is
frequently used at tattoo shops to clean
bacteria off of the skin before a tattoo or
piercing. However, it should never be used to
clean a deep open wound or to clean the
opening around a piercing after the piercing
has been made.
Methyl alcohol

Methanol is a type of alcohol made primarily from

natural gas. It’s a base material in acetic acid and
formaldehyde, and in recent years it is also
increasingly being used in ethylene and propylene.
Mixing methanol with substances like these
enables it to be used as an intermediate material
to make literally thousands of methanol and
methanol derivative products used in practically
every aspect of our lives.
Methanol and its derivative products such as
ascetic acid and formaldehyde created via chemical
reactions are used as base materials in acrylic
plastic; synthetic fabrics and fibers used to make
clothing; adhesives, paint, and plywood used in
construction; and as a chemical agent in
pharmaceuticals and agrichemicals. Its endless
myriad applications have made methanol
ubiquitous in our lives and throughout society.
The Uses of Methanol
The Uses of Methanol
• Unlike standard hydrogen fuel cells that use
hydrogen gas as a fuel source, DMFC uses a
unique metamix of concentrated 54% liquefied
methanol. The concentrated fuel enables
consistent power production as long as the fuel
lasts, making it more stable than hydrogen as
well as lighter in weight and more compact,
making it easier to store and transport.
Drinkable ethanol,
undrinkable methanol
• Ethanol (ethyl alcohol) and methanol (methyl
alcohol) are quite similar but very different. Both
are alcohols, but ethanol is created from
fermented starch and sugar such as found in
grains while methanol is created from natural
gas, coal, and biomass. Their molecular
structures differ by just a few molecules, but that
slight variation gives them vastly different
properties. The most important difference is that
ethanol is drinkable form of alcohol, while
methanol is highly toxic when consumed.
• The difference between ethanol and methanol
The difference between ethanol
and methanol
What are Common Uses of Acetone
and Formalin?

• Acetone is an organic compound that

has the chemical formula (CH3)2CO.
Acetone was first discovered by
Chaim Weizmann who was a British
citizen.
• Acetone is a colorless, volatile, flammable
liquid. It is the simplest and smallest form
of Ketone (Alkanone). Acetone was an
invaluable tool in in WWI due to its highly
flammable properties. It was a better
propellent for British artillery shells than
gunpowder.
Uses
• Nail polish remover
• Lab solvent
• Acetone is a very important solvent in
a chemical lab. It is commonly used to
rinse glass of residue. It is also used to
rinse water from equipment which
enables a faster drying process.
• Paint thinner
• Acetone is used for thinning oil-based paints and
resin. It is also used to clean up after the paints
have been used.
• Fuel additive
• Acetone is also used by people as an additive to
the gasoline in their car. The dissolving power of
acetone helps in cleaning off engine build up and
making the vehicle runs smoother.
• Usage in textile industry
• Acetone is widely used in the textile industry. It is used for
decreasing wool and degumming silk.
• Acne treatment
• Acetone can also be used for acne treatment when mixed with
alcohol.
• Removing oil stains from concrete
• Food additives
• Detergent
• Cleaning products
• Rubber cement
• Solvent for plastic
• Solvent for synthetic fibers
What is formalin?
• Formalin (HCHO) is a 37% aqueous solution of
Formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is a naturally
occurring organic compound that has the
chemical formula CH2O(H-CHO). Formaldehyde is
simplest form of aldehydes and is used in large
amount in a variety of chemical manufacturing
processes. Formalin is usually made by the
vapour-phase oxidation of methanol.
Uses of formalin in everyday life

• Although formalin is mainly used as a

preservative, there are also other uses of
formalin in our daily lives.
• Preservation of biological specimens
• Embalming (treating human remains to delay their
decomposition)
• Disinfectant for hospital appliances
• Preservation of living organism’s cell
• In a large scale, formalin is used as precursor in
making an important industrial scale chemical
compound
• Industry-scaled antibacterial
• Fly repellent
• In photography, formalin is used to harden gelatin layer and
paper
• Ingredients of urea fertilizer
• Cosmetics preservatives
• Corrosion prevention for oil well
• Plywood glue
• In fishery industry, it is used to remove bacteria which usually
live inside a fish scale
• As an effective medication for fish which is caused by
ectoparasite (like fluke)
Health risk of formalin
• Although formalin is widely used as corpse
preservative and nonfood industrial-scaled
preservatives, it is not advisable to use formalin
as a food preservative as it can bring harm to the
human body. But, there’s still some irresponsible
people who used formalin as food preservatives.
So, we have to know the side effects of
consuming formalin to the human body.
• Some short-term effects of consuming formalin
include:
• Loss of consciousness
• Anuria
• Vomiting
• Larynx edema
• Ulceration in the mucosa
• Gastrointestinal diarrhea
• Kidney failure