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CAS NUMBER: 143-22-6
MOLECULAR WEIGHT: 206.151809 g/mol
Butyl triglycol (also known as BTGE, butyl tri tetra, triethylene glycol butyl ether, butoxy triglycol and triglycol monobutyl ether) is a clear, colourless liquid with a mild odour and the formula C10H22O4 / CH3(CH2)3(OCH2CH2)3OH.
Butyl triglycol is part of a group of glycol ethers with low volatility and strong coupling properties.
Butyl triglycol is miscible in water and has surface tension properties, making it useful in household and industrial cleaners.
Butyl triglycol is a type of glycol ether, which is the result from the reaction of alcohols or phenol with ethylene oxide.
Ideal for use in leathers and hydraulic fluids.
Butyl triglycol results from the reaction of alcohols or phenol with ethylene oxide.
The reactions to obtain these compounds and their molecular structures are shown in the figure below, starting from methanol and ethanol.
Butyl triglycol is a clear, colorless oily liquid with a high boiling point, low volatility and slightly fruity odour.
As with other glycol ethers, it is bifunctional, containing an ether and an alcohol group in the same molecule.
Butyl triglycol is completely miscible with water and a wide variety of organic solvents.
This excellent miscibility makes it a versatile solvent and coupling agent offering excellent performance properties in a wide range of applications.
Butyl triglycol is a solvent prepared from ethylene oxide and ethylene glycol.
In various plastics to increase pliability; in air disinfection.
Butyl triglycols bifunctional nature also means exhibiting the reactions typical of an alcohol, ie. esterification, etherification, oxidation and formation of an ether with acetates and alcoholates, which forms peroxides in the presence of atmospheric oxygen.
Butyl triglycol is a low-volatility, high solvency glycol ether with excellent coupling Properties.
The versatility of Butoxytriglycol is demonstrated by the variety of applications in which Butyl triglycol may find use.
The low volatility and excellent solvency makes this Butyl triglycol a highly effective carrier solvent for textile dye processes.
With superior surface tension characteristics, water solubility and solvency for oils, Butyl triglycol has potential for use in household, institutional, industrial and special-purpose cleaners.
The coupling ability of this product enhances performance and improves shelf stability of cleaning products.
Butyl triglycol is used as a solvent for nitrocellulose, oils, gums, dyes, soaps, greas, paint removers, metal cleaners, and polymers.
Butyl triglycol is a coalescent for coatings.
Butyl triglycol is used in manufacturing plasticizers, cutting and hydraulic oils (particularly brake fluids), pesticide formulations, metal cleaning agents, stabilizers and wood preservation.
Butyl triglycol is produced by the reaction of ethylene oxide with normal butanol (n-butanol) in the presence of a catalyst.
Butyl triglycol is a flammable material. Keep the product and empty containers away from heat, sparks and flames.
Keep in accordance with good industry practices for safety and hygiene.
USES:
Butyl triglycol use is dominated by the paint industry, which consumes about 75% of all BG produced.
This is because it is a low volatility solvent and therefore prolongs the drying times of coatings and increases the flow.
Other applications are as a solvent in printing inks and textile dyes and as a component of hydraulic fluids.
Butyl triglycol is also a component of drilling and cutting oils and is a key component of Corexit 9527, an oil spill dispersant product.
Butyl triglycol is also a chemical intermediate and therefore a starting material in the production of butyl glycol acetate, which is itself an excellent solvent.
Butyl triglycol is also the starting material in the production of plasticizers by the reaction of phthalic anhydride.
Butyl triglycol is also something used regularly in most households, as it is an ingredient in many household cleaning products.
Butyl triglycol provides very good cleaning power for household cleaning products and also provides a characteristic odor associated with most of these products.
Butyl triglycol also plays the same role in some industrial and commercial surface cleaners.
Butyl triglycol is widely used as a solvent and coupling agent in water-based paints, coatings and inks; where it improves the flow of products and extends drying times.
Urea is an effective flow enhancer for melamine and phenolic oven coatings.
Butyl triglycol is preferred in many products due to its mild fragrance.
Butyl triglycol acts as a solvent and coupling agent in many waxes, resins, oils and textile dyes and is used in many industrial, commercial and household cleaning products that offer the good cleaning power and fragrance typically associated with such products.
Butyl triglycol is an important starting material for various syntheses, which is one of the raw materials for the production of butyl glycol acetate and for the production of plasticizers by reaction with phthalic anhydride.
Butyl triglycol is also formulated in insecticides, herbicides, pesticides and cosmetics, and is an ingredient in hydraulic fluids and cutting and drilling oils.
INDUSTRIAL USES:
Butyl triglycol is used as a solvent for nitrocellulose, oils, paint removers, gums, soaps, dyes, grease, industrial cleaners, polish strippers, disinfectants, chlorinated rubber, wood paints, inks and levelling agents.
Butyl triglycol is also used as a component in the base blend used in the manufacture of cutting and hydraulic oils, including hydraulic brake fluids, as a useful component in paint stripping formulations as it has low volatility, employed as a dye carrier in textile dyeing processes, as a coalescent for coatings, in the manufacture of plasticizers, as a dye carrier for textile dyes and as a solvent/intermediate for ester production.
- Fuels and fuel additives
- Functional fluids (closed systems)
- Functional fluids (open systems)
- Intermediates
- Lubricants and lubricant additives
- Oil and Gas Exploration
- Printing ink manufacture
- Processing aids, specific to petroleum production
- Solvents (which become part of product formulation or mixture)
- Surface active agents
COMMERCIAL USES:
Butyl triglycol is found in many commercial products including de-icers, automotive care products, paints, inks, coatings, oils, greases, disinfectants and lubricants.
- Anti-freeze and de-icing products
- Automotive care products
- Fuels and related products
- Ink, toner, and colorant products
- Lubricants and greases
- Oil and Gas Exploration
- Paints and coatings
USAGE AREAS:
- General adhesives and binding agents for a variety of uses
- Antifreezing agents, or de-icing products
- Relatived to the maintenance and repair of automobiles, products for cleaning and caring for automobiles (auto shampoo, polish/wax, undercarriage treatment, brake grease)
- Binding agents, used in paint, sand, etc
- Various types of paint for various uses
- Related to the building or construction process for buildings or boats (includes activities such as plumbing and electrical work, bricklaying, etc)
- Chemicals detected in substances or products (note that these chemicals may be absent from an 'ingredient list' for the product and thus unexpected
- Related to all forms of cleaning/washing, including cleaning products used in the home, laundry detergents, soaps, de-greasers, spot removers, etc
- Byproducts of disinfection processes
- Contaminants or byproducts in drinking water, such as drugs, pesticides, and radionuclides
- Fillers for paints, textiles, plastics, etc
- Includes antifoaming agents, coagulating agents, dispersion agents, emulsifiers, flotation agents, foaming agents, viscosity adjustors, etc
- General fuels, fuel additives, motor/automotive fuels
- Industrial fluids such as hydraulic fluids, lubricating agents, functional fluids, etc
- Generic lubricants, lubricants for engines, brake fluids
- Relatived to the maintenance and repair of automobiles, products for cleaning and caring for automobiles (auto shampoo, polish/wax, undercarriage treatment, brake grease)
- Wood used as a building material, wood preservatives
- Related to manufacturing for export
- Furniture, or the manufacturing of furniture (can include chairs and tables, and more general furniture such as mattresses, patio furniture, etc.)
- Manufacturing of or related to machinery, for production of cement or food, air/spacescraft machinery, electrical machinery, etc
- Related to metals - manufacturing of metals, casting of metals, production of metals, surface treatment of metals, etc
- Crude oil, crude petroleum, refined oil products, fuel oils, drilling oils
- Related to the manufcturing of pulp or paper products, or paper products in general
- Plastic products, industry for plastics, manufacturing of plastics, plastic additives
- Rubber products (e.g. tires) and their manufacture
- Textiles used for clothing or furniture upholstery, processes related to textiles (e.g. softeners, antiwrinkle agents), or the processing/manufacturing of textiles
- Cooling agents
- Volatile and semivolative organic compounds
- Modifier included when source indicates the product is water based
- Personal care products for general use on the body (body makeup, body powder, body treatments, body cleansers)
- Substances used for preventing, destroying or mitigating pests
- Pesticide for non agricultural use
- Substances used for preventing, destroying or mitigating pests
- Inert ingredients in a pesticide
- Related to photography, film, photographic equipment, photographic laboraties, photochemicals, and developing of photographs
- Related to the process of printing (newspapers, books media, etc), printing inks, toners, etc
- Inks used for printing or writing
- Accelerators, activators, oxidation agents, reducing agents, etc
- Related to fracking, natural gas, industrial gases
- Vulcanizing agents and rubberizing materials
- Paint removers, graffiti removers, or general solvents
- Transmission medium, a material that can propagate energy waves
- Plasticizer, intermediate
APPLICATION:
The main applications for butyl triglycol are reviewed below but the list is by no means complete.
Butyl triglycol can be used as:
– a low-volatility solvent component in various paint systems to improve gloss and levelling
– an ingredient for cutting oils
– an additive for metal degreasers and floor cleaners etc.
– a cosolvent for printing inks, stamp-pad inks, writing and drawing inks
– additive for brake fluids. (Note: butyl triglycol can cause seals to swell if added in large amounts)
– an intermediate in the manufacture of plasticizers.
APPLICATION:
- Active solvent for solvent-based coatings.
- Dye carrier for textile dye processes.
- Coupling agent and solvent in household and industrial cleaners, paint and floor polish strippers, hard surface cleaners, and disinfectants.
- Chemical process solvent and intermediate for ester production used as solvents, surfactants and plasticizers.
- Coupling agent for resins and dyes in water-based printing inks.
- Component of high-boiling hydraulic brake fluids.
- for solvent-based coatings.
- as coupling agent and solvent in household and industrial applications
- as solvents for surfactants and plasticizers
- as coupling agent for resins and dyes in water-based printing inks
- as component of drilling fluids, hydraulic fluids
APPLICATION:
Butyl triglycol, with the combination of ether, alcohol and hydrocarbon chain in one molecule, provide versatile solvency characteristics with both polar and non-polar properties.
The chemical structure of long hydrocarbon chain resist to solubility in water, while ether or alcohol groups introduce the promoted hydrophilic solubility performance.
This surfactant-like structure provides the compatibility between water and a number of organic solvents, and the ability to couple unlike phases.
Butyl triglycols are characterized by their wide range of hydrophilic/hydrophobic balances.
Butyl triglycols are used as diluents and levelling agents in the manufacture of paints and baking finishes.
Butyl triglycols series are used in the manufacture of nitrocellulose and combination lacquers. ,
Butyl triglycols are used as an additive in brake fluid.
Butyl triglycols are formulated for dying textiles and leathers and for insecticides and herbicides.
Butyl triglycols provides performance in cleaners products with oil-water dispersions.
Butyl triglycols are used in printing industries as they have a slow evaporation rate.
Butyl triglycols are used as a fixative for perfumes, germicides, bactericides, insect repellents and antiseptic.
Butyl triglycols are used as an additive for jet fuel to prevent ice buildup.
PYHSICAL AND CHEMICAL PROPERTIES:
Molecular Formula: C10H22O4 / CH3(CH2)3(OCH2CH2)3OH
Molecular Mass: 206.151809 g/mol
Flashpoint: 290 °F / 143 °C
Boiling Point: 532.4 °F / 278 °C
Melting Point: -22 °F/ -30.0 °C
Freezing Point: -31 °F/ -35 °C
Water Solubility: miscible
Density: 0.9890 g/cu cm at 20 °C
CHEMICAL PROPERTIES:
-Butyl triglycol is a clear, colorless, viscous, stable liquid with a slightly sweetish odor.
-Soluble in water; immiscible with benzene, toluene, and gasoline.
-Combustible.
Because Butyl triglycol has two ether and two hydroxyl groups its chemical properties are closety related to ethers and primary alcohols.
Butyl triglycol is a good solvent for gums, resins, nitrocellulose, steam-set printing inks and wood stains.
With a low vapor pressure and a high boiling point, its uses and properties are similar to those of ethylene glycol and diethylene glycol.
Because Butyl triglycol is an efficient hygroscopic agent Butyl triglycol serves as a liquid desiccant for removing water from natural gas.
Butyl triglycol is also used in air conditioning systems designed to dehumidify air.
PRODUCTION:
The primary method of manufacturing butyl tri glycol is via reacting ethylene oxide with ethyl alcohol.
This is done by vacuum distillation which separates and isolates the produced butyl triglycol from the reaction.
Other methods of production include reacting of alcohols with ethylene oxide.
Global consumption of butyl tri glycol ether is estimated at approximately 21,000 tonnes per year.
HAZARDS AND SAFETY:
Butyl triglycol has an NFPA health rating of 2, indicating that Butyl triglycol can cause incapacitation or residual injury under emergency conditions.
Short term exposure to the eyes and skin can cause irritation, dryness, and cracking.
An NFPA fire rating of demonstrates that Butyl triglycol will not ignite under ambient temperatures unless preheated.
An NFPA instability rating of 0 shows that butyl tri glycol is stable underneath most conditions, including fire.
Full personal protective equipment should be worn when handling this product to prohibit contact with the skin, eyes, and throat.
This includes gloves, masks, and Safety Goggles. In the case of a leak, respirators should be worn for protection against vapours.
The leak should be prevented from reaching sewers, waterways and basements and washed away with water.
STORAGE AND DISTRIBUTION:
Butyl triglycol can be stored and transported in stainless steel, mild steel, or carbon steel drums and/or tanks and must be kept in a well-ventilated area.
Butyl triglycol is not classified as dangerous for any form of transport but is classed as an Irritant.
Butyl triglycol has a flashpoint of 156 °C (closed cup) and a specific gravity of 0.985.
SYNOYNMS
Triethylene glycol monobutyl ether technical, ~70% (GC)
Triethylene glycol monobutyl ethe
TRIETHYLENE GLYCOL MONO-N-BUTYL ETHER
TRIETHYLENE GLYCOL MONOBUTYL ETHER
dowanoltbat
Poly-solv tb
poly-solvtb
triethylene glycol butyl ester
Triethylene glycol butyl ether
Triethylene glycol n-butyl ether
triethyleneglycolbutylether
triethyleneglycolmonobutylether(tgbe)
triethyleneglycoln-butylether
Triglycol monobutyl ether
triglycolmonobutylether
2-(2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethoxy)-ethano
2-[2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethoxy]-ethano
3,6,9-Trioxa-1-tridecanol
3,6,9-Trioxatridecan-1-ol
Butoxytriethylene glycol
IUPAC NAME:
2-(2-(2-Butoxyethoxy)ethoxy)ethanol
2-(2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethoxy)ethanol
2-(2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethoxy)ethanol
2-[2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethoxy]ethan-1-ol
2-[2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethoxy]ethano
2-[2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethoxy]ethanol
2-{2-(2-butoxyethoxy)ethoxy}ethanol
3,6,9-Trioxatridecan-1-ol
butoxyButyl triglycol
butoxyButyl triglycol
butyltriglycol ether
