Acetone
- Benchmark: Benchmark 2
- Assessed: 2012-06-29
Key Functions: Industrial / Manufacturing, Solvents & Cleaning
Acetone is a clear colorless liquid. It is highly flammable and very soluble with water. Acetone is used as a solvent for fats, oils, waxes, resins, rubber, plastics, lacquers, varnishes, and rubber cements and is a major component of nail polish remover. Acetone is used as a chemical intermediate in the synthesis of a wide range of substances, including chloroform, ketene, acetic acid, iodoform, mesityl oxide, tribromomethane, explosives, diacetone alcohol, rayon, methyl methacrylate, bisphenol A, methyl isobutyl ketone, etc. (NTP 1991). Large-scale commercial production of acetone is generally accomplished by one of two processes. The most common process employs the acid catalyzed hydrolytic cleavage of cumene hydroperoxide. Acetone and phenol are co-products in this reaction. Catalytic dehydrogenation of isopropyl alcohol accounted for about 6% of US acetone production in 1995. Other production methods include fermentation, propylene oxidation, and diisopropyl-benzene oxidation, but these account for only a small percentage of production (UNEP 1999).
Chemical Synonyms : 2-propanone, methyl ketone, beta-ketopropane, propan-2-one, pyroacetic acid.