Ethylene
- Benchmark: Benchmark 2
- Assessed: 2021-11-11
- Expires: 2026-11-11
Used primarily in Food Contact & Additives, Pharmaceuticals, Plasticizers & Polymer, and Solvents & Cleaning applications, Ethylene is specifically used in anesthetic, food industry, polymer industry, refrigerant, and solvent.
Ethylene is an alpha olefin that has a variety of uses, including use as a refrigerant, anesthetic, solvent, initiating gas to promote ripening of fruits (such as bananas, citrus fruits, honeydew melons, and pears), and "building block" for the manufacture of other chemicals, such as polyethylene, ethylene oxide, ethylene dichloride, ethylbenzene, ethanol, and acetaldehyde (HSDB 2018). It is produced via pyrolysis/steam cracking of petroleum hydrocarbons or dehydration of ethanol.
Chemical Synonyms Acetene; Bicarburretted hydrogen; EC 200-815-3; Ethene; Olefiant gas; UN1038; UN1962; 74-85-1; 9002-88-4; 1,2-ethylene; ethan-1,2-diyl; MFCD00084423; UN 1038; UN 1962; Plastipore; Ethyleneradical; Methylidenecarbene; 68037-39-8 (ChemIDplus 2021, PubChem 2021).
Key Functions: Food Contact & Additives, Pharmaceuticals, Plasticizers & Polymer, Solvents & Cleaning