Isobutanol applications

The key industrial applications and markets for normal and isobutanol and 2-ethylhexanol are discussed. As will be noted, the C4 oxo alcohols find use primarily within the coatings industry, either as solvents, per se, or as intermediates to manufacture solvents or protective coatings chemicals. Applications for 2-ethylhexanol, while numerous and varied, are basically oriented toward the manufacture of plasticizers for polyvinyl chloride. Total U.S. consumption of these alcohols in 1979 was approximately 1.3 billion pounds -730 million pounds of n-butanol, 190 million pounds of isobutanol, and 380 million pounds of 2-ethylhexanol. The consumption pattern is summarized in Table II and described in the following sections ... 

Diisobutylamine production (isobutanol and ammonia) for use in the manufacture of herbicides is the largest single chemical intermediate market for isobutanol. It represented approximately 32 percent of U.S. demand for the alcohol in 1979 This application is growing at a rate of roughly 3 percent per year. 

Isobutanol use in the manufacture of zinc dialkyl dithiophosphates (ZDDP), anti-wear lube oil additives, represented 13 percent of domestic consumption. Other alcohols used in this application include methylamyl alcohol, primary amyl,alcohol, n-butanol, 2-ethylhexanol and isooctanol. 

Of the lower alcohols, only normal butanol, and to a far lesser extent isobutanol, are used in this application. Total volume of these lower alcohols used is small by comparison. 

The structural features of the solid carbon deposit were established from examinations carried out in a JEOL 2000EXII transmission electron microscope. This instrument has a lattice fringe resolution of 0.14 nm. Suitable transmission specimens were prepared by ultrasonic dispersion of a small quantity of the carbonaceous deposit in isobutanol and then application of a drop of the supemate to a holey carbon film. Inspection of many areas of such specimens revealed that in dl cases the major type of material generated in these reactions consisted of filamentous carbon structures. 

ASTM D 5815 Standard Test Method for Determination of Phenolic Antioxidants and Erucamide Slip Additives in Linear Low-Density Polyethylene Using Liquid Chromatography This ASTM is very similar to ASTM D 1996, except that LLDPE samples are analyzed, and extraction is performed with either isobutanol or isopropanol prior to liquid-chromatographic separation. Isopropanol is recommended as the extraction solvent for lower crystallinity LLDPE (density 0.925 g/ cm and below), and isobutanol is recommended as the extraction solvent for higher crystallinity LLDPE. As the standard notes, besides Irganox 1010, Irganox 1076, and Isonox 129, the test method should be applicable for the determination of other antioxidants such as Ultranox 626, Ethanox 330, Santanox R, and Topanol CA, but the applicability of this test method has not been investigated for these antioxidants. Precision of the procedure is somewhat poorer compared to that of ASTM D 1996 ... 

Poly(sulfophenyl)siloxane (2.0 meq g ), poly(sulfobenzyl)siloxane, poly(sul-fophenylethyl)siloxane, and poly(sulfopropyl)siloxane (0.8 meq g ) were prepared by Ono et al [25]. Documented applications of these sulfonated polyorgano-siloxanes include the dehydration of alcohols, the esterification of isobutanol with acetic acid and the vapor-phase nitration of benzene. 

The isolation of the prepolymer from the reaction mixture usually involves its precipitation with an alcohol or some other nonsolvent. Two Japanese patents are based on this well-known phenomenon. In one, 100 gm of a prepolymer solution containing 25% of the prepolymer is treated at 40°C with 200 gm of ethanol in an extractor operating at 200 rpm for 5 min. After a second extraction at 65°C for 5 min with 240 gm of ethanol, 25 gm of the white prepolymer is isolated. Propanol, isobutanol, and isopropanol may also be used. The process is also applicable to poly(diallyl isophthalate) [94]. For poly(diallyl terephthalate) the use of methanol at 40°C followed by a second extraction with methanol at 65°C is patented [95]. 

Methods designed to determine 1,4-dioxane involve using GC, GC-MS and LC and several examples are summarized below. GC-FID using isobutanol as internal standard for application in shampoos without pretreatment was proposed by Italia and Nunes (1991). The lowest content of 1,4-dioxane was detected in one shampoo containing no ethoxylated ingredients for those that contained ethoxylated compounds, 1,4-dioxane was in the range of 6-144 /tg/ml. Also, using GC-FID, Black et al (2001) determined residual 1,4-dioxane in raw materials (ethoxylated alkyl sulfates) and in cosmetic products. Two pre-treatment methods, azeotropic distillation and solid-phase extraction (SPE) were compared. The values reported between 1979 and 1997 in raw materials (commonly ammonium and sodium... 

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