1,1-Dichloroethane is a
chlorinated hydrocarbon
An organochloride, organochlorine compound, chlorocarbon, or chlorinated hydrocarbon is an organic compound containing at least one covalently bonded atom of chlorine. The chloroalkane class (alkanes with one or more hydrogens substituted by chlo ...
. It is a colorless
oily
An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...
liquid with a
chloroform
Chloroform, or trichloromethane, is an organic compound with chemical formula, formula Carbon, CHydrogen, HChlorine, Cl3 and a common organic solvent. It is a colorless, strong-smelling, dense liquid produced on a large scale as a precursor to ...
-like odor. It is not easily soluble in water, but miscible with most organic solvents.
Large volumes of 1,1-dichloroethane are manufactured, with annual production exceeding 1 million pounds in the United States. It is mainly used as a feedstock in chemical synthesis, chiefly of
1,1,1-trichloroethane. It is also used as a
solvent
A solvent (s) (from the Latin '' solvō'', "loosen, untie, solve") is a substance that dissolves a solute, resulting in a solution. A solvent is usually a liquid but can also be a solid, a gas, or a supercritical fluid. Water is a solvent for ...
for
plastic
Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semi-synthetic materials that use polymers as a main ingredient. Their plasticity makes it possible for plastics to be moulded, extruded or pressed into solid objects of various shapes. This adaptab ...
s,
oil
An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...
s and
fat
In nutrition science, nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such chemical compound, compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food.
The term often refers spec ...
s, as a
degreaser
Parts cleaning is essential to many industrial processes, as a prelude to surface finishing or to protect sensitive components. Electroplating is particularly a sensitive to part cleanliness, since molecular layers of oil can prevent the adhesi ...
, as a
fumigant
Fumigation is a method of pest control or the removal of harmful micro-organisms by completely filling an area with gaseous pesticides—or fumigants—to suffocate or poison the pests within. It is used to control pests in buildings ( ...
in
insecticide
Insecticides are substances used to kill insects. They include ovicides and larvicides used against insect eggs and larvae, respectively. Insecticides are used in agriculture, medicine, industry and by consumers. Insecticides are claimed to b ...
sprays, in
halon fire extinguisher
A fire extinguisher is a handheld active fire protection device usually filled with a dry or wet chemical used to extinguish or control small fires, often in emergencies. It is not intended for use on an out-of-control fire, such as one which ha ...
s, and in cementing of
rubber
Rubber, also called India rubber, latex, Amazonian rubber, ''caucho'', or ''caoutchouc'', as initially produced, consists of polymers of the organic compound isoprene, with minor impurities of other organic compounds. Thailand, Malaysia, and ...
. It is used in manufacturing of high-
vacuum
A vacuum is a space devoid of matter. The word is derived from the Latin adjective ''vacuus'' for "vacant" or "void". An approximation to such vacuum is a region with a gaseous pressure much less than atmospheric pressure. Physicists often dis ...
resistant rubber and for
extraction of temperature-sensitive substances. Thermal
cracking at 400–500 °C and 10 MPa yields
vinyl chloride
Vinyl chloride is an organochloride with the formula H2C=CHCl. It is also called vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) or chloroethene. This colorless compound is an important industrial chemical chiefly used to produce the polymer polyvinyl chloride (PVC ...
. In the past, 1,1-dichloroethane was used as a surgical
inhalational anesthetic
An inhalational anesthetic is a chemical compound possessing general anesthetic properties that can be delivered via inhalation. They are administered through a face mask, laryngeal mask airway or tracheal tube connected to an anaesthetic vapori ...
.
Safety
1,1-dichloroethane has been on the
California Proposition 65 list of known carcinogens since 1990.
In the atmosphere, 1,1-dichloroethane decomposes with half-life of 62 days, chiefly by reaction of
photolytically produced
hydroxyl
In chemistry, a hydroxy or hydroxyl group is a functional group with the chemical formula and composed of one oxygen atom covalently bonded to one hydrogen atom. In organic chemistry, alcohols and carboxylic acids contain one or more hydroxy ...
radicals.
See also
*
Dichloroethene Dichloroethene or dichloroethylene, often abbreviated as DCE, can refer to any one of several isomeric forms of the organochloride with the molecular formula C2H2Cl2:
There are three isomers:
*1,1-Dichloroethene
*1,2-Dichloroethene (''E'' and ''Z'' ...
*
Dichloroethane Dichloroethane can refer to either of two isomeric organochlorides with the molecular formula C2H4Cl2:
* 1,1-Dichloroethane (ethylidene chloride)
* 1,2-Dichloroethane (ethylene dichloride)
See also
*Dichloroethene
*Difluoroethane Difluoroethane m ...
References
External links
Dichloroethane and Dichloroetheneon members.optushome.com.au
ATSDR - Toxic Substances Portal
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dichloroethane, 1, 1-
Chloroalkanes
Organochloride insecticides
Halogenated solvents
Fire suppression agents