Solvents – simply essential

Solvents’ Essential Uses Contributing to the Benefits of the Green Deal

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Solvents in electric vehicle battery recycling
Transport
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Transport
Solvents in electric vehicle battery recycling
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Solvent extraction is a highly effective approach for recovering metals from EV batteries, help enabling 90+% metal recovering rates with 95+% purity . Solvents blends with hydrocarbon solvents extract valuable elements commonly used as cathodes in lithium-ion batteries. In many lithium-ion battery recycling process flowsheets, spent batteries are dismantled, and the parts containing the electrodes, such as battery cells, get crushed or shredded to produce a powdery fraction referred to as “black mass.” This black mass comprises electrode coatings (metal oxides and carbon) and, therefore, contains value elements such as graphite, manganese, cobalt, nickel and lithium. The black mass requires further processing to isolate those elements. This is conventionally done through hydrometallurgy, where metals from the black mass are dissolved and then chemically separated by solvent extraction.

Industrial & Professional Use
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Longer lasting products that can be repaired, recycled and re-used

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Aliphatic hydrocarbon solvents

 

 

 

 

 

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Solvents as jet fuel anti-icing additives
Transport
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Transport
Solvents as jet fuel anti-icing additives
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Glycol ethers are used as additives to jet fuel to prevent ice build-up. Anti-icing additives are added to aviation fuels to help to prevent the formation of ice crystals in filters, fuel lines and other fuel system components. Jet fuel can contain a small amounts of dissolved water. As an aircraft gains altitude, the temperature drops and the jet fuel’s capacity to hold water is diminished. Dissolved water can separate out and could become a serious problem if it freezes in fuel lines or filters, blocking the flow of fuel and potentially shutting down an engine. Jet fuel anti-icing additives such as DEGME control icing in aircraft fuel by depressing the freezing point of water and therefore preventing ice formation.

Professional Use
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Glycol ethers such as DEGME (CAS 111-77-3 – EC 203-906-6)

 

 

 

 

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Solvents in building insulation
Construction
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Construction
Solvents in building insulation
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Solvents are important for insulation in historical and existing buildings. As blowing agent they are used for foaming in polyurethane (PU) rigid foam panels. The blowing agent remains as cell gas in the insulation material and thus develops a particularly high insulating effect.

Industrial end use – controlled conditions
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Renovated, energy efficient buildings

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Cyclopentane (CAS 287-92-3 – EC 206-016-6)

Methylal (CAS 109-87-5 – EC 203-714-2)

 

 

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Solvents in seed oil extraction
Food
Health
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Food
Health
Solvents in seed oil extraction
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Seed oil extraction processes help to efficiently recover oil from seeds: up to 20% of oil is still left after the mechanical process (pressing) and this residual oil is recovered through a solvent extraction process.

When it comes to oil extraction, the solvents used are ultra-pure and suitable for food contact.

Food-grade hexane is used all over the world to extract oil from seeds due to its optimum solvency power. Hexane is a light solvent that is easily removed from the edible oil and is also recycled during the process in a closed loop. The process is efficient, clean and allows the production of high-quality vegetable oil. Vegetable oil is an essential component in a healthy diet, therefore demand for seed oil is growing globally with the increasing of population and living standards.

Industrial end use – controlled conditions
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Healthy & affordable food

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Food grade hexane such as:

Hydrocarbons, C6, n-alkanes, isoalkanes, cyclics, n-hexane rich (EC 925-292-5)

 

 

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Solvents in production of flexible packaging
Food
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Food
Solvents in production of flexible packaging
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Flexible packaging, as the most resource-efficient form of packaging, requires functional components such as printing inks, varnishes or adhesives to fulfil its purpose (protection of the packaged goods, labelling of the goods, etc.). Ethyl acetate is needed as a process solvent in these finishing steps (printing, lacquering or laminating) to apply the required amount of raw materials to the substrate. The solvent used in these processes is either regenerated or thermally treated.

Industrial end use – controlled conditions
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Reducing the environmental impact of the product throughout its entire life cycle; globally competitive and resilient industry

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Ethyl acetate (CAS 141-78-6 – EC 205-500-4)

 

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Solvents in production of active pharmaceutical ingredients
Health
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Health
Solvents in production of active pharmaceutical ingredients
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Those solvents are used as process solvents in the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) which are then used in X-ray contrast media to detect cancer and leukemia. 100’000s of patients use those products daily to receive a diagnosis. The solvents are used in contained processes (as a solvent to obtain the target molecule in the final synthetic step and for purification in subsequent process steps) and are subject to strict process controls.

Industrial end use – controlled conditions
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Globally competitive and resilient industry

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Glycol ethers such as:

Diglyme (CAS 111-96-6 – EC 203-924-4)
2-Methoxyethanol or EGME (CAS 109-86-4 – EC 203-713-7)

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Solvents in marine coating solutions
Transport
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Transport
Solvents in marine coating solutions
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Marine coatings are a type of protective coating used in the marine environment to protect ships, vessels, tankers, but also other materials such as ship propellers, buoys, or structures on offshore wind park foundations or oil rigs from pitting and bacterial corrosion in water. Long-term resistant coating systems with no need for future refurbishment – combined with flawless application operation activities – are essential, as offshore repair is difficult. As ships and structures that are exposed above or below water, various corrosion protection systems are applied to improve safety, maintain appearance and reduce maintenance costs. Coatings with a blend of solvents are used to achieve optimum solvency and regulate the drying time which needs to be quick.

Industrial & professional use - wide dispersive use
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Globally competitive and resilient industry

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Aliphatic &
Aromatic hydrocarbon solvents

 

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Solvents in disinfectants
Health
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Health
Solvents in disinfectants
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Isopropyl alcohol (IPA) is a potent antimicrobial, killing micro-organisms by inhibiting their growth and stopping their spread. It kills 99.99% of germs within 10-30 seconds of its application, making it one of the best sterilization tools. Its different solutions, purity grades, concentration, and alcohol types produce disinfecting products that rapidly destroy pathogens and harmful microbes, making IPA one of the most effective disinfectants. Rubbing alcohol, hand sanitizer, and disinfecting pads typically contain a 60–70% solution of isopropyl alcohol (or ethanol) in water. Water is required to open up membrane pores of bacteria, which acts as a gateway for isopropyl alcohol.

Professional use - wide dispersive use
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Alcohols such as:

Isopropyl alcohol (IPA) (CAS 67-63-0 – EC 200-661-7)

 

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Solvents in cleaning products
Household
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Household
Solvents in cleaning products
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Solvent-based cleaners primarily clean by using their solvency power to penetrate and dissolve the soil. Glycol ethers improve the wetting of the surface to be cleaned, and penetrate both water-soluble and oil-soluble soils. Glycol ethers and alcohols are widely used in water-based formulations due to their high degree of water compatibility. Many different cleaning products exist nowadays focusing in which area or type of product to be cleaned such as glass cleaners, carpet cleaners, floor cleaners and oven cleaners.

Industrial, professional (& consumer) use - wide dispersive use
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Alcohols such as:

Isopropyl alcohol (IPA) (CAS 67-63-0 – EC 200-661-7)

Propylene glycol ethers such as:

Dipropylene Glycol (Mono) Methyl Ether (CAS 29911-28-2 – EC 249-951-5)

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Solvents in plant protection products
Agriculture
Food
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Agriculture
Food
Solvents in plant protection products
Why is the role of solvents essential?

Solvents help formulating the most efficient agrochemical formulations by for instance optimize the dosing of the active ingredient. They dissolve the active ingredients. As adjuvants they help reduce the amount of plant protection product required by enabling it to spread uniformly and dry slowly, leading to higher absorbency. Hydrocarbon solvents are used in oil containing sprays to coat the leaves of the crops and protect them against insects.

Industrial, professional use - wide dispersive use
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Healthy & affordable food

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Hydrocarbon solvents such as:

C7-9 Aliphatics or
C9-14 Aliphatics (<=2% aromatic)

 

 

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