Names | |||
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Preferred IUPAC name Prop-2-enal | |||
Other names | |||
Identifiers | |||
3D model (JSmol) | |||
ChEBI | |||
ChEMBL | |||
ChemSpider | |||
ECHA InfoCard | 100.003.141 | ||
EC Number |
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KEGG | |||
PubChem CID | |||
RTECS number |
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UNII | |||
UN number | 1092 | ||
CompTox Dashboard (EPA) | |||
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Properties | |||
C3H4O | |||
Molar mass | 56.064 g·mol−1 | ||
Appearance | Colorless to yellow liquid. Colorless gas in smoke. | ||
Odor | Acrid, Foul, Irritating | ||
Density | 0.839 g/mL | ||
Melting point | −88 °C (−126 °F; 185 K) | ||
Boiling point | 53 °C (127 °F; 326 K) | ||
Appreciable (> 10%) | |||
Vapor pressure | 210 mmHg [1] | ||
Hazards [2] | |||
Occupational safety and health (OHS/OSH): | |||
Main hazards | Highly poisonous. Causes severe irritation to exposed membranes. Extremely flammable liquid and vapor. | ||
GHS labelling: | |||
Danger | |||
H225, H300, H311, H314, H330, H410 | |||
P210, P233, P240, P241, P242, P243, P260, P264, P270, P271, P273, P280, P284, P301+P310, P301+P330+P331, P302+P352, P303+P361+P353, P304+P340, P305+P351+P338, P310, P312, P320, P321, P322, P330, P361, P363, P370+P378, P391, P403+P233, P403+P235, P405, P501 | |||
NFPA 704 (fire diamond) | |||
Flash point | −26 °C (−15 °F; 247 K) | ||
278 °C (532 °F; 551 K) | |||
Explosive limits | 2.8-31% [1] | ||
Lethal dose or concentration (LD, LC): | |||
LC50 (median concentration) | 875 ppm (mouse, 1 min) 175 ppm (mouse, 10 min) 150 ppm (dog, 30 min) 8 ppm (rat, 4 hr) 375 ppm (rat, 10 min) 25.4 ppm (hamster, 4 hr) 131 ppm (rat, 30 min) [3] | ||
LCLo (lowest published) | 674 ppm (cat, 2 hr) [3] | ||
NIOSH (US health exposure limits): | |||
PEL (Permissible) | TWA 0.1 ppm (0.25 mg/m3) [1] | ||
REL (Recommended) | TWA 0.1 ppm (0.25 mg/m3) ST 0.3 ppm (0.8 mg/m3) [1] | ||
IDLH (Immediate danger) | 2 ppm [1] | ||
Safety data sheet (SDS) | Sigma-Aldrich SDS | ||
Related compounds | |||
Related alkenals | Crotonaldehyde | ||
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa). |
Acrolein (systematic name: propenal) is the simplest unsaturated aldehyde. It is a colorless liquid with a foul and acrid aroma. The smell of burnt fat (as when cooking oil is heated to its smoke point) is caused by glycerol in the burning fat breaking down into acrolein. It is produced industrially from propene and mainly used as a biocide and a building block to other chemical compounds, such as the amino acid methionine.
Acrolein was first named and characterized as an aldehyde by the Swedish chemist Jöns Jacob Berzelius in 1839. He had been working with it as a thermal degradation product of glycerol, a material used in the manufacture of soap. The name is a contraction of 'acrid' (referring to its pungent smell) and 'oleum' (referring to its oil-like consistency). In the 20th century, acrolein became an important intermediate for the industrial production of acrylic acid and acrylic plastics. [4]
Acrolein is prepared industrially by oxidation of propene. The process uses air as the source of oxygen and requires metal oxides as heterogeneous catalysts: [5]
About 500,000 tons of acrolein are produced in this way annually in North America, Europe, and Japan. Additionally, all acrylic acid is produced via the transient formation of acrolein.
Propane represents a promising but challenging feedstock for the synthesis of acrolein (and acrylic acid).The main challenge is in fact the overoxidation to this acid.
When glycerol (also called glycerin) is heated to 280 °C, it decomposes into acrolein:
This route is attractive when glycerol is co-generated in the production of biodiesel from vegetable oils or animal fats. The dehydration of glycerol has been demonstrated but has not proven competitive with the route from petrochemicals. [6] [7]
The original industrial route to acrolein, developed by Degussa, involves aldol condensation of formaldehyde and acetaldehyde:
Acrolein may also be produced on lab scale by the action of potassium bisulfate on glycerol (glycerine). [8]
Acrolein is a relatively electrophilic compound and a reactive one, hence its high toxicity. It is a good Michael acceptor, hence its useful reaction with thiols. It forms acetals readily, a prominent one being the spirocycle derived from pentaerythritol, diallylidene pentaerythritol. Acrolein participates in many Diels-Alder reactions, even with itself. Via Diels-Alder reactions, it is a precursor to some commercial fragrances, including myrac aldehyde ("lyral") and norbornene-2-carboxaldehyde. [5] The monomer 3,4-epoxycyclohexylmethyl-3',4'-epoxycyclohexane carboxylate is also produced from acrolein via the intermediacy of tetrahydrobenzaldehyde.
Acrolein was used in warfare due to its irritant and blistering properties. The French used the chemical in their hand grenades and artillery shells [9] during World War I under the name "Papite". [10]
Acrolein is mainly used as a contact herbicide to control submersed and floating weeds, as well as algae, in irrigation canals. It is used at a level of 10 ppm in irrigation and recirculating waters. In the oil and gas industry, it is used as a biocide in drilling waters, as well as a scavenger for hydrogen sulfide and mercaptans. [5]
A number of useful compounds are made from acrolein, exploiting its bifunctionality. The amino acid methionine is produced by addition of methanethiol followed by the Strecker synthesis. Acrolein condenses with acetaldehyde and amines to give methylpyridines. [11] It is also an intermediate in the Skraup synthesis of quinolines.
Acrolein will polymerize in the presence of oxygen and in water at concentrations above 22%. The color and texture of the polymer depends on the conditions. The polymer is a clear, yellow solid. In water, it will form a hard, porous plastic.[ citation needed ]
Acrolein has been used as a fixative in preparation of biological specimens for electron microscopy. [12]
Acrolein is toxic and is a strong irritant for the skin, eyes, and nasal passages. [5] The main metabolic pathway for acrolein is the alkylation of glutathione. The WHO suggests a "tolerable oral acrolein intake" of 7.5 μg per day per kg of body weight. Although acrolein occurs in French fries (and other fried foods), the levels are only a few μg per kg. [13] In response to occupational exposures to acrolein, the US Occupational Safety and Health Administration has set a permissible exposure limit at 0.1 ppm (0.25 mg/m3) at an eight-hour time-weighted average. [14] Acrolein acts in an immunosuppressive manner and may promote regulatory cells, [15] thereby preventing the generation of allergies on the one hand, but also increasing the risk of cancer.
Acrolein was identified as one of the chemicals involved in the 2019 Kim Kim River toxic pollution incident. [16]
Connections exist between acrolein gas in the smoke from tobacco cigarettes and the risk of lung cancer. [17] Acrolein is one of seven toxicants in cigarette smoke that are most associated with respiratory tract carcinogenesis. [18] The mechanism of action of acrolein appears to involve induction of increased reactive oxygen species and DNA damage related to oxidative stress. [19]
In terms of the "noncarcinogenic health quotient"[ jargon ] for components in cigarette smoke, acrolein dominates, contributing 40 times more than the next component, hydrogen cyanide. [20] The acrolein content in cigarette smoke depends on the type of cigarette and added glycerin, making up to 220 μg acrolein per cigarette. [21] [22] Importantly, while the concentration of the constituents in mainstream smoke can be reduced by filters, this has no significant effect on the composition of the side-stream smoke where acrolein usually resides, and which is inhaled by passive smoking. [23] [24] E-cigarettes, used normally, only generate "negligible" levels of acrolein (less than 10 μg "per puff"). [25] [26]
Cyclophosphamide and ifosfamide treatment results in the production of acrolein. [27] Acrolein produced during cyclophosphamide treatment collects in the urinary bladder and if untreated can cause hemorrhagic cystitis.
Acrolein is a component of reuterin. [28] Reuterin can be produced by gut microbes when glycerol is present. Microbe-produced reuterin is a potential resource of acrolein. [29]
The "acrolein test" is for the presence of glycerin or fats. A sample is heated with potassium bisulfate, and acrolein is released if the test is positive. When a fat is heated strongly in the presence of a dehydrating agent such as potassium bisulfate (KHSO
4), the glycerol portion of the molecule is dehydrated to form the unsaturated aldehyde, acrolein (CH2=CH–CHO), which has the odor peculiar to burnt cooking grease. More modern methods exist. [13]
In the US, EPA methods 603 and 624.1 are designed to measure acrolein in industrial and municipal wastewater streams. [30] [31]
Nitroglycerin (NG), also known as trinitroglycerol (TNG), nitro, glyceryl trinitrate (GTN), or 1,2,3-trinitroxypropane, is a dense, colorless or pale yellow, oily, explosive liquid most commonly produced by nitrating glycerol with white fuming nitric acid under conditions appropriate to the formation of the nitric acid ester. Chemically, the substance is an organic nitrate compound rather than a nitro compound, but the traditional name is retained. Discovered in 1846 by Ascanio Sobrero, nitroglycerin has been used as an active ingredient in the manufacture of explosives, namely dynamite, and as such it is employed in the construction, demolition, and mining industries. It is combined with nitrocellulose to form double-based smokeless powder, used as a propellant in artillery and firearms since the 1880s.
Acetaldehyde is an organic chemical compound with the formula CH3 CHO, sometimes abbreviated as MeCHO. It is a colorless liquid or gas, boiling near room temperature. It is one of the most important aldehydes, occurring widely in nature and being produced on a large scale in industry. Acetaldehyde occurs naturally in coffee, bread, and ripe fruit, and is produced by plants. It is also produced by the partial oxidation of ethanol by the liver enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase and is a contributing cause of hangover after alcohol consumption. Pathways of exposure include air, water, land, or groundwater, as well as drink and smoke. Consumption of disulfiram inhibits acetaldehyde dehydrogenase, the enzyme responsible for the metabolism of acetaldehyde, thereby causing it to build up in the body.
Glycerol ,is a simple triol compound. It is a colorless, odorless, viscous liquid that is sweet-tasting and non-toxic. The glycerol backbone is found in lipids known as glycerides. It is also widely used as a sweetener in the food industry and as a humectant in pharmaceutical formulations. Because of its three hydroxyl groups, glycerol is miscible with water and is hygroscopic in nature.
Acrylonitrile is an organic compound with the formula CH2CHCN and the structure H2C=CH−C≡N. It is a colorless, volatile liquid. It has a pungent odor of garlic or onions. Its molecular structure consists of a vinyl group linked to a nitrile. It is an important monomer for the manufacture of useful plastics such as polyacrylonitrile. It is reactive and toxic at low doses.
Propylene oxide is an acutely toxic and carcinogenic organic compound with the molecular formula C3H6O. This colourless volatile liquid with an odour similar to ether, is produced on a large scale industrially. Its major application is its use for the production of polyether polyols for use in making polyurethane plastics. It is a chiral epoxide, although it is commonly used as a racemic mixture.
A humectant is a hygroscopic (water-absorbing) substance used to keep things moist. They are used in many products, including food, cosmetics, medicines and pesticides. When used as a food additive, a humectant has the effect of keeping moisture in the food. Humectants are sometimes used as a component of antistatic coatings for plastics.
Acrylic acid (IUPAC: prop-2-enoic acid) is an organic compound with the formula CH2=CHCOOH. It is the simplest unsaturated carboxylic acid, consisting of a vinyl group connected directly to a carboxylic acid terminus. This colorless liquid has a characteristic acrid or tart smell. It is miscible with water, alcohols, ethers, and chloroform. More than a million tons are produced annually.
Cyclohexene is a hydrocarbon with the formula (CH2)4C2H2. It is an example of a cycloalkene. At room temperature, cyclohexene is a colorless liquid with a sharp odor. Among its uses, it is an intermediate in the commercial synthesis of nylon.
In chemistry, a dehydration reaction is a chemical reaction that involves the loss of water from the reacting molecule or ion. Dehydration reactions are common processes, the reverse of a hydration reaction.
Methyl methacrylate (MMA) is an organic compound with the formula CH2=C(CH3)COOCH3. This colorless liquid, the methyl ester of methacrylic acid (MAA), is a monomer produced on a large scale for the production of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA).
Allyl alcohol is an organic compound with the structural formula CH2=CHCH2OH. Like many alcohols, it is a water-soluble, colourless liquid. It is more toxic than typical small alcohols. Allyl alcohol is used as a precursor to many specialized compounds such as flame-resistant materials, drying oils, and plasticizers. Allyl alcohol is the smallest representative of the allylic alcohols.
Malononitrile is an organic compound nitrile with the formula CH2(CN)2. It is a colorless or white solid, although aged samples appear yellow or even brown. It is a widely used building block in organic synthesis.
Methacrylic acid, abbreviated MAA, is an organic compound with the formula CH2=C(CH3)CO2H. This colorless, viscous liquid is a carboxylic acid with an acrid unpleasant odor. It is soluble in warm water and miscible with most organic solvents. Methacrylic acid is produced industrially on a large scale as a precursor to its esters, especially methyl methacrylate (MMA), and to poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA).
Crotonaldehyde is a chemical compound with the formula CH3CH=CHCHO. The compound is usually sold as a mixture of the E- and Z-isomers, which differ with respect to the relative position of the methyl and formyl groups. The E-isomer is more common (data given in Table is for the E-isomer). This lachrymatory liquid is moderately soluble in water and miscible in organic solvents. As an unsaturated aldehyde, crotonaldehyde is a versatile intermediate in organic synthesis. It occurs in a variety of foodstuffs, e.g. soybean oils.
Acetone cyanohydrin (ACH) is an organic compound used in the production of methyl methacrylate, the monomer of the transparent plastic polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), also known as acrylic. It liberates hydrogen cyanide easily, so it is used as a source of such. For this reason, this cyanohydrin is also highly toxic.
Ethenone is the formal name for ketene, an organic compound with formula C2H2O or H2C=C=O. It is the simplest member of the ketene class. It is an important reagent for acetylations.
Reuterin (3-hydroxypropionaldehyde) is the organic compound with the formula HOCH2CH2CHO. It is a bifunctional molecule, containing both a hydroxy and aldehyde functional groups.
4,4′-Methylenedianiline (MDA) is an organic compound with the formula CH2(C6H4NH2)2. It is a colorless solid, although commercial samples can appear yellow or brown. It is produced on an industrial scale, mainly as a precursor to polyurethanes.
The chemical composition of the electronic cigarette aerosol varies across and within manufacturers. Limited data exists regarding their chemistry. However, researchers at Johns Hopkins University analyzed the vape clouds of popular brands such as Juul and Vuse, and found "nearly 2,000 chemicals, the vast majority of which are unidentified."
α,β-Unsaturated carbonyl compounds are organic compounds with the general structure (O=CR)−Cα=Cβ-R. Such compounds include enones and enals, but also carboxylic acids and the corresponding esters and amides. In these compounds, the carbonyl group is conjugated with an alkene. Unlike the case for carbonyls without a flanking alkene group, α,β-unsaturated carbonyl compounds are susceptible to attack by nucleophiles at the β-carbon. This pattern of reactivity is called vinylogous. Examples of unsaturated carbonyls are acrolein (propenal), mesityl oxide, acrylic acid, and maleic acid. Unsaturated carbonyls can be prepared in the laboratory in an aldol reaction and in the Perkin reaction.
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