
Branched alcohols
Exxal™ alcohols are isomeric branched, primary alcohols that contain both even- and odd-numbered hydrocarbon chains, ranging from C8 to C13. In general, there are two main types of structures in industrial alcohols:
- Linear (or straight-chain) molecules: obtained from synthetic or natural sources
- Branched chain alcohols: produced from propylene and butene
Our customers use Exxal alcohols to synthesize derivatives used in industrial applications:
- Surfactants – industrial applications, cleaning, and oil and gas
- Polymer additives – stabilizers, antioxidants and flame retardants
- Adhesives – acrylates
- Lube and fuel additives
- Lubricant esters
They are also used as solvents or cosolvents for coatings, inks and metal extraction in mining.
Benefits
High-purity Exxal™ alcohols exhibit reactivity typical of higher primary alcohols. Thanks to their branched structure, Exxal alcohols offer many performance advantages to ethoxylates compared to linear alcohol-based ones:
- Low pour point – prohibits gel and wax formation, facilitates processing of alcohols and derivatives
- Biodegradability – all of our alcohols and their ethoxylates meet the OECD 301F readily biodegradable threshold for isomeric mixtures
- Superior wetting power of derived surfactants – excellent candidates for resource extraction and nonylphenol substitution
- Powerful solvency in coatings and inks, fully soluble in hydrocarbon fluids while enhancing their solvency power
- Wide viscosity ranges in synlubes
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