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.

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