Methyl acetate
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Description
A colorless solvent with a fragrant odor. Methyl acetate is the methyl ester of acetic acid. It is used as a solvent for Cellulose nitrate and as a Paint remover. It is also used in the manufacture of artificial leather.
Synonyms and Related Terms
methyl ester of acetic acid
Risks
- Overexposure can cause skin irritation.
- Ingestion may cause headaches, drowsiness and optical atrophy.
- May decompose in aqueous solutions to form acetic acid.
- Flammable. Flash point = -9C (15F). Fire and explosion risk.
- ThermoFisher: SDS
Physical and Chemical Properties
Soluble in water. Miscible in ethanol and ether.
Hydrolyzes in water to acetic acid.
| Composition | CH3COOCH3 |
|---|---|
| CAS | 79-20-9 |
| Melting Point | -98 C |
| Density | 0.9279 g/ml |
| Molecular Weight | mol. wt. = 74 |
| Refractive Index | 1.3619 |
| Boiling Point | 56.9 C |
Resources and Citations
- Richard S. Lewis, Hawley's Condensed Chemical Dictionary, Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York, 10th ed., 1993
- The Merck Index, Martha Windholz (ed.), Merck Research Labs, Rahway NJ, 10th edition, 1983 Comment: entry 6089; ref. index=1.3619
- Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methyl_acetate (Accessed Jan. 6 2006)
- Random House, Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, Grammercy Book, New York, 1997
- The American Heritage Dictionary or Encarta, via Microsoft Bookshelf 98, Microsoft Corp., 1998
- CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, Robert Weast (ed.), CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida, v. 61, 1980 Comment: ref. index=1.360