Isopropanol (IPA)

About This Product

Propan-2-ol, better known as isopropanol, isopropyl alcohol or IPA (C3H8O; CAS 67-63-0; EC 200-661-7), is offered here at 99.9% minimum purity. This is the anhydrous, high-purity quality that cleaning and process users treat as their benchmark. Clear, colourless and volatile, it has a sharp alcoholic smell, boils at around 82 °C and blends completely with water and with most organic solvents. Industrial production is based mainly on propylene, which is hydrated either directly or via sulfuric acid; a smaller volume comes from the hydrogenation of acetone.

Three properties explain its wide use. It takes up oils, fluxes, many resins and a wide spread of other organic materials; it flashes off fast and leaves nothing behind; and its toxicity is much lower than that of methanol. Electronics, optics and precision-cleaning lines therefore rely on the 99.9% grade for wiping and rinsing, since any water or non-volatile matter left on a surface could stain it or set off corrosion. Disinfection follows the opposite rule. A blend of roughly 70% IPA in water works better than the neat alcohol, because the water assists in denaturing proteins and holds back evaporation, which is why sanitiser producers start from high-purity IPA and dilute it themselves.

Beyond cleaning and sanitisers, buyers use IPA in pharmaceutical synthesis and extraction, in printing inks, coatings and thinners, and in cosmetics and personal care. Chemical producers convert it into isopropyl esters, amines and other derivatives, and fine-chemical plants use it to extract and crystallise their products. Pharmacopoeia and electronic grades are distinct products carrying tighter limits and further tests, so state clearly when the end use is regulated or ultra-clean.

Contracts are usually written around GC purity, Karl Fischer water (typically 0.1% maximum), Pt-Co colour (typically 10 maximum), acidity expressed as acetic acid (typically 0.002% maximum), non-volatile residue (typically 5 mg/100 mL maximum) and density at 20 °C (typically 0.785–0.786 g/cm³), with distillation range added by some buyers. Cleaning users watch water and residue most closely, whereas synthesis users focus on acidity and impurities. Put the agreed limits in writing and compare every certificate of analysis with them.

IPA carries three CLP hazard statements: H225, highly flammable liquid and vapour; H319, causes serious eye irritation; and H336, may cause drowsiness or dizziness. For transport it is UN1219, ISOPROPANOL, Class 3, packing group II, which should be checked against section 14 of the safety data sheet. The substance is REACH-registered in the EU, and anyone importing into the EU or Great Britain needs to establish which REACH or UK REACH registration applies to that import and use. Alcohols are also subject to excise duty or licensing in some countries, so check what the destination requires.

Hold IPA in closed, earthed containers inside a cool, well-ventilated flammable-liquids store, shielded from direct sunlight and kept apart from oxidisers and any source of ignition. Drums and tanks should be bonded and earthed whenever product is transferred, and explosion-protected equipment is needed wherever vapour could collect.

To request a quotation from BG Petro Chemicals, tell us the grade and purity you need, your limits for water, acidity and residue, the application, whether you want 160 kg drums or ISO tanks, the volumes, the destination and your preferred Incoterms.