Dodecylamine (Laurylamine) CAS 124-22-1

What is Dodecylamine (Laurylamine)?

Dodecylamine sits at the point on the fatty amine series where the molecule has stopped being a base with a tail and become a surfactant with an amine head. Twelve carbons give it essentially no water solubility and a strong tendency to collect at interfaces, while the primary amine group remains fully available to protonate, to quaternise, or to adsorb onto a charged mineral surface. That combination is why it is the default collector in several large-scale flotation circuits and the starting point for a long list of surfactant derivatives.

Its physical form is a practical quirk worth knowing about. Dodecylamine melts at around 28 °C, which is to say it is a soft waxy solid in a cool warehouse and a cloudy liquid on a warm day. Neither state is a quality problem, but it does mean that drum handling, sampling and metering all need to account for the material changing phase with the weather. Users running it continuously generally keep a heated day tank at 35–40 °C and stop thinking about it.

In mineral flotation the mechanism is straightforward and the performance is specific. Protonated in a controlled pH window, the amine adsorbs onto negatively charged mineral surfaces and renders them hydrophobic enough to attach to an air bubble. This is the basis of potash flotation, of silicate removal in iron ore reverse flotation, and of several phosphate and feldspar circuits. The pH window matters more than the dose: too acidic and selectivity collapses, too alkaline and the amine deprotonates and stops adsorbing.

Beyond flotation, most dodecylamine is an intermediate rather than a product. It is ethoxylated to nonionic surfactants, quaternised to cationic surfactants and biocides, reacted to amine salts and acetates for bitumen emulsification and asphalt adhesion promotion, and used directly as a filming corrosion inhibitor in oilfield and industrial water systems. Chelora supplies it as a technical-grade intermediate to all of these, with the amine value and primary amine content that downstream stoichiometry depends on.

What formulators and mineral processors specify

• Amine value held in a band Reported as measured, because quaternisation, ethoxylation and salt-forming stoichiometry are all calculated from it.
• High primary amine content Secondary and tertiary amine carry-over consumes reagent without delivering the same surface activity. Controlled and reported.
• Low colour Fatty amines darken on air exposure at temperature. Colour on the certificate tells you the thermal history as well as the quality.
• Low moisture Water interferes with quaternisation and with anhydrous derivative chemistry. Controlled at fill.
• Consistent chain distribution Derived from a lauric feedstock, so some C10 and C14 are present. The distribution is held consistent because it affects froth behaviour and HLB.
• Packing that suits the phase change Drums, IBCs or heated bulk. We will advise on format based on your ambient conditions and how you meter it.

How Dodecylamine is Manufactured

Dodecylamine is made from a natural fatty acid feedstock — typically coconut or palm kernel derived lauric acid — by the nitrile route. The chain length distribution of the final product is inherited from that feedstock rather than built up synthetically.

• Nitrile formation Lauric acid reacts with ammonia over a dehydration catalyst at elevated temperature, giving lauronitrile with the loss of two molecules of water.
• Nitrile purification The crude nitrile is distilled to remove unreacted acid, amides and heavy by-products, and to set the chain-length distribution.
• Hydrogenation The nitrile is hydrogenated over a metal catalyst to the primary amine. Reaction conditions are selected to favour primary over secondary amine, which is the main selectivity challenge in the process.
• Distillation The amine is distilled to separate primary from secondary amine and to remove light and heavy fractions. This step sets the primary amine content on the certificate.
• Filling Filled warm into drums, IBCs or bulk containers and allowed to solidify or held liquid depending on the format.

Typical Commercial Specification

Typical technical-grade specification. Verify against your current COA before writing these figures into a purchase specification or a formulation.

Physical & Chemical Properties

Reactivity in practice

Dodecylamine behaves as a primary aliphatic amine carrying a long hydrophobic tail. The amine group supplies the reactivity, the tail supplies the surface activity, and almost every industrial use exploits one or the other.

• Forms salts with acids Acetates, hydrochlorides and fatty acid salts are water-dispersible and are the basis of bitumen emulsifiers and asphalt adhesion promoters.
• Quaternises with alkylating agents Reaction with methyl chloride or dimethyl sulfate gives cationic surfactants, fabric softeners and biocidal quats.
• Ethoxylates with ethylene oxide Gives nonionic and amphoteric surfactants with tunable HLB for cleaning and emulsification.
• Adsorbs on charged mineral surfaces The flotation mechanism. Protonated in a controlled pH window, it renders silicate and other negatively charged surfaces hydrophobic.
• Reacts with carbon dioxide and air Forms carbamates and darkens on prolonged air exposure, particularly when warm. Nitrogen blanketing preserves colour.
• Attacks copper, brass and aluminium Use stainless or carbon steel, or suitably lined equipment, throughout the system.

Dodecylamine Compared With Other Fatty Amines

Fatty amines are chosen by chain length and by whether that chain is saturated or unsaturated, and those two variables decide almost everything that matters in practice: the physical form at ambient temperature, how the molecule packs at an interface, and whether the product needs heated handling. The amine group is the same in all of them. What changes is the tail, and the tail is what you are actually buying.

The pair worth understanding is octadecylamine and oleylamine. They have the same eighteen carbons and almost the same amine value, but the single cis double bond in oleylamine puts a kink in the chain that stops it crystallising, so one is a hard flake you have to melt and the other is a liquid you can pump at ambient. Where a process needs a C18 tail and cannot accommodate heated handling, that double bond is the entire reason oleylamine exists as a commercial product. Where crystallinity is what you want — a tight, ordered film on a steam line, or a well-packed organoclay gallery — the saturated chain is the better molecule.

Industries We Supply Dodecylamine To

Dodecylamine reaches the market mostly through derivatives, but a few industries consume it directly and in volume.

Where Dodecylamine is Used

The applications divide neatly between direct use as a surface-active reagent and use as an intermediate for derivative surfactants.

Flotation chemistry and the pH window

Amine collectors work by electrostatic adsorption: the protonated amine head is attracted to a negatively charged mineral surface and the C12 tail projects into the water, making the particle hydrophobic enough to attach to a bubble. The controlling variable is pH, not dose. Below roughly pH 7 selectivity degrades because too many surfaces carry the wrong charge; above roughly pH 11 the amine deprotonates and simply stops adsorbing. Most amine circuits run in a fairly narrow band, usually with the amine added as an acetate so the protonation is already done. If recovery drifts, check pH and froth stability before increasing the dose — overdosing an amine collector loses selectivity and costs reagent at the same time.

Quaternisation and derivative chemistry

For quaternary and ethoxylated derivatives the figures that govern the process are the total amine value, the primary amine fraction and the moisture content. Stoichiometry is calculated from measured amine value, and secondary amine carry-over consumes alkylating agent while producing a different and less effective quaternary species. Water interferes directly with anhydrous alkylation. These three numbers are on every certificate we issue precisely because derivative producers calculate from them rather than from a nominal assay.

Handling a product that melts at room temperature

At 28 °C, dodecylamine is solid in a cool store and liquid in a warm one, and will freeze and thaw repeatedly through a seasonal cycle. That is not a quality issue, but it does require a decision. Intermittent users generally take drums and melt what they need, accepting the handling step. Continuous users keep a heated day tank at 35–40 °C fed from IBCs or bulk, pump from there and never deal with solid material. Whichever route you take, keep remelt temperatures modest and the headspace blanketed: repeated thermal cycling with air present is the main cause of colour drift in storage.

Quality Control & Testing

Every lot is released against a batch-specific Certificate of Analysis. The methods behind the numbers are standard across the industry, and we are happy to share them or to work to your own in-house test protocol.

• Total amine value by titration The figure downstream stoichiometry is calculated from. Reported as measured.
• Primary, secondary and tertiary amine split Determined separately, because only the primary amine delivers the surface activity and quaternisation behaviour you are buying.
• Moisture by Karl Fischer Controlled at fill. Water interferes with alkylation and anhydrous derivative chemistry.
• Colour by Gardner on the melt Tracks oxidative and thermal history through production, filling and transit.
• Chain distribution by GC C10, C12 and C14 quantified, since the distribution affects froth behaviour and HLB in derivatives.
• Iodine value Confirms the saturated character of the chain and the absence of unsaturated carry-over.
• Melting range Confirms identity and consistency of the chain distribution.
• Retained samples Held against every batch, so a flotation or derivative problem months later can be traced to the material or ruled out.

Common Process Problems & Likely Causes

Most problems reported with fatty amines come down to phase behaviour, pH or colour drift rather than the specification. The sequence below is how we work through them with customers.

Packaging, Storage & Shipping

• 160 kg lined steel drums The standard format for intermittent users, melted as required.
• 900 kg IBCs For larger users feeding a heated day tank without drum handling.
• Heated flexitanks and isotanks Bulk delivery for continuous flotation and emulsion plants with heated receipt facilities.
• Storage. Cool, dry, well-ventilated and bunded, away from heat, ignition sources, oxidisers and acids, with containers kept tightly closed. Nitrogen blanketing is worthwhile where colour matters.
• Materials of construction. Stainless steel, carbon steel or suitably lined vessels. Avoid copper, brass, bronze, aluminium and mercury, all of which are attacked by amines.
• Shelf life. Typically 12 months in unopened original packing under those conditions. Beyond that, re-test rather than assume — colour and amine value are the figures to check.

Hazards & Safe Handling

Dodecylamine is corrosive to skin and eyes and very toxic to aquatic life. The controls below reflect normal industrial practice for a fatty amine. Always work from the current Safety Data Sheet and your own site risk assessment.

• Corrosive or strongly irritant. Fatty amines cause skin and serious eye damage. Molten material compounds this with a burn risk. Impervious gloves, chemical goggles or a face shield, and sleeve protection are the minimum wherever open transfer or sampling happens.
• Hot material handling. Grades supplied molten or melted on site are handled well above ambient. Insulate lines and valves, use face protection at sampling points, and never open a sight glass or a sample valve on a hot line without the correct PPE.
• Aquatic toxicity. These products are very toxic to aquatic organisms with long-lasting effects. Bund storage, keep spills out of surface water and drains, and treat the environmental classification as the governing hazard for spill planning rather than an afterthought.
• Dust and aerosol. Flaked and prilled grades generate fine dust on handling that irritates eyes and the respiratory tract. Use local extraction at bag-slitting and charging points and avoid dry-sweeping spilled solid.
• Incompatibilities. Keep away from strong acids, strong oxidisers, and from copper, brass, bronze and aluminium, all of which amines attack. Acid contact is exothermic.
• Ventilation. General ventilation plus local extraction at open transfer points. Vapour pressure is low at ambient, but melting and hot transfer raise exposure potential considerably.
• Spill response. Contain, absorb with inert material and collect for licensed disposal. Do not flush to drain. Solidified spills can be scraped once cool, which is often easier than handling them warm.
• First aid. Flush eyes with running water for at least fifteen minutes and get medical attention. Wash skin with soap and water, removing contaminated clothing. For molten contact, cool with water and do not attempt to remove adhered material — seek medical attention immediately.

Regulatory & Compliance Notes

Dodecylamine is an ordinary article of commerce with no use restrictions in normal industrial application. The notes below cover the practical regulatory points that affect an import.

• Inventory status. Fatty amines are listed on the principal chemical inventories in the major importing regions. Ask us for the inventory confirmation relevant to your destination country.
• Import registration. Several territories require the importer to hold a registration or notification before a consignment lands. Start that process early — it is the most common cause of delay at destination.
• Environmental classification. The aquatic hazard classification carries through to transport documentation, marine pollutant marking and local effluent consent conditions. Confirm the position for your site before the first delivery.
• Hazard communication. Supplied with an SDS in the format applicable to your region and labelled in line with the GHS classification for the product.

We Supply Dodecylamine Worldwide

Chelora Chemicals is a supplier and export partner, not a single-plant trader. We ship Dodecylamine (Laurylamine) from India to customers across Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and North and South America, handling the export documentation, dangerous-goods paperwork and freight so the material arrives ready to use.

• Incoterms. EXW, FOB, CIF, CFR and DAP quoted to suit your purchasing terms and freight arrangements.
• Ports. Regular shipments through Nhava Sheva (JNPT) and Mundra, with other Indian ports arranged where it suits the routing.
• Documentation. Commercial invoice, packing list, certificate of origin, COA, SDS and dangerous-goods declaration issued as a complete set.
• Flexible volumes. A single drum for laboratory qualification, through LCL consolidations, up to repeat full loads on a supply contract.
• Supply continuity. Because we are independent of any one producer, a plant turnaround or a shipping disruption at one source does not have to become your stock-out.

Buying Dodecylamine from Chelora

Dodecylamine is a feedstock, so the useful conversation is about the figures your process calculates from and the format that suits your handling.

• Tell us the application Flotation, quaternisation, emulsifier or inhibitor use each put the emphasis on a different part of the specification. Knowing which lets us match grade rather than quote a generic one.
• Specify both amine figures Total amine value and primary amine percentage. If your stoichiometry depends on them, write them into the specification rather than relying on a nominal assay.
• Choose the packing for your climate With a melting point near ambient, drums, IBCs and heated bulk give very different handling experiences. We will advise.
• Batch documentation COA with amine value, primary amine split, moisture, colour and chain distribution, plus SDS and TDS with every consignment.
• Samples for qualification Available so you can confirm froth behaviour or derivative performance before committing to volume.
• Supply continuity Scheduled call-offs against a contract, with inventory cover, so a flotation circuit is not exposed to spot availability.

How ordering works

• Send the enquiry. Product, grade or specification, quantity, destination port and the Incoterm you buy on. If you have a spec sheet, attach it — it saves a round trip.
• We quote. Price, lead time, packing and a sample COA, normally within one working day.
• Sample and qualify. For first orders or critical applications, we send a trial quantity so your lab can sign off before you commit.
• Confirm the order. Proforma invoice issued; payment terms agreed against the volume and the relationship.
• Production and QC. Material allocated and released against a batch-specific COA, with a pre-shipment sample where the application calls for it.
• Ship and document. Packed, labelled and loaded with the full export and dangerous-goods document set, and tracked through to arrival.

Related Amines & Intermediates

Other fatty amines and the aliphatic amines we supply alongside them for surfactant and inhibitor chemistry.