Ethylamine CAS 75-04-7

What is Ethylamine?

Ethylamine is the simplest primary amine of the ethyl series — one ethyl group on nitrogen, C₂H₅NH₂. It sits alongside diethylamine and triethylamine, all three of which are produced on the same plant and separated by distillation.

It boils at about 17 °C, which puts it awkwardly on the boundary between a gas and a liquid. In a cool warehouse it is a liquid; on a hot loading bay it is not. In practice this means anhydrous ethylamine is handled as a liquefied gas under modest pressure, and the overwhelming majority of commercial volume moves as a 70% aqueous solution, which behaves as an ordinary — if very flammable and very corrosive — liquid.

The odour is sharply ammoniacal and detectable far below any hazardous concentration. Ethylamine is miscible with water in all proportions and strongly basic, with a conjugate acid pK_a around 10.7, making it a slightly stronger base than methylamine and considerably stronger than ammonia.

Commercially, ethylamine exists for one reason above all others: it installs the ethylamino group. That fragment appears on the triazine ring of several of the world's most widely used herbicides, in dithiocarbamate rubber chemicals, in azo and basic dyes, and across a range of pharmaceutical and oilfield intermediates. Agrochemical demand dominates the global balance.

Why ethylamine specifically

• Installs the ethylamino group. The N-ethyl fragment on a triazine ring is what distinguishes several major herbicides from one another. Ethylamine is the only practical way to put it there.
• Two reactive N-H bonds. Unlike diethylamine it can form amides, imines, ureas and heterocycles that still carry a free N-H for further substitution.
• Strong, unhindered base. Conjugate acid pK_a around 10.7 with no steric crowding, so it reacts readily with chlorotriazines, epoxides, acid chlorides and carbon disulphide.
• Fully water-miscible. Unlike triethylamine, it mixes with water in all proportions, which makes aqueous-phase reactions and the 70% solution grade practical.

How MEA is Manufactured

Ethylamine is made continuously by aminating ethanol with ammonia. The same reactor and column train produces diethylamine and triethylamine as well, so the three are intrinsically linked in both supply and price.

• Amination. Ethanol and excess ammonia are passed over a solid acid or supported metal catalyst at elevated temperature and pressure, usually with hydrogen present. Water is eliminated and an equilibrium mixture of mono-, di- and triethylamine forms.
• Ratio control. A high ammonia-to-ethanol ratio pushes the distribution toward the mono product. Surplus di- and triethylamine are recycled to the reactor to shift the equilibrium further. A plant running for ethylamine therefore recycles heavily.
• Separation. The crude mixture is resolved in a distillation train, with unconverted ammonia recovered and returned. The close boiling points and the azeotropes in this system are what make the column train the technically demanding part of the plant.
• Finishing. The ethylamine cut is either liquefied under pressure as anhydrous product or absorbed into demineralised water to give the 70% aqueous solution that most buyers use.

Typical Commercial Specification

Figures below are representative of anhydrous commercial grade and of the 70% aqueous solution. Tighter agrochemical and pharmaceutical grades are available — send us the specification you work to and we will quote against it.

Physical & Chemical Properties

Reactivity in practice

The chemistry buyers exploit runs through the nitrogen lone pair and the two replaceable N-H hydrogens:

• Substitution on chlorotriazines. Displaces chloride from cyanuric chloride and its derivatives to install the ethylamino group on a triazine ring. This is the backbone of the triazine herbicide family.
• Reaction with carbon disulphide. Gives dithiocarbamates, used as vulcanisation accelerators in rubber and as fungicide actives.
• Amidation and acylation. Reaction with acid chlorides, esters or anhydrides gives N-ethyl amides, a motif in pharmaceutical and dye chemistry.
• Alkylation and quaternisation. Further alkylation gives diethyl- and triethylamine and ultimately quaternary ammonium salts used as surfactants and phase-transfer catalysts.

Ethylamine vs Diethylamine vs Triethylamine

The three ethylamines come off the same reactor and are separated by distillation, so they are routinely quoted together. They are not interchangeable. The number of ethyl groups already on the nitrogen decides how many N-H bonds remain, and that decides what chemistry is available downstream — and how the molecule behaves in water.

Stated plainly: monoethylamine keeps two N-H bonds and builds amides, triazines and heterocycles; diethylamine keeps one and introduces the N,N-diethyl group found in dithiocarbamates and a long list of actives; triethylamine has none, so it is used as a base, a catalyst and a quaternising partner rather than as a building block. Water behaviour differs too — the first two are fully miscible, while triethylamine has only limited solubility at ordinary temperatures. Chelora supplies all three.

Industries We Supply MEA To

The same molecule leaves our warehouse for very different factories. What changes between them is not the CAS number but the form, the solution strength, the packing and the documentation each sector expects.

Where MEA is Used

Ethylamine is dominated by one sector but used across several. These are the end uses our customers buy it for, roughly in order of volume.

In triazine herbicide manufacture

The largest outlet by a wide margin. Cyanuric chloride is substituted stepwise, and ethylamine supplies the ethylamino arm that defines several of the most widely used selective herbicides in broad-acre agriculture. Plants running this chemistry specify the diethylamine figure tightly, because the diethylamino analogue it produces is close enough in structure to survive crystallisation and show up in the finished technical active.

In rubber chemical production

Ethylamine and carbon disulphide give dithiocarbamates, which are among the fastest vulcanisation accelerators available and are used where short cure cycles matter — latex dipping, thin-walled goods and some tyre compounds. Consistency of the amine distribution matters more here than extreme purity, since a shifting feed changes the accelerator blend rather than failing a specification.

In dye chemistry

N-ethylation of aniline and substituted anilines gives the N-ethyl and N,N-diethyl intermediates behind a large family of azo and basic dyes. Colour on the incoming amine is a genuine specification here: an off-colour feedstock carries straight through into a shade that will not reproduce.

In pharmaceutical synthesis

Used to form N-ethyl amides, to open epoxides into ethylamino alcohols, and to build N-ethylated heterocycles. API producers run the tightest specifications in the market, with residual ethanol, diethylamine carry-over and metals all needing to clear ICH limits, so standard technical grade is rarely acceptable without upgrading.

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.

• Assay and amine distribution — gas chromatography, which resolves mono-, di- and triethylamine and quantifies residual ammonia and ethanol in one run.
• Strength of solution — acid-base titration against standardised acid, the figure that governs your charge calculation on the aqueous grade.
• Water content — Karl Fischer titration on anhydrous material, where water interferes with chlorotriazine substitution and with acid-chloride chemistry.
• Colour — APHA / Hazen against a standard, which matters directly in dye and pharmaceutical routes.
• Metals — iron in particular, since it catalyses discolouration and can poison downstream catalysts.
• Non-volatile residue — evaporation residue, a quick check for carry-over of heavies from the column train.

Common Process Problems & Likely Causes

When ethylamine misbehaves in a plant, the cause is usually one of a short list of things. This table is the shortcut our technical desk works through before anyone opens a complaint file.

Packaging, Storage & Shipping

• Aqueous solution packing. 170 kg drums, 1000 L IBCs and bulk road or ISO tank loads for continuous users.
• Anhydrous packing. Pressure-rated drums, cylinders and ISO tanks, handled as a liquefied flammable gas.
• Storage. Cool, shaded, well-ventilated area away from heat, ignition sources, oxidisers and acids, with containers kept tightly closed and bunded.
• Materials of construction. Stainless steel, carbon steel or suitable 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.
• Venting and pressure. With a boiling point near 17 °C the vapour pressure rises quickly above ambient. Storage and transfer systems need appropriate relief and a vent routed to a safe place.
• Transport classification. Anhydrous: UN 1036, Ethylamine, Class 2.1. Aqueous solution (50–70%): UN 2270, Ethylamine aqueous solution, Class 3 with subsidiary risk 8, Packing Group II.
• Container loading. Palletised and secured for FCL; LCL consolidation and tank arrangements available by volume.

Hazards & Safe Handling

Ethylamine is extremely flammable, corrosive and harmful by inhalation, and must be handled by trained personnel under a proper risk assessment. The classifications below are indicative — the current SDS supplied with your consignment is the governing document.

• Exposure control. Handle in a closed system or under local exhaust ventilation. Gas-detection cover is standard practice where anhydrous material is used.
• PPE. Chemical-resistant gloves, chemical goggles and face shield, chemical-resistant clothing, and respiratory protection suited to the task. Full-face protection for any transfer operation.
• Ignition control. Vapours are heavier than air, travel to a distant ignition source and flash back. Bonded, earthed and explosion-proof equipment, and no ignition sources in the zone.
• Incompatibilities. Strong oxidising agents, strong acids, acid chlorides, mercury, and copper, brass, bronze and aluminium equipment.
• Spill response. Evacuate and ventilate. Water spray knocks down vapour; contain run-off. Absorb with inert material and collect in a labelled closed container. Do not wash to drain.
• Environment. Do not allow to enter drains, surface water or groundwater. Dispose through a licensed chemical waste contractor.
• Fire. Extremely flammable. Cool exposed containers with water spray from a protected position and use self-contained breathing apparatus — decomposition releases nitrogen oxides.
• First aid. Move to fresh air, remove contaminated clothing immediately, wash skin with plenty of water, flush eyes for at least 15 minutes, and seek medical attention with the SDS to hand.

Regulatory & Compliance Notes

Ethylamine is a long-established industrial chemical and is listed on the major national chemical inventories. Because obligations differ by territory, volume and use, the notes below are orientation rather than legal advice — confirm your own position with your regulatory adviser before importing.

• Inventory status. Listed on the principal chemical inventories in the major importing regions. Ask us for the inventory confirmation relevant to your destination country.
• Agrochemical end use. Where the material feeds a registered pesticide active, expect the destination authority to require traceability on the intermediate. Keep the batch COA with your production records.
• 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.
• Hazard communication. Supplied with an SDS compliant with the format applicable to your region, and labelled in line with the GHS classification for the product.
• Dangerous goods. UN 1036 (anhydrous, Class 2.1) or UN 2270 (aqueous solution, Class 3 / 8, PG II). Declarations prepared for IMDG (sea) or IATA (air) as appropriate to the mode.
• Workplace exposure. Occupational exposure limits apply in most jurisdictions and are set well above the odour threshold. Set your controls against the limit in force where the material will be handled.

We Supply MEA Worldwide

Chelora Chemicals is a supplier and export partner, not a single-plant trader. We ship Ethylamine 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 MEA from Chelora

We are an independent sourcing and supply partner. For ethylamine that means matching the form and the grade to the application — anhydrous for a dry, pressure-rated plant, 70% aqueous for a general batch facility, a low-diethylamine cut for triazine work — rather than selling whatever happens to be in the tank.

• Documentation on every lot. Batch-specific COA, current SDS and TDS issued with the consignment, not weeks afterward.
• Samples before commitment. Trial quantities for process qualification ahead of a commercial order.
• Quantities. From a single drum through to tank loads and ongoing contract supply.
• Export experience. Dangerous-goods documentation, packing and labelling handled for sea and road freight to any destination.
• Technical support. Direct access to people who know the chemistry, for questions on amine distribution, pressure handling or materials compatibility.
• Related intermediates. Diethylamine, triethylamine, the methylamines and the wider aliphatic amine range from one supplier.

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

Buyers of ethylamine usually source several of these alongside it. Consolidating them on one order cuts freight cost and gives you a single point of contact for documentation.