Tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether is used as a solvent.
Tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether is used in lithium-ion battery technology. It is associated with trifluoroethanol and used as a working pair for organic absorption heat pumps. It acts as a solvent for cleaning and degreasing due to its chemical and thermal stability. Moreover, it is suitable solvent for high temperature reactions due its high boiling point. Further, it is used in the selective adsorption of proteins during the promotion of cell adhesion.
ChEBI: Tetraglyme is a polyether.
Tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether or tetraglyme is an organic aprotic colourless solvent with film forming ability.
Flammability and Explosibility
Non flammable
Mildly toxic by ingestion. Experimental reproductive effects. An eye irritant. Many glycol ethers are suspected of having dangerous human reproductive effects. When heated to decomposition it emits acrid smoke and irritating fumes. See also GLYCOL ETHERS
Stand the ether over CaH2, LiAlH4 or sodium, and distil it when required. [Beilstein 1 IV 2404.]
Tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether (TEGDME) could be used as a bifunctional solvent which serves as both the casting solvent and active component by controlling the residual amount of TEGDME from excessive to appropriate. This method could avoid the negative impact of the residual organic solvent (such as acetonitrile) in polymer electrolytes prepared by the solution-casting method on battery performance. The residual TEGDME serves as a plasticizer in HSE that is beneficial for improving the plasticity and decreasing the crystallinity of PEO so that it can increase the mobility of lithium ions and flexibility of solid electrolytes. TEGDME can also improve the plasticity and interfacial contact[1].
Environmental considerations
Tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether is a polar, non-aromatic compound. It is nonionic but water-soluble due to its polarity. However, it has been detected in municipal effluents, runoff from fields irrigated with treated wastewater, and wastewaters of two different waste oil refineries Citation[2].
[1] Hao-Ran Wang, Ya-Nan Yang and Tao Zhang*. “Tape-Casting Method of Hybrid Solid Electrolytes with a Residual Active Solvent of Tetraethylene Glycol Dimethyl Ether.” ACS Applied Energy Materials 6 3 (2023): 2031–2038.
[2] Holger Gulyas. “Combining activated carbon adsorption with heterogeneous photocatalytic oxidation: lack of synergy for biologically treated greywater and tetraethylene glycol dimethyl ether.” Environmental Technology 34 9–12 (2013): 1393–403.
