Ethanol

Absorption

Rapidly absorbed.

Toxicity

Oral, rat LD50: 5628 mg/kg. Symptoms and effects of overdose include nausea, vomiting, CNS depression, acute respiratory failure or death and with chronic use, severe health problems, such as liver and brain damage.

Description

Ethyl alcohol, also called ethanol, absolute alcohol, or grain alcohol, is a clear, colorless, flammable liquid with a pleasant odor. It is associated primarily with alcoholic beverages, but it has numerous uses in the chemical industry. The word alcohol is derived from the Arabic word al kuhul, which was a fine powder of the element antimony used as a cosmetic. In Medieval times, the word al kuhul came to be associated with the distilled products known as alcohols. The hydroxyl group, -OH, bonded to a carbon, characterizes alcohols. Ethyl is derived from the root of the two-carbon hydrocarbon ethane.

Description

Ethanol is also known as ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, and just "alcohol". It is used as a solvent in beverages, as a feedstock for producing other chemicals, and—more recently—as a transportation fuel. Ethanol can be produced synthetically from petroleum or by fermenting biomass-derived sugars with microbes, such as yeasts.

Description

Pure ethanol (absolute, 200 proof) is very expensive due to the fact that alcohol products are heavily taxed. Denatured ethanol is considerably cheaper than absolute ethanol. The ethanol used in most labs has been denatured by adding things such as isopropanol or methanol. Denatured ethanol is not suitable for consumption.

The Uses of Ethanol

alcohol (alcohol SD-40; alcohol SDA-40; ethanol; ethyl alcohol) is widely used in the cosmetic industry as an antiseptic as well as a solvent given its strong grease-dissolving abilities. It is often used in a variety of concentrations in skin toners for acne skin, aftershave lotions, perfumes, suntan lotions, and toilet waters. Alcohol dries the skin when used in high concentrations. It is manufactured through the fermentation of starch, sugar, and other carbohydrates.

The Uses of Ethanol

To a solution of the SM (25.0 g, 127.4 mmol) in MeOH (100 mL) was added a catalytic amount of H2SO4 (~10 drops). The mixture was refluxed overnight, after which time it was concentrated to remove MeOH and diluted with DCM (250 mL). The mixture was washed with H2O (5 x 20 mL), brine (20 mL), dried (Na2SO4), and concentrated in vacuo to provide the product as an orange oil. [25.77 g, 96%]

Background

A clear, colorless liquid rapidly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract and distributed throughout the body. It has bactericidal activity and is used often as a topical disinfectant. It is widely used as a solvent and preservative in pharmaceutical preparations as well as serving as the primary ingredient in alcoholic beverages.

Indications

For therapeutic neurolysis of nerves or ganglia for the relief of intractable chronic pain in such conditions as inoperable cancer and trigeminal neuralgia (tic douloureux), in patients for whom neurosurgical procedures are contraindicated.

Pharmacokinetics

Alcohol produces injury to cells by dehydration and precipitation of the cytoplasm or protoplasm. This accounts for its bacteriocidal and antifungal action. When alcohol is injected in close proximity to nerve tissues, it produces neuritis and nerve degeneration (neurolysis). Ninety to 98% of ethanol that enters the body is completely oxidized. Ethanol is also used as a cosolvent to dissolve many insoluble drugs and to serve as a mild sedative in some medicinal formulations. Ethanol also binds to GABA, glycine, NMDA receptors and modulates their effects. Ethanol is also metabolised by the hepatic enzyme alcohol dehydrogenase.

Metabolism

Hepatic. Metabolized by cytochrome P450 enzyme CYP2E1.