Properties of triethylamine



Triethylamine,121-44-8

         Triethylamine is the chemical compound with the formula N(CH2CH3)3, commonly abbreviated Et3N. It is also abbreviated TEA, yet this abbreviation must be used carefully to avoid confusion with triethanolamine or tetraethylammonium, for which TEA is also a common abbreviation. It is a colourless volatile liquid with a strong fishy odor reminiscent of ammonia and is also the smell of the hawthorn plant.Like diisopropylethylamine (Hünig’s base), triethylamine is commonly encountered in organic synthesis.
　　1.Uses
　　Triethylamine is used as a catalytic solvent in chemical syntheses; as an accelerator activator for rubber; as a corrosion inhibitor; as a curing and hardening agent for polymers; as a propellant; in the manufacture of wetting, penetrating, and waterproofing agents of quaternary ammonium compounds; and for the desalination of seawater.
　　2.Sources and Potential Exposure
　　*Occupational exposure may occur primarily via inhalation and dermal contact during its manufacture and use.
　　*The general population may be exposed to triethylamine from ingesting contaminated food; triethylamine has been identified in broiled beef.
　　3.Health Hazard Information
　　*Acute Effects:Acute exposure of humans to triethylamine vapor causes eye irritation, corneal swelling, and halo vision.  People have complained of seeing "blue haze" or having "smoky vision."  These effects have been reversible upon cessation of exposure.
　　*Acute exposure can irritate the skin and mucous membranes in humans.
　　*Acute animal tests in rats, mice, and rabbits, have demonstrated triethylamine to have moderate acute toxicity from inhalation, moderate to high acute toxicity from oral exposure, and high acute toxicity from dermal exposure.
　　*Chronic Effects (Noncancer):Chronic exposure of workers to triethylamine vapor has been observed to cause reversible corneal edema.
　　*Chronic inhalation exposure has resulted in inflammation of the nasal passage in rats.  Thickening of the interalveolar walls of the lungs, mucous accumulation in the alveolar spaces of the lungs, and hematological effects have also been reported in rats chronically exposed by inhalation.
　　*Chronic inhalation exposure of rabbits has been reported to cause irritation of the lungs, edema, moderate peribronchitis, vascular thickening, eye lesions, and, at higher levels, liver, kidney, and heart effects.
　　*The Reference Concentration for triethylamine is 0.007 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3) based on inflammation of the nasal passages in rats. The RfC is an estimate (with uncertainty spanning perhaps an order of magnitude) of a continuous inhalation exposure to the human population (including sensitive subgroups) that is likely to be without appreciable risk of deleterious noncancer effects during a lifetime. It is not a direct estimator of risk but rather a reference point to gauge the potential effects. At exposures increasingly greater than the, the potential for adverse health effects increases.Lifetime exposure above the does not imply that an adverse health effect would necessarily occur.
　　*EPA has medium confidence in the studies on which the was based because a concentration-response was evident, although a lowest-observed-adverse-effect level  could not be identified and a second species was not used; low confidence in the database as only a single reproductive/developmental study exists, which is by the oral route and is therefore not useful for inhalation risk assessment, and no chronic studies exist; and, consequently, low confidence in the .
　　*EPA has not established a Reference Dose for triethylamine.
　　4.Physical Properties
　　*The chemical formula for triethylamine is C6H15N, and its molecular weight is 101.19 g/mol.
　　*Triethylamine occurs as a colorless flammable liquid that is slightly soluble in water.
　　*Triethylamine has a strong fishy ammonia-like odor, with an odor threshold of 0.48 parts per million (ppm).
　　*The vapor pressure for triethylamine is 400 mm Hg at 31.5 °C, and its log octanol/water partition coefficient (log Kow) is 1.45.