Hydrocarbon Solvents – Aliphatic Hydrocarbons


Aliphatic hydrocarbons can be supplied as highly pure single products such as hexane or heptane (normal or iso), cyclic (eg. cyclohexane) or as a distillation cut containing large numbers of aliphatics, collected at a specific temperature or temperature range in the distillation process.

Aliphatic hydrocarbons have low miscibility with water and have a very low surface tension, which means that small amounts can be spread evenly over a wide surface area. Furniture polish is a typical application for aliphatic hydrocarbons.

Other uses for aliphatic hydrocarbons include extraction processes in pharmaceutical and food production, paints and coatings, lubricants and in the printing industry. Cyclohexane is also a key component in the production of Nylon.