Acetonitrile, also known as methyl cyanogen, is a colorless liquid with extremely volatile characteristics. Acetonitrile has a special smell which is similar to ether. Acetonitrile also has excellent solvent performance, which can dissolve a variety of organic, inorganic and gas substances. Acetonitrile is toxic and infinitely soluble with water and alcohol.
The main use of acetonitrile is as a solvent. For instance, as a solvent for extraction of butadiene, synthetic fiber solvent and some special paint solvent. In the petroleum industry, acetonitrile is used as a solvent to remove tar, phenols, etc., from petroleum hydrocarbons. In the oil industry, acetonitrile is used as a solvent for extracting fatty acids from vegetable oils and as a reaction medium for recrystallization of steroids in medicine producing. In addition, acetonitrile can also be used to synthesize ethylamine, acetic acid, etc., and has many uses in fabric dyeing and lighting industry.