Ethylene Glycol

Ethylene Glycol is an colorless, odorless viscous liquid that is commonly used in many industrial and commercial applications. Ethylene Glycol’s main uses as a raw material in the manufacture of polyester fibers and for antifreeze formulations. Other important uses of ethylene glycol include heat transfer fluids used as industrial coolants for gas compressors, heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning systems, and ice skating rinks. Ethylene glycol helps keep your car’s engine from freezing in the winter and acts as a coolant to reduce overheating in the summer. Ethylene glycol is toxic. The major use of ethylene glycol is as a medium for convective heat transfer in, for example, automobiles and liquid-cooled computers.

Ethylene glycol is also commonly used in chilled-water air-conditioning systems that place either the chiller or air handlers outside, or systems that must cool below the freezing temperature of water. Ethylene glycol as a raw material is used in the production of fiberglass used in products such as bathtubs, hot-tubs, jet skis, and bowling balls. It is also used in the production of products including polyester fibers for clothes, carpets, pillows, and upholstery.