PHARMACEUTICAL, FRAGRANCE & FINE CHEMICAL
C5 Solvents and Intermediates for Pharma, Fragrance and Fine Chemical Synthesis
CPME as a hydrophobic ether solvent with a defined ICH Q3C status, and cyclopentanone, cyclopentanol, cyclopentene and tert-amyl alcohol as building blocks for pharmaceutical intermediates, fragrance chemicals and electronic materials. Each is specified with the related-substance and water limits a process chemist checks.
APPLICATIONS
Where It Is Used
Solvent replacement with CPME
CPME (boiling point 106 °C; 1.1 g dissolves in 100 g of water) is used in place of THF, 2-MeTHF, MTBE and dioxane in Grignard, organolithium, hydride-reduction, Suzuki and Buchwald–Hartwig reactions, Lewis-acid and Friedel–Crafts chemistry, extraction, crystallization and polymerization. ICH Q3C lists it as Class 2 at 15.0 mg/day (1500 ppm), against 7.2 mg/day for THF and 3.8 mg/day for 1,4-dioxane; 2-MeTHF and MTBE are Class 3.
Pharmaceutical intermediates
Cyclopentanol supplies the cyclopentyl group for halide, amine, ester and ether intermediates, including analgesic intermediates; cyclopentanone gives cyclopentylamine by reductive amination and is a building block for crop-protection agents and active ingredients; cyclopentene is the starting olefin for the oxygenated C5 products.
Fragrance chemistry
Cyclopentanone is condensed with n-pentanal, isomerized and built up with dimethyl malonate to methyl dihydrojasmonate, and 2-pentylcyclopentanone from the same raw materials leads to δ-decalactone. Cyclopentanol is also used in fragrances and fixatives, and tert-amyl alcohol is a raw material for synthetic musks.
Electronic materials
Cyclopentanone is documented as a casting solvent for photosensitive polyimide precursors and in photoresist formulations, and is used in wet electronic chemicals. CPME is used as a process solvent for electronic materials.
Cyclopentene-based chemistry
Cyclopentene gives cyclopentanol by acetic acid addition and transesterification, cyclopentanone by oxidation with N₂O, cyclopentene oxide and cyclopentylphenol, and it is the monomer for polycyclopentene rubber by ring-opening metathesis polymerization.
Tert-amyl alcohol as solvent and building block
Tert-amyl alcohol is liquid at room temperature (melting point -9 °C, boiling point 102.4 °C) and is used as a solvent in place of tert-butyl alcohol, as the source of sodium tert-amylate base, as an intermediate in the synthesis of drugs and perfumes, and in color-film couplers.
INDUSTRY CHALLENGES
Challenges You Face
1
Related-substance limits differ by product: cyclopentanone is specified at cyclopentanol ≤0.1% and CPME ≤0.05%, cyclopentene at cyclopentadiene ≤0.1%
2
Water limits are not uniform: ≤0.05% in cyclopentanone, ≤0.1% in tert-amyl alcohol, ≤0.5% in cyclopentanol and CPME, so compare each figure with its unit, not only the purity
3
Replacing THF, 2-MeTHF, MTBE or dioxane with CPME starts from a defined grade: ≥99.5% content, moisture ≤0.5% and benzene ≤0.02%; water-sensitive organometallic steps dry the solvent further, and a process that needs a peroxide limit or a specific stabilizer states it in the enquiry
4
Qualifying a new source takes documentation and a sample: technical data and SDS on request, samples available; benzene is ICH Q3C Class 1 (2 ppm in drug product), so the benzene limit is checked first
GRADES & SUPPLY
Grades, Limits and Packaging
Key values from each product's specification. See the product pages for the full tables; technical data and SDS on request.
| Product | Grade | Key limits | Packaging |
|---|---|---|---|
| CPME (Cyclopentyl Methyl Ether) | CPME ≥99.5% | moisture ≤0.5%; benzene ≤0.02% | 170 kg iron drum or ISO tank |
| Cyclopentanone | Cyclopentanone ≥99% | cyclopentanol ≤0.1%; CPME ≤0.05%; moisture ≤0.05% | 190 kg iron drum or ISO tank |
| Cyclopentanol | Cyclopentanol ≥99.0% (GC) | water ≤0.5% (w/v) | 200 kg iron drum or ISO tank |
| Cyclopentene | Cyclopentene ≥99.0% | cyclopentadiene ≤0.1%; sulfur ≤1 µg/mL | 150 kg lacquered iron drum or ISO tank |
| Tert-Amyl Alcohol (TAA) | Tert-amyl alcohol ≥99.0% | color ≤10 APHA; water ≤0.1% | 165 kg iron drum or ISO tank |
OUR SOLUTIONS
How We Help
CPME ≥99.5% in 170 kg iron drums or ISO tanks; store below 25 °C
Cyclopentanone ≥99% in 190 kg drums, cyclopentanol ≥99.0% (GC) in 200 kg drums, cyclopentene ≥99.0% in 150 kg lacquered iron drums, tert-amyl alcohol ≥99.0% in 165 kg drums; all also in ISO tanks
Related products come from one large-scale C5 processing partner in Shandong, so they can be asked for in a single enquiry
Technical data and SDS on request; samples available for qualification testing
PRODUCTS
Products for This Industry
Get a Quote for Pharma and Fine Chemical Intermediates
Send us the product, grade, quantity and destination. Technical data and SDS are available on request, and samples are available for qualification testing.