Main-Product

Most low molecular weight chlorinated hydrocarbons such as chloroform, dichloromethane, dichloroethene, and trichloroethane are useful solvents. These solvents tend to be relatively non-polar; they are therefore immiscible with water and effective in cleaning applications such as degreasing and dry cleaning. Several billion kilograms of chlorinated methanes are produced annually, mainly by chlorination of methane:

CH₄ + x Cl₂ → CH_4−xCl_x + x HCl

Among these, dichloromethane (CH₂Cl₂), chloroform (CHCl₃) and carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄) are in a liquid state under ambiant conditions of pressure and temperature. Dichloromethane (CH₃Cl₂) is mainly used as a solvent. Chloroform is mainly a precursor to chlorodifluoromethane (CHClF₂) and tetrafluoroethene (F₂C-CF₂) which is used in the manufacture of Teflon.

Source: Infogalactic, Organochloride and Carbon tetrachoride.

Liquid