What Is Naphthalene?
Naphthalene is an aromatic hydrocarbon with a bicyclic fused ring. When exposed to ultraviolet light, naphthalene emits a purple fluorescence.
Naphthalene has a distinctive odor and sublimates at room temperature. Naphthalene is insoluble in water, but soluble in many organic solvents, such as ethanol, ether, and benzene.
Naphthalene is a useful synthetic intermediate when it undergoes elementary, sulfonation, nitration, and other reactions.
Naphthalene is the most abundant component in coal tar and is obtained by refining coal tar. When naphthalene oil extracted from coal tar is forced to cool, naphthalene precipitates as crystals.
Uses of Naphthalene
Naphthalene is highly volatile even at room temperature and is widely used in daily life as an insecticide and deodorant. Phthalic anhydride, which is produced from naphthalene, is also used as raw material for polyester fiber.
Naphthalene is also widely used as a dye intermediate, synthetic resin, insecticide, sterilizer, fuel, surfactant, dispersant for emulsion polymerization that gives rubber flexibility, and raw material for organic chemical synthesis such as organic pigments.
Hydrogenation of naphthalene yields tetralin and decalin, which are useful solvents for chemical synthesis and the production of ink paints.