Butanone Quality Identification & Key Reference Parameters

I. Core Purity Indicators (Most Critical)

MEK Content (Purity)

- High-quality grade: ≥ 99.5%

- Qualified grade: ≥ 99.0%

Lower purity results in weaker solvency, mixed odors, and heavier residues.

Moisture Content

- High-quality standard: ≤ 0.1%

High moisture causes:

- Whitening of coatings / inks

- Emulsification and separation of resins

- Slower drying

Acidity (calculated as acetic acid)

- High-quality standard: ≤ 0.002%

High acidity corrodes equipment, affects resin stability, and causes deterioration of adhesives / coatings.

Chromaticity (Platinum‑Cobalt scale)

- High-quality standard: ≤ 10 Hazen units

Darker color indicates more impurities, oxidation, or degradation during storage.

II. Appearance and Odor (Rapid Judgment Method)

Appearance: Colorless transparent liquid, free of turbidity, suspended solids, or layering.

Odor: Typical ketone-like pungent odor; no sour, foul, oily, or alcoholic odors.

Abnormal odors indicate excessive impurities or adulteration (e.g., blending with acetone or mixed solvents).

III. Evaporation Residue (Judging Adulteration with Low‑Grade Solvents)

- High-quality butanone: almost no residue after evaporation

- Oil film, stickiness, or white powder after evaporation → contains heavy oil, aromatics, or high-boiling impurities, which severely affect drying and film formation.

IV. Distillation Range (Judging Solvent Blending)

- Normal MEK distillation range: 78.5–80.5 °C

- Overly wide range → contains light components (acetone) or heavy components (toluene, xylene, etc.)

- Lower boiling point → likely adulterated with acetone

- Higher boiling point → blended with other solvents

V. Practical Performance (Most Intuitive)

Solvency

Good quality: fast dissolution of PU, acrylic, and nitrocellulose resins, clear and floc‑free.

Drying Speed

Evaporates uniformly, neither too fast nor too slow.

Whitening Resistance

No whitening during application in high-humidity environments → low moisture and high purity.

Residual Odor

Almost no odor after drying → high purity.