In 1794, physician Jan Rudolph Deiman, merchant Adriaan Paets van Troostwijk, chemist Anthoni Lauwerenburg, and botanist Nicolaas Bondt, under the name of Society of Dutch Chemists, were the first to produce 1,2-dichloroethane from olefiant gas and chlorine gas. Although the Gezelschap in practice did not do much in-depth scientific research, they and their publications were highly regarded. Part of that acknowledgement is that 1,2-dichloroethane was called "Dutch oil" in old chemistry. This is also the origin of the archaic term "olefiant gas" for ethylene, for in this reaction it is ethylene that makes the Dutch oil. And "olefiant gas" is the etymological origin of the modern term "olefins", the family of hydrocarbons of which ethylene is the first member.
Production
Nearly 20 million tons of 1,2-dichloroethane are produced in the United States, Western Europe, and Japan. Production is primarily achieved through the iron chloride-catalysed reaction of ethylene and chlorine: 1,2-dichloroethane is also generated by the copper chloride-catalysed oxychlorination of ethylene: In principle, it can be prepared by the chlorination of ethane and, less directly, from ethanol.
Approximately 95% of the world's production of 1,2-dichloroethane is used in the production of vinyl chloride monomer with hydrogen chloride as a byproduct. VCM is the precursor to polyvinyl chloride. The hydrogen chloride can be re-used in the production of more 1,2-dichloroethane via the oxychlorination route described above.
Other uses
As a good polar aprotic solvent, 1,2-dichloroethane could be used as degreaser and paint remover but is now banned from use due to its toxicity and possible carcinogenity. As a useful 'building block' reagent, it is used as an intermediate in the production of various organic compounds such as ethylenediamine. In the laboratory it is occasionally used as a source of chlorine, with elimination of ethene and chloride. Via several steps, 1,2-dichloroethane is a precursor to 1,1,1-trichloroethane, which is used in dry cleaning. Historically, 1,2-dichloroethane was used as an anti-knock additive in leaded fuels to scavenge lead from cylinders and valves preventing buildup.
Safety
1,2-Dichloroethane is toxic, highly flammable, and possibly carcinogenic. Its high solubility and 50-year half-life in anoxic aquifers make it a perennial pollutant and health risk that is very expensive to treat conventionally, requiring a method of bioremediation. While the chemical is not used in consumer products manufactured in the U.S., a case was reported in 2009 of molded plastic consumer products from China that released 1,2-dichloroethane into homes at levels high enough to produce cancer risk. Substitutes are recommended and will vary according to application. Dioxolane and toluene are possible substitutes as solvents. Dichloroethane is unstable in the presence of aluminium metal and, when moist, with zinc and iron.
