Tetrachloroethylene or Perchloroethylene (PCE)

Product Overview & Quality

Product Name: Tetrachloroethylene or Perchloroethylene (PCE)
Brand: RCI LABSCAN (Product Code: LA-AR1198-G2.5L)
Grade: Analytical Reagent (AR Grade) featuring a certified premium high purity of 99.8 percent or higher. Manufactured and quality-verified under RCI LABSCAN strict global laboratory specifications to ensure exceptionally low ppm thresholds of water content, non-volatile matter, and free acidity. This highly refined chlorinated hydrocarbon profile eliminates background baseline interference and guarantees absolute analytical reliability for quantitative measurements under advanced instrumentation.
Physical Properties: Clear, colorless, highly volatile, low-viscosity liquid with a distinctive, pungent, chloroform-like odor (associated with dry-cleaning fluid). It possesses a very high specific gravity (sinks heavily beneath water layers) and is completely non-flammable and non-explosive under standard laboratory conditions.
Solubility: Practically insoluble or immiscible with water (approximately 0.015 percent at room temperature, readily forming a bottom organic phase); completely miscible in all proportions with common organic solvents including ethanol, acetone, ether, chloroform, and hexane.
Key Use: Heavily utilized as a primary solvent for extracting and isolating non-polar organic targets, lipids, fats, oils, waxes, and resins in research laboratories. Widely applied in infrared (IR) spectroscopy workflows due to its lack of carbon-hydrogen (C-H) bonds, preventing spectral interference across specific wavebands. Commonly used as a specialized component of the mobile phase matrix in chromatographic separation schemes, and functions as an effective tracking reagent in environmental testing for chlorinated contaminant metrics in soil and water engineering.

Safety & Hazards (Critical & Toxic)

Classification: Causes skin irritation. Causes serious eye irritation. May cause drowsiness or dizziness. May cause cancer (Carcinogen). Toxic to aquatic life with long-lasting effects.
Health Risks: Direct eye contact triggers immediate stinging irritation, watering, and localized tissue redness. Prolonged dermal exposure strips natural skin lipids, leading to dry discomfort, cracking, or localized dermatitis. Inhalation of concentrated volatile vapors suppresses the central nervous system, inducing headaches, dizziness, nausea, drowsiness, or mild anesthesia. Long-term cumulative exposure carries high risks of chronic neurotoxicity, hepatic, and renal impairment.
First Aid Measures: Flush affected eyes or skin immediately with plenty of flowing water for at least 15 minutes while removing contaminated garments. If vapors are inhaled, promptly move the victim to fresh air. Seek immediate medical evaluation.

Handling & Storage

Storage: Highly Volatile and Toxic Substance. Vapors can migrate easily and cause adverse health effects upon inhalation. Must be stored in its original, tightly sealed RCI LABSCAN amber glass bottle inside a dedicated chemical safety isolation cabinet. Keep in a cool, dark, strictly dry, and excellently ventilated zone at stable room temperature (below 30 degrees Celsius). Keep completely isolated from strong bases, active metals (such as aluminum, barium, or lithium powder), and strong oxidizing agents.
Precautions: Comprehensive specialized PPE is mandatory, including thick chlorinated-solvent-resistant gloves, splash-proof safety goggles, a protective lab coat, and an organic vapor respirator mask. Handle exclusively and strictly within a properly functioning laboratory fume hood to contain volatile vapors and completely eliminate respiratory exposure.