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Sigma-Aldrich

Paraformaldehyde

prilled, 95%

Synonym(s):

Polyoxymethylene

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About This Item

Linear Formula:
HO(CH2O)nH
CAS Number:
Molecular Weight:
30.03 (as monomer)
MDL number:
UNSPSC Code:
12352100
PubChem Substance ID:
NACRES:
NA.22
Pricing and availability is not currently available.

vapor density

1.03 (vs air)

vapor pressure

<1.45 mmHg ( 25 °C)

Assay

95%

form

prilled

autoignition temp.

572 °F

expl. lim.

73 %

mp

120-170 °C (lit.)

transition temp

sublimation point 150 °C

solubility

alcohol and cold water: slightly soluble
ethers, hydrocarbons and carbon tetrachloride: insoluble

density

0.88 g/mL at 25 °C (lit.)

SMILES string

[O-]#[C+H2]

InChI

1S/CH2O/c1-2/h1H2

InChI key

WSFSSNUMVMOOMR-UHFFFAOYSA-N

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General description

Paraformaldehyde, a polymerization product of formaldehyde, is used in the polycondensation reaction for the synthesis of thermoset polymers. [1]

Paraformaldehyde is also referred as polyoxymethylene. It participates in the regioselective reductive coupling reactions of dienes, alkynes and allenes in the presence of ruthenium catalyst.[2] It also participates in the synthesis of esters, via alkoxycarbonylation of alkenes.[3]

Application

Formaldehyde source to prepare phenol-, urea-, furfuryl alcohol-, resorcinol- and melamine-formaldehyde polymers for use in coatings, wood products, textiles and foundry resins.
Paraformaldehyde may be used in the preparation of azomethine ylide,[4] α-methylenechromanes, α-methylenequinoline and ortho-quinone methides.[5]

Features and Benefits

Source of methanol-free formaldehyde.
Decomposes in hot water to give formaldehyde.

Signal Word

Danger

Hazard Classifications

Acute Tox. 4 Inhalation - Acute Tox. 4 Oral - Carc. 1B - Eye Dam. 1 - Flam. Sol. 2 - Muta. 2 - Skin Irrit. 2 - Skin Sens. 1 - STOT SE 3

Target Organs

Respiratory system

Storage Class Code

4.1B - Flammable solid hazardous materials

WGK

WGK 2

Flash Point(F)

Not applicable

Flash Point(C)

Not applicable

Personal Protective Equipment

dust mask type N95 (US), Eyeshields, Gloves

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Brannon Sam et al.
Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English), 54(11), 3267-3274 (2014-11-29)
Ruthenium-catalyzed reductive couplings of paraformaldehyde with dienes, alkynes, and allenes provide access to products of hydrohydroxymethylation that cannot be formed selectively under the conditions of hydroformylation. In certain cases, the regioselectivity of the CC coupling can be inverted by using
Synthesis of ethanol from paraformaldehyde, CO 2 and H 2
Green Chemistry, 19, 4396-4401 (2017)
Ruthenium-Catalyzed Alkoxycarbonylation of Alkenes with Paraformaldehyde as a Carbon Monoxide Substitute.
Liu Q, et al.
ChemCatChem, 6(10), 2805-2809 (2014)
J Justin Mulvey et al.
International journal of nanomedicine, 9, 4245-4255 (2014-09-18)
We aimed to create a more robust and more accessible standard for amine-modifying single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). A 1,3-cycloaddition was developed using an azomethine ylide, generated by reacting paraformaldehyde and a side-chain-Boc (tert-Butyloxycarbonyl)-protected, lysine-derived alpha-amino acid, H-Lys(Boc)-OH, with purified SWCNT
José C J M D S Menezes et al.
Chemistry (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany), 20(42), 13644-13655 (2014-08-30)
In view of increasing demands for efficient photosensitizers for photodynamic therapy (PDT), we herein report the synthesis and photophysical characterizations of new chlorin e6 trimethyl ester and protoporphyrin IX dimethyl ester dyads as free bases and Zn(II) complexes. The synthesis of these

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    1 answer
    1. If this product has an expiration or retest date, it will be shown on the Certificate of Analysis (COA, CofA). If there is no retest or expiration date listed on the product's COA, we do not have suitable stability data to determine a shelf life. For these products, the only date on the COA will be the release date; a retest, expiration, or use-by-date will not be displayed.
      For all products, we recommend handling per defined conditions as printed in our product literature and website product descriptions. We recommend that products should be routinely inspected by customers to ensure they perform as expected.
      For products without retest or expiration dates, our standard warranty of 1 year from the date of shipment is applicable.
      For more information, please refer to the Product Dating Information document: https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/deepweb/assets/sigmaaldrich/marketing/global/documents/449/386/product-dating-information-mk.pdf

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    1. Products may be shipped at a different temperature than the recommended long-term storage temperature. If the product quality is sensitive to short-term exposure to conditions other than the recommended long-term storage, it will be shipped on wet or dry-ice. If the product quality is NOT affected by short-term exposure to conditions other than the recommended long-term storage, it will be shipped at ambient temperature. As shipping routes are configured for minimum transit times, shipping at ambient temperature helps control shipping costs for our customers. For more information, please refer to the Storage and Transport Conditions document: https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/deepweb/assets/sigmaaldrich/marketing/global/documents/316/622/storage-transport-conditions-mk.pdf

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