Isopropyl alcohol - IPA

Other name: isopropanol, dimethyl carbinol.

Isopropyl alcohol is a colorless, flammable chemical compound with a strong odor. As an isopropyl group linked to a hydroxyl group, it is the simplest example of a secondary alcohol, where the alcohol carbon atom is attached to two other carbon atoms. It is a structural isomer of 1-propanol and ethyl methyl ether.

Applications:

• To clean surfaces, both alone and as a component of a general-purpose cleaner as a solvent. It has the benefit of being non-corrosive to metals or plastics, so it can be used widely, on all surfaces, and won't leave smears, even on glass or screens.
  
• It is also used in aftershave lotions, hand lotions, and other cosmetics. In industry, it is used as an inexpensive solvent for cosmetics, drugs, shellacs, and gums, as well as for denaturing ethanol (ethyl alcohol).
• It is the most common and widely used disinfectant within pharmaceutics, hospitals, clean rooms, and electronics or medical device manufacturing. This is the active ingredient in any hand sanitizer recipe, and it needs to comprise at least 60% of the product in order to be an effective disinfectant.