ABSTRACT
1,4-Dioxane has many uses beyond its key role as a stabilizer for methyl chloroform. It is used directly in several industrial and commercial processes and is found in a wide range of consumer products. 1,4-Dioxane also occurs as a by-product in the production of certain surfactants, synthetic textiles, plastics, and resins. 1,4-Dioxane possesses some unique and surprising chemical properties, upon which its industrial utility and environmental fate depend. 1,4-Dioxane was first described by A. V. Lourenco in 1863 as the product of reacting ethylene glycol and 1,2-dibromoethane. Lourenco published his discovery of 1,4-dioxane in Annales de Chimie et de Physique. In the same year, the derivation of 1,4-dioxane from ethylene oxide was described by A. Wurtz in a later issue of the same journal. 1,4-Dioxane is produced from ethylene glycol. The most commonly used process involves heating ethylene glycol to 160°C and reacting it with concentrated sulfuric acid under a vacuum.
