When using alcohol in your products, you will often hear the distinction between pure alcohol and denatured alcohol. But what exactly is denatured alcohol? And how does it differ from pure ethanol?
Essentially, denatured alcohol is ethanol rendered unfit for human consumption by mixing in denaturants. A denaturant is a chemical ingredient that makes the ethanol unpalatable and gives it an unpleasant taste or smell. There are several types of denaturants that are used worldwide, and several reasons why they play such a big role in the ethanol distribution industry.
Ethanol has numerous applications across many different industries, from food, beverages and personal care to pharmaceuticals and electronics. Most countries place excise taxes on any alcohol that can be used in alcoholic beverages or food, but ethanol that can’t be used for human consumption is exempt from these excise duties. So, for customers that are in need of ethanol for non-food purposes, such as in the industry sector, alcohol is denatured to ensure that it can’t be used for human consumption and therefore won’t be subject to excise duties.
At Nedstar, we use several different types of denaturants to denature your alcohol. Next to the ones Nedstar offers, there are various other types of denaturants used in ethanol, each with its own properties and applications. Some of the most common denaturants include:
The term ‘partially denatured alcohol’ is commonly used in the European Union and refers to alcohol that is denatured with only one denaturant or a different mix of denaturants than Eurodenatured. Euro denatured alcohol is therefore considered to be completely denatured. Partially denatured applies to denatured alcohol in products not intended for human consumption, but for which the rules on completely denatured alcohol are not suitable. Examples of such products are cosmetics, perfumes, hygiene products, bio-fuels, screen wash, anti-freeze, inks, and cleaning material.
While it is technically possible to transform denatured alcohol back into pure alcohol, it is highly regulated or even illegal to do so in many countries. As a general rule, the chemicals involved in the denaturation process are specifically chosen to make it difficult and impractical to reverse denaturation.
Denatured alcohol has numerous applications across many industries. Aside from its useful physical properties, denatured ethanol owes much of its rapidly growing popularity to the lower excise duties it carries. However, the amount of different chemicals used and regulations around denaturation are highly dependent on the country and economic region, increasing the risk of misunderstandings. With experienced ethanol distribution partners such as Nedstar, customers can source suitable alcohol products for their industries with more ease and without compromising on quality.