2-MeTHF: A Green Solvent with Better Performance

Penn A Kem's Viridisol® M (2-MeTHF): Higher Extraction Yields + Easier Recycling = Cost Savings 
 

In today's chemical industry, finding new ways to improve the sustainability of chemical manufacturing processes while balancing performance and cost is increasingly important. When carrying out extractions and Grignard, biphasic, or organometallic reactions, Penn A Kem's bio-based Viridisol® M (methyltetrahydrofuran, 2-MeTHF) offers improved performance, reduced costs, and minimized environmental impact when replacing solvents such as tetrahydrofuran (THF) and methylene chloride (dichloromethane, DCM). 

Penn A Kem's 2-MeTHF has made immediate impacts on chemical manufacturing processes and applications within the pharmaceutical, flavor and fragrance, and specialty chemical industries in the following ways: 

Better Performance 

• Easier product recovery 

• Improved yields for bromo, benzyl, and allyl Grignard reagents 

• Better drying with fewer losses and lower costs for easier recycling than THF 

• Cleaner phase separations than THF with toluene 

• Higher reaction temperatures and fewer losses 

• Better stability in acidic and basic conditions 

Green 

• Derived from furfural originating from agricultural waste products 

• Not tied to oil-derived raw materials  

• Manufactured with compliance to SOCMA's EHS&S Management System 

• Catalysts used in manufacturing process are recovered and recycled 

• Hydrogen used in 2-MeTHF synthesis is produced on-site and on demand 
   

Solvent Comparison Information 

Example Applications for 2-MeTHF: 
 

• Organometallic/metal-catalyzed coupling reactions 

• Organopalladium reactions 

• Organozinc reactions 

• Reformatsky reactions 

• Organolithium reactions 

• Lithiation reactions 

• Lithium hydride reductions 

• Grignard reactions 

• Biphasic reactions 

• Extractions of APIs, catalysts, and more 
   

Why choose 2-MeTHF over tetrahydrofuran (THF)? Compared to THF, 2-MeTHF provides the following benefits: 

• More efficient extraction solvent for a wide range of extract polarities 

• Reduces the number of extraction steps and increases product recovery 

• Increases yield in Grignard reactions by up to 300%, depending on the reagent 

• Cleaner phase separations using water; does not require the addition of toluene to achieve phase separation 

• Safer due to its lower volatility and higher flash point 

• Higher boiling point, resulting in less solvent lost to the atmosphere 

• Inversely soluble in water 

• Easier to recycle and dry, reducing recycling costs 

• More stable in both acidic and basic conditions 

• Degrades about 6x slower under typical process conditions 

• Derived from renewable resources and not petroleum 
   

Why choose 2-MeTHF over methylene chloride/dichloromethane (DCM)? Compared to DCM, 2-MeTHF provides the following benefits: 
 

• Strong solvent for polar compounds typically soluble in DCM 

• Non-halogenated solvent 

• Allows water washes to decant from the reactor bottom instead of the top 

• Inversely soluble in water 

• Higher boiling point, resulting in less solvent lost to the atmosphere 

• More effective drying solvent due to the water content in the azeotrope 
   

Why Choose Penn A Kem's MeTHF? 
 

• Penn A Kem is the world leader in furan ring chemistries and has been the premier producer of MeTHF for over 25 years. 

• Penn A Kem's MeTHF is derived from agricultural waste products that would otherwise rot 

• Penn A Kem's MeTHF is 100% made in the USA