Everything about Hexamethylenetetramine totally explained
|Section2=
|Section3=
}}
Hexamine, also called
hexamethylenetetramine or
methenamine (
INN), is a heterocyclic
organic compound that can be prepared by the
reaction of
formaldehyde and
ammonia. It is
crystalline and white in appearance. Particle size ranges from 80-800 micrometres. It is moderately soluble in water and very soluble in most organic solvents. It has a cage-like structure similar to
adamantane.
It has two very different types of uses: as an
antibiotic (commonly the
hippurate salt,
methenamine hippurate), and as a
solid fuel tablet used for
cooking while
camping or
hiking. The name methenamine is more common in its medicinal uses and hexamine is more common in commercial uses.
Medicinal and food uses
Methenamine hippurate is mainly used for the
prophylaxis (prevention) of
urinary tract infections, where it's
hydrolysed in the
acidic pH of the
urine to form
formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is an effective antiseptic against bacteria and fungi
in vitro, but may not be effective
in vivo - it hasn't been shown to be effective for the treatment of urinary tract infections. Furthermore, certain bacteria (including
Proteus spp. and
Pseudomonas spp.) increase urinary pH, rendering methenamine ineffective. Methenamine can also be used to treat
hyperhidrosis when applied
topically. In
China, a 10% solution is used as a
deodorant. In a recently published systematic review, methenamine salts have been shown to be effective for preventing urinary tract infection in persons without renal tract abnormalities, particularly when used for short-term prophylaxis. On the other hand, it doesn't seem to work in those with neuropathic bladder (or
neurogenic bladder implying problems with muscles and nerves of the urinary system to hold urine in the bladder) or in patients who have renal tract abnormalities.
As a
food additive, hexamine is used as a
preservative in
cheeses. It has
E number E239. In some countries it's banned for this use.
Hexamine can be absorbed through the skin, and some people are
allergic to it. This usually only manifests as a
rash.
Industrial and commercial uses
Hexamine is used as a component with
1,3,5-trioxane in
hexamine fuel tablets (often called Esbit). This solid fuel in tablet form is used by campers, hobbyists, the military and relief organizations for heating camping food or military rations. It burns smokelessly, has a high energy density, doesn't liquify while burning and leaves no ashes.
Another important area for use of hexamine is in the production of powdery or liquid preparations of
phenolic resins and phenolic
resin moulding compounds, where hexamine is added as a hardening component. These products are used as binders, for example in brake and clutch linings, abrasive products, non-woven textiles, formed parts produced by moulding processes, and fireproof materials.
It is used in
rubber and textile
adhesives, in paints and lacquers, in the
photographic industry, in the production of
explosives such as
RDX and
Hexanite, as a
corrosion inhibitor, as a
protein modifier, as a
reagent in
chemical analysis, and in the production of
deodorants and
hair fixers, among many other uses.
Reagent in organic chemistry
Hexamine is a
reagent in
organic chemistry. It is used in the
Duff reaction (formylation of arenes), the
Sommelet reaction (converting benzyl halides to aldehydes) and in the
Delepine reaction (synthesis of amines from alkyl halides).
Producers
Vesta Pharmaceuticals, Inc offers Methenamine tablet for Timed Burning which is used for the US Government Safety Measure.
Since 1990 the number of European producers has been significantly declining. The French SNPE closed the factory 1990, in 1993 the production of Hexamine in Leuna / Germany was ceased. 1996 the Italian facility of Agrolinz was closed down and 2001 the UK producer Borden closed down the site. In 2006 the production unit of Chemko, Slovakian Republic, was closed down. The remaining producers are INEOS in Germany, Caldic in the Netherlands and Hexion in Italy. Further closures are to be expected.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Hexamethylenetetramine'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://hexamine.totallyexplained.com">Hexamine Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
